Guinea Pig

 

This critter has a very misleading name. It's not from Guinea, which is located in Africa, but rather from Peru (in Souith America). It is alos not in the pig family, instead, it is in the rodent family. They are often called, and correctly so, a Cavy.

A guinea pig makes an excellent first pet for young children. They are inexpensive to purchase, and do not require the space or work that some larger pets do.

They cost very little to feed, have few diseases, and very little odor. They have a life span of 5 to 8 years. They will weigh about 2 lbs. when fully grown.

Their diet consists mainly of commercial pellets, along with hay and treats limited to 15% of their total diet. Treats include rolled oats, carrots with tops, greens such as spinach and dandelions. Calves and Guinea Pigs are like people in that they cannot manufacture Vitamin C. Most commercial feeds contain the proper amount of added Vitamin C. They can also get necessary Vitamin C from dark green leaves.

They learn quickly when they are about to be fed and have a wide variety of vocal sounds. If the same sound is used at every feeding, the calves will associate the sound with food and respond by squealing or whistling. Their food and hay should be kept fresh and dry at all times. They should have a constant supply of fresh water available at all times.

A cavy can be housed in a relatively small cage. If you have more than one, each one should have at least one square foot. For just one, consider a cage size of 12" x 12" x 24" a minimum size. This cage should be kept out of drafts and in an area where it will not be exposed to extreme temperature changes. Pine shaving work well for it's bedding and should be changed as it gets wet or soiled. They adapt easily to a water bottle, which can be atteached to the outside of the cage. Again, as with all animals, provide fresh water daily.

Being from the rodent family, Guinea Pigs like to gnaw and chew on things. If they are housed in cardboard or plastic habitats, they can chew their way out. It is essential to provide something for them to gnaw on. Pine wood blocks are great for this purpose. If they are not given the opportunity to chew and gnaw, they will develop teeth and gum problems. They have been know to chew plastic water bottles. If you use one of these, be sure to hang the bottle on the outside of the cage. The spacing of the wire cage should be small enough to prevent the cavy from chewing on the bottle.

If you house males and females together, the male should be removed before the female gives birth, as she can get pregnant again the day she gives birth.

Long haired breeds must be groomed regularily to keep their hair from getting tangled and snarled. They can be combed and brushed much like a puppy dog. For bathing, use a puppy type shampoo, and make sure it is completely dry before it goes back into it's cage. Adult cavies look very much like baby cavies do. They stay cute forever. They are one of the very few animals that do. With patience, they can even be trained to do tricks.

There are many recognized breeds of cavies. Here is a brief list and description of these.

ABYSSINIAN - rosetted, wiry coat

SATIN ABYSSINIAN - rosetted, shiny wiry coat

CORONET - crested, long hair

CRESTED - crested, short hair

SATIN CRESTED - crested, short hair

PERUMAN - long hair, rosetted

SILKIE - long, without rosettes

SMOOTH COAT - short hair

SATIN SMOOTH COAT - short, shiny coat

TEDDY - dense, kinky coat

SATIN TEDDY - dense, shiny, kinky coat

* Each breed has more than 20 recognized colors, such as white, black, red, beige, orange, multi colored, etc.