This is the information I give out with a guinea pig
Guinea pigs are highly interesting small animals to care for. Here is an article from ARBA on choosing your own cavy.
They cannot make their own vitamin C so it is important to either purchase a good quality feed (aka martin's little friends guinea pig food) for them, or to supplement their diet with it. Many people will put a chewable vitamin C tablet in their drinking water, still others will offer fruits and vegetables with a high Vitamin C content.
Guinea pigs can do just fine only eating pellets.
You may wish to add more roughage to their diet using hay. They thoroughly enjoy tunneling through hay munching away at it. Some people say they need hay daily, I find that roughage given at least three times a week works well, particularly since mine are on a pellet based diet.
Guinea pigs enjoy running in colonies together. They often bond with one or two others and simply like hanging out with them. Small groups of bachelor males work well, as do groups of females. If looking to breed I would recommend one boar with 1-3 females. IF you do not want to breed you may wish to consider getting your boar neutered.
Guinea pigs live 3-7 years on average. They can die for seemingly no apparent reason, but generally if you treat your piggie well, it will live a longer life.
Some guinea pigs can be trained to go in a litter.
They cannot be raised on wire floors well as they can easily slip their feet through the cracks and break a leg. If you look on-line you can find numerous housing options for your guinea pig. C & C cages is usually what they are called.
Some guinea pigs can be trained to sit still, to 'shake a paw' and a host of other tricks. Many guinea pigs will sit quietly with their person and start to wiggle when they wish to go back to their house.
Since guinea pigs are highly prone to getting mites, fleas and etc. ALL my guinea pigs are treated with ivermectin before they leave here. They can pick them up via their bedding, litter, the ground, your house, the hay you feed and such like. You can even carry it in via your clothing. It is not a life threatening thing, it is just part of owning a guinea pig. Easily treated using ivermectin.
They cannot make their own vitamin C so it is important to either purchase a good quality feed (aka martin's little friends guinea pig food) for them, or to supplement their diet with it. Many people will put a chewable vitamin C tablet in their drinking water, still others will offer fruits and vegetables with a high Vitamin C content.
Guinea pigs can do just fine only eating pellets.
You may wish to add more roughage to their diet using hay. They thoroughly enjoy tunneling through hay munching away at it. Some people say they need hay daily, I find that roughage given at least three times a week works well, particularly since mine are on a pellet based diet.
Guinea pigs enjoy running in colonies together. They often bond with one or two others and simply like hanging out with them. Small groups of bachelor males work well, as do groups of females. If looking to breed I would recommend one boar with 1-3 females. IF you do not want to breed you may wish to consider getting your boar neutered.
Guinea pigs live 3-7 years on average. They can die for seemingly no apparent reason, but generally if you treat your piggie well, it will live a longer life.
Some guinea pigs can be trained to go in a litter.
They cannot be raised on wire floors well as they can easily slip their feet through the cracks and break a leg. If you look on-line you can find numerous housing options for your guinea pig. C & C cages is usually what they are called.
Some guinea pigs can be trained to sit still, to 'shake a paw' and a host of other tricks. Many guinea pigs will sit quietly with their person and start to wiggle when they wish to go back to their house.
Since guinea pigs are highly prone to getting mites, fleas and etc. ALL my guinea pigs are treated with ivermectin before they leave here. They can pick them up via their bedding, litter, the ground, your house, the hay you feed and such like. You can even carry it in via your clothing. It is not a life threatening thing, it is just part of owning a guinea pig. Easily treated using ivermectin.
Places to go for additional assistance
Guinea Lynx. This is one of the best places I know to go for assistance.
Home Made Housing for Piggies. Bigger is better! For the health and well-being of your guinea pigs, beyond the minimums, provide as large a living area as you can manage. Cubes and Coroplast (C&C) cages are an easy and inexpensive alternative to the small cages sold at pet stores.
ARBA article on Caring for guinea pigs. (shortened)
Number One is care of the cavy in terms of cleanliness
Keeping the cavy pens clean is vital and important in many spectrums of cavy husbandry. For one, your cavy stays cleaner so the coat stays healthier and there are less incidents of mites, lice, etc, for you and your cavies to deal with. Weekly cleaning of your pens create a clean environment for the animals to eat, drink and live in. If cavies feel good, they will also eat better and their food will be cleaner when they eat it. Clean cavies are also more stimulated to breed. ......
Number two is feeding
It’s important that you feed your animals a good quality feed. ..... It's very important that you get fresh feed as often as possible, and that the feed doesn't show any signs of mold or age,.......If you don't have access to a good quality cavy feed, you can use a good quality rabbit feed.
