Tasmania's 'tiny town' for guinea pigs a TikTok sensation
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Steve Ransley has always liked guinea pigs but he never expected them to become such a big part of his life.
"I needed some lawnmowers," he said.
"This orchard is about a quarter of an acre big and set out with fruit trees. I got a couple of [guinea pigs] just to use as lawnmowers."
A few years later, at his property outside Hobart, he and his wife are the proud owners of a tiny town that's turning heads.
Called GuineaVale, the "town" is a fully enclosed outdoor community of almost 40 guinea pigs, with a model water reservoir and white picket fence.
It also features handcrafted houses, rodent-sized lounge chairs, a clothesline, and a barbecue area with rubbish and recycling bins.
"I actually fell in love with the guinea pigs myself," Mr Ransley said.
"So every Christmas, every birthday, every father's day what did I get? I got guinea pigs as presents.
"Mainly, I wanted something for the grandkids … one of those memories they would have later in life as something quirky, something different, like we all have about our parents or grandparents."
It's no small effort running the bustling community, with general cleaning and bed changing taking up to 90 minutes twice a day.
Cleaning with a high-pressure hose takes even longer.
Then there's the construction of the two houses which he estimates took about a month each.
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"The houses … every brick, every tile is cut into with a sharp edge and then they're hand-painted, the windows are all made.
"They're quite well insulated — during the summer months, these guys will live inside these houses mainly, and go in and out of them, and then during the colder months they have an indoor area as well."
But, the effort isn't going unnoticed, with GuineaVale amassing a significant social media following.
"The grandkids said to me 'put them on TikTok', and they got a couple of thousand views," he said.
"Then they got 10,000 views, and 100,000 views. Now they're getting millions."
And that's after just 12 months.
Followers can check in on their meal times, playtime, and even their "lightsaber skills".
"Because [GuineaVale] is not a public place … social media is just a great place for me to share the everyday life of these guys.
"People just love seeing [the guinea pigs] in this big open area," he said. "They're in and out of their houses, they're lounging around.
"It's like a full working community of lazy layabouts."
While Mr Ransley has hit his limit for the number of guinea pigs at his property — with the males intentionally kept away from the females, and no ambitions for breeding — there's still plenty to come for GuineaVale itself.
"These guys need a church. I think they can do with a bit of religion," he said.
"And then they'll have a pub — and the pub will serve, obviously, Guinness."
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