10 Best Bedding for Guinea Pigs 2020 [Buying Guide]

Your Authors and Guides

Heather
Patton

Jennifer
Trimbee

Samantha
Dewitt

How to Choose the Best Bedding for Guinea Pigs

What kind of bedding is best for guinea pigs? It’s largely up to you, but we have chosen some great options for your smallest furry friends. Whether you’ve had guinea pigs for years or you’re just getting started, we’re sure you’re going to find your new favorite bedding for guinea pigs on this list. Before we start looking at them, here are some things that you should know about the different types of guinea pig bedding.

Material: Guinea pig bedding should be made of absorbent materials, like paper or wood chips. There are even some bedding products on this list that are made of hemp. These help keep your guinea pigs’ cage clean.

Package Size: How much are you getting? This, of course, refers to the size of the bedding before it absorbs any moisture at all. This will tell you what size cage you can use the bedding with.

Odor Control: If you or someone you live with is sensitive to smells, you’re going to want bedding that has odor control technology. Guinea pig cages are notoriously smelly, so this is a great feature to look for.

Dust-Free: Dust can make you cough, and it can even affect your pets. You’re going to want to go with guinea pig bedding that doesn’t produce any dust when you take it out of the package for the first time.

Expanded Volume: After the bedding has reached its limit for absorption, this is the volume that you’ll be dealing with. This can tell you when you’ll need to clean the cage out and what you’ll be dealing with.

Natural: Natural beddings can be much better for your pets and the environment, and you might even feel more secure using them! Without synthetic materials, most natural bedding is biodegradable and safe when you dispose of it.

Top 10 Products

Now we can start showing you our selections for the best small pet bedding available. What is the best bedding for guinea pigs? That’s your choice, but we’ve done all of our research to help you understand what kind of bedding for guinea pigs you might want to use. Our top pick and budget pick are our favorites, so check them out first before burrowing through the rest of the list.

Small Pet Select Bedding

Our top choice for the best bedding for guinea pigs is this one by Small Pet Select. It’s natural bedding made of unbleached paper, which means that it hasn’t been recycled. The paper has never been printed on, and there are absolutely no chemical additives in the bedding. It’s also a great bedding selection for chinchillas, bunnies, or hamsters. It expands from its package size of 52 liters to an amazing 178 liters when it has reached its absorbent capacity. It can absorb three times more than it weighs initially. It’s soft and great for sensitive animals with sensitivities to harsher beddings. It’s even dust free so they won’t be irritated by it. This type of bedding was created with your pets’ comfort in mind! When you’re debating about fleece vs bedding for guinea pigs, this should be the standard you use for a fleece alternative. Your guinea pigs are absolutely going to love it!

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Carefresh Complete Pet Bedding

The most inexpensive option for your guinea pig’s bedding is the pet bedding from Carefresh Complete. This is another natural paper pet bedding option that will absorb twice its size in liquid. By the time you need to change your guinea pigs’ cage, the 25.7 liters of compact paper has expanded to about 50 liters. It’s entirely sustainable, so you can feel good that your pets’ bedding is environmentally friendly. Though it’s made of renewable wood fibers, it comes with dust control features that will keep you and your pet from sneezing and coughing during a cage change. It can help control pet odors for up to 10 days. It’s compostable and of course biodegradable, and if that’s important to you, this is definitely the inexpensive bedding option for you. You can use it for all of your small furry friends, including hamsters, rats, and bunnies, so it’s versatile for use across multiple animal cages in your home.

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Kaytee Aspen Bedding

When you need to replace the best litter for guinea pigs, look no further than this Aspen bedding by Kaytee. It’s a wood-shavings litter alternative that is actually extremely absorbent. It’s made without oils or inks, so if you have more sensitive pets it’s great for them. Aspen wood makes great shavings, and you can even use it in aquariums or other cages. These shavings are processed in such a way that eliminates the amount of dust they kick up, and they don’t contain any wood debris outside of the larger shaving pieces. Plus, because it is a natural hardwood, it has a great odor control feature that will keep your home smelling great and you and your pets happy! Kaytee has a whole line of other bedding options, but this Aspen wood option smells great. These shavings can absorb about three times their original volume by the time your guinea pigs’ cage needs to be cleaned out.

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Vitakraft Fresh World Bedding

Vitakraft’s Fresh World Bedding is one of the freshest guinea pig bedding on our list. Your pet’s cage will stay smelling fresh for two weeks before it starts to smell, and that’s because it’s paper bedding that isn’t cut into strips. Instead, they come as soft crumbles, which makes good bedding for guinea pigs. The paper that these crumbles are made of is unbleached and nontoxic, as well as being almost completely dustless so that you and your pets will be cough- and sneeze-free while using it. It’s also made without baking soda so that it’s perfectly deodorized and absorbent. It keeps your pets’ cage completely comfortable and easy to clean. These crumbles can absorb about three times their volume in liquid, and with the two weeks of freshness you get, you and your pets will definitely be happy. These crumbles are soft with no harsh edges, making this safe bedding for guinea pigs as well.

