Lucky rodents hit the pig time in 'seaside' retirement village

AHOY there! These lucky guinea pigs have never had it so good – with their own luxury ‘seaside’ retirement village.

A volunteer at the National Animal Welfare Trust (NAWT) in Great Shefford built the nautical-themed attractions from pallet wood and upcycled children’s toys donated to the centre by members of the public.

The feature has proved very popular with the inquisitive little creatures.

The retirement village boasts an adventure playground, a yacht and sports car for the well-heeled rodent-about-town, a village watering hole called The New Guinea Arms and a nightclub named Nawty Pigfellows.

Centre manager Tracy Waldron said: “We wanted something which would be creative and unique for our guinea pigs to enjoy, which would also be fun for visitors to the centre.

“However, we are also supporters of sustainability, so the fact that these were made from discarded items was a great plus.

“The guinea pigs seemed very at home in it from the first. I’ve seen them in the pub a lot.”

She added: “The response from the public has been very positive too.

“People, especially children, always make a beeline for it.”

The centre, which is located on Trindledown Farm off the Wantage Road, supports the ‘A Hutch is Not Enough’ campaign by the Rabbit Welfare Association and Fund, which aims to promote animal enrichment for small pets.

The centre is also currently building a rabbit enrichment area, Rabbit World, and will soon be launching an appeal for help from the public.