Welcome to this page about Guinea Pigs. There is no such thing as guinea pig ranching, really; I'm just goofing around a little during the first draft of this page. I'll probably use a more serious title in future editions. Meanwhile, here's a little introductory information and what I hope to eventually complete on this page:
Common health problems
What to expect when you go to the vet with a guinea pig problem
Breeding tips and information
Orphan Care
recipes (JUST KIDDING !)
Misc Information and comments
As usual, a selection of books about this and related topics
Links
Introduction
Guinea pigs were possibly treated as pets by the aboriginal peoples of the northern highlands of South America prior to their discovery by Europeans in the 1500's. I’m not sure. But they certainly became popular as pets and novelties, as were all things from the “new world” afterwards. Ever since, they have been bred and selected for various colors, coats, and disposition.
Basic Information:
Male guinea pigs are called boars, the females are called sows, and the babies are called guinea piglets.
Diet is strictly herbivore
Most active just before sunrise and sunset
4 basic coat types: short hair (English coat), long hair curly (Abyssinian), long haired straight (Peruvian), and medium fine (silky). And every combination you might get from interbreeding these basic types.
Try to avoid grabbing and holding a guinea pig over it’s back ... they have trouble breathing if you do... try to support most of their weight by holding their chest.
Long digestive tracts typical of herbivores with a large ceca (like horses and rabbits). A ceca is a large digestive pouch or dead end tube where grasses, alfalfa, straw, and hays can be better digested. We humans, as well as other mammals have a ceca too, except it’s too small and undeveloped to be functional and we call it an appendix.
Guinea Pigs have teeth that continually grow.
There are no real health hazards to having guinea pigs except that some people are allergic to their dander. Guinea pigs are generally pretty friendly, but some aren’t and they can bite if provoked, hurt, or frightened. And people with suppressed immune systems, including pregnant women, might in rare cases be susceptible to the fecal bacteria (salmonella) carried by guinea pigs.
Heart rate averages 300 beats/minute
Respiratory rate ranges from 40-110/minute
Rectal Temp ranges from 99-103 F
Body weights range from 700-1200 grams with the males tending to be larger
Life span is about 5 years
Basic Breeding Information:
Sow guinea pigs are ready to breed as early as 3 months old. Gestation is between 60-70 days. The piglets need to nurse for about 2-3 weeks and are then ready to wean. A typical litter size is up to 5.
It’s important to breed guinea pigs ... if you’re going to breed them at all ... before 8 months of age or they are more likely to need C sections.
Guinea Pigs don’t build nests. It’s recommended to separate the boar prior to delivery to prevent the boar from killing the young.
Guinea pigs can be kept in groups, which is kind of fun, but they are sometimes pretty mean about establishing a pecking order.
Basic Nutrition Information:
Like rabbits and horses, guinea pigs are fairly diet sensitive. Their gut flora is sensitive to antibiotics, and they must have a source of vitamin C. We vets frequently see nutritional related diseases in guinea pigs ... especially if not fed fresh, commercial guinea pig pellets or supplemented with vitamin C rich foods such as parsley (about .5 ounces daily), broccoli (1 ounce), oranges (2 ounces), cabbage (2 ounces), or turnip greens (.5 ounces). The actual requirement is for about 10mg daily. Double that to about 20mg during pregnancy and nursing. If you supplement by adding a vitamin C pill or drops to their water, don’t buy the drops made for children that include vitamin D, or you risk vitamin D poisoning. Also remember to change the water daily. A good rule of thumb is to add about 250mg of vitamin C (a typical size tablet) per cup of water.
Common veterinary problems:
Respiratory disease, which is tricky because the use of life saving antibiotics might lead to life threatening diarrhea.
Vitamin C deficiencies (Scurvy) leading to abscess’, mouth odors, general weakness and lack of appetite, etc
Abscesses and masses are quite common.
Badly overgrown teeth that need to be clipped. If you do this yourself, wear safety glasses; the teeth fragments often go flying at high speed.
Skin problems include mites and a condition known as “barbering” which occurs when a dominate guinea pigs chews on the back of a submissive guinea pig in the pecking order.
The mites that guinea pigs can get (sarcoptes) might possibly cause an infestation or temporary rash in humans handlers, but this is pretty uncommon.
Bladder infections and bladder stones are fairly common.
I'll try to write about the following topics in more detail soon. Thanks for being patient:
Common health problems
What to expect when you go to the vet with a guinea pig problem
Breeding tips and information
Orphan Care
Misc Information and comments
Links