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FiberCore Eco-Bedding

The 36 liters of FiberCore Eco-Bedding in this package are made of paper. This bedding is great for all types of furry (and feathered) critters, including gerbils, rats, and birds. The 36 liters of paper guinea pig bedding here expands to 125 liters when it’s completely used, so it absorbs a ton before it has to be changed. This bedding is made of strips of paper, which means that there isn’t any dust when you open up the package or spread it out. You and your pets are going to love this natural. It’s guaranteed to be odor-free for up to a week depending on how many guinea pigs you keep in a cage. It’s sanitary, non-toxic, and great for pets with respiratory problems or other sensitivities. Your nesting pets are going to love this bedding, and it’s made with recycled paper so it’s great for the environment! You and your pet can both be comfortable with this option.

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Healthy Pet HPCC Bedding

This is another wood bedding for guinea pigs and other small animals. Your animals that like to burrow are absolutely going to love this great bedding. It’s made of cedar, so it smells great and goes a great job at keeping your animal’s home smelling great. When you start smelling it, it’s time to start cleaning! It helps to funnel moisture away from your pet, burying it in the bottom layers so that your pets are dry and clean. You can compost this bedding when you’ve pulled it out of the cage. That’s pretty amazing! It’s made from reclaimed wood pulp and entirely biodegradable, so you aren’t harming the environment when you get rid of it. It can absorb about three times its weight in liquid, which is great. This is a great natural pet bedding that will keep your pets warm and comfortable, and it’s much more environmentally friendly than some of the other beddings we found.

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Kaytee Pine Bedding

Kaytee is back on our list again with this great pine bedding alternative, rather than the Aspen bedding we featured earlier. It’s environmentally conscious and completely biodegradable. You can use this softer bedding as compost when your pets are done using it, which is pretty amazing. You can use it in a well-ventilated cage or aquarium to make sure your small furry pets are getting the most benefit. These shavings were processed specifically to reduce the amount of dust that comes off of the shavings. If you or your pet have respiratory sensitivities, you won’t have to worry about this bedding irritating your lungs. It’s a softer wood that is gentle in your guinea pigs’ feet, and it has a nice pine smell that will help your home smell fresh, even after it’s been lightly used. We love how natural and environmentally efficient this bedding is, and you’re going to love how comfortable your pet is.

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Living World Aspen Shavings

Here are some more wooden shavings, but this time they are from Living World. It’s great for smaller pets and pets that have allergies and other respiratory problems. The aspen hardwood shavings can absorb four time their weight in moisture, which is perfect for cages with multiple guinea pigs. Or you can use it for a multiple of other small pets, including chinchillas, rabbits, ferrets, and gerbils. The aspen helps to stop mold and bacteria from growing, providing your pet with a comfortable, clean home. Even when the shavings have been absorbing moisture for a while, your pet stays dry. These are great shavings for burrowing guinea pigs, and it’s easy to clean the cage when it needs to be changed out. These absorbent aspen shavings really make it easy and hassle-free. If you have a pet that has skin sensitivities to most beddings, you should definitely try these, as there are no allergens in these shavings.

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RentACoop Hemp Bedding

What is the best bedding for guinea pigs? This is definitely a great option if you aren’t impressed by wood shavings or paper bedding. This natural bedding is entirely organic, so you can use it in organic waste disposals or compost piles without harming the environment. It smells better than hardwood shavings and absorbs moisture better than most other materials. 300 liter of hemp bedding turns into 50 square feet when it absorbs its capacity in liquid. It’s grown organically without any pesticides or insecticides, and you can even use it for nesting cats, chickens, and horses. It’s comfortable for your pet, and we love that it’s versatile enough to use throughout several different animal cages and pens if you need to. When you don’t want to go with paper or waste any material, you should go with this great natural alternative that will keep your furry friend’s home smelling great for a little longer than other materials.

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Arm & Hammer Paper Bedding

The last of the paper bedding for guinea pigs options is this one by Arm & Hammer, and in a way, we’ve saved the best for last. This bedding is unrivaled when it comes to odor control and absorption. You won’t ever be able to smell that you have a guinea pig cage in your home when you’re using this bedding. It’s 99% dust free without any toxins or pulp used in its production, so it’s natural. It will work overtime to keep your house smelling great and to keep your pet comfortable. It’s great for use with so many animals that you could easily spread a single package over several different animal cages if you have different animals to take care of. It’s light enough and soft enough to be perfect for small paws. Your pets are going to be so comfortable, and they’re going to have so much fun burrowing and playing in this great bedding.

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About the Author

Jennifer Trimbee

Expert Researcher and Writer

Jennifer Trimbee, a lead researcher and writer at GeekWrapped, is an expert writer with many years of experience. Jennifer writes about technology, sports, outdoor, and gear products.

Best Bedding for Guinea Pigs

Top 10 Buying Guide

Our Recommendations

Small Pet Select Bedding

Carefresh Complete Pet Bedding

How to Choose the Best Bedding for Guinea Pigs

Top 10 Products

Small Pet Select Bedding

Carefresh Complete Pet Bedding

Kaytee Aspen Bedding

Vitakraft Fresh World Bedding

FiberCore Eco-Bedding

Healthy Pet HPCC Bedding

Kaytee Pine Bedding

Living World Aspen Shavings

RentACoop Hemp Bedding

Arm & Hammer Paper Bedding

About the Author

TOP PICK

Small Pet Select Bedding