Clean, fresh water is extremely important
An animal will not eat appropriately without water. As a matter of fact, if you deprive a cavy of water, it won't eat at all, and they can literally starve themselves to death. Water should be fresh, and it should be clean.
The environment your pigs live in
Where you house your pigs is very vital as well. It's important that you not only keep your animals protected from the elements of wind, sun, and extreme cold, but from moisture. ..... It's important to remember that whatever environment you choose to house your cavies in, be sure to slowly acclimate the cavies into it to ensure a successful transition and therefore reduce the number of casualties in your barn.
Keeping your cavies comfortable by keeping them clean, well fed and watered, plus providing a dry, good air quality environment, your pigs will thrive to success.
Home Made Housing for Piggies. Bigger is better! For the health and well-being of your guinea pigs, beyond the minimums, provide as large a living area as you can manage. Cubes and Coroplast (C&C) cages are an easy and inexpensive alternative to the small cages sold at pet stores.
ARBA article on Caring for guinea pigs. (shortened)
Number One is care of the cavy in terms of cleanliness
Keeping the cavy pens clean is vital and important in many spectrums of cavy husbandry. For one, your cavy stays cleaner so the coat stays healthier and there are less incidents of mites, lice, etc, for you and your cavies to deal with. Weekly cleaning of your pens create a clean environment for the animals to eat, drink and live in. If cavies feel good, they will also eat better and their food will be cleaner when they eat it. Clean cavies are also more stimulated to breed. ......
Number two is feeding
It’s important that you feed your animals a good quality feed. ..... It's very important that you get fresh feed as often as possible, and that the feed doesn't show any signs of mold or age,.......If you don't have access to a good quality cavy feed, you can use a good quality rabbit feed.
Clean, fresh water is extremely important
An animal will not eat appropriately without water. As a matter of fact, if you deprive a cavy of water, it won't eat at all, and they can literally starve themselves to death. Water should be fresh, and it should be clean.
The environment your pigs live in
Where you house your pigs is very vital as well. It's important that you not only keep your animals protected from the elements of wind, sun, and extreme cold, but from moisture. ..... It's important to remember that whatever environment you choose to house your cavies in, be sure to slowly acclimate the cavies into it to ensure a successful transition and therefore reduce the number of casualties in your barn.
Keeping your cavies comfortable by keeping them clean, well fed and watered, plus providing a dry, good air quality environment, your pigs will thrive to success.
Businesses that Cater to Guinea Pigs
Guinea Pig Market. Makes a variety of material items that might please a guinea pig. They tend NOT to be nibblers but over the years I've learned that some pigs like to dig, others like to nibble. So see what your piggie is like BEFORE you invest in these pet oriented pig items. You don't want to kill your piggie with fluff. :)
Cavy Genetics
MiniFluffs.
Finding good information on breed and color genetics for cavies is MUCH more difficult than rabbits. The following is a compilation of what I've managed to pull together.
Information about Guinea Pigs.
Article on caring for guinea pigs.
- Latin name: Cavia porcellus
- Also called cavies (singular is cavy).
- Females are called sows, males called boars, and babies called pups.
- Approximately 10 inches long, and 2-3 pounds.
- Rounded stout body, no visible tail (a few tail vertebrae can be felt under the skin).
- Variety of breeds with different coat types and color patterns. The most commonly found breeds are the American (short smooth hair coat), Abyssinian (short coat with "swirls" called rosettes) and the Peruvian (long haired). A wide variety of colors are seen. Hairless varieties also available, sometimes called "skinny" pigs. Skinny pigs require special care.
- Guinea pigs are one of the few animals (humans are another) that cannot manufacture their own vitamin C so need to get adequate vitamin C from the diet. Choosing a good quality diet and providing a variety of fresh foods is important, but most owners choose to also give a vitamin C supplement -- and tablets are generally a better way to supplement than adding vitamin C to the water.
- Guinea pigs are social animals, and you should consider keeping a same sex pair so they have company. A pair of females is a good choice; a pair of males may be fine but may fight. Males generally do not fight if raised together.
- They need a large cage (but fortunately it is easy to meet their needs with a home made cage). Examples can be found here and here and images here.
- While usually quiet they can call out quite loudly, and can be active both day and night. Guinea pigs vary in their vocal tendencies.
- They may be nervous at first but rarely bite and generally become very tame with frequent handling. If your guinea pig actually bites you, then you are giving it reason to do so. A guinea pigs instinct is to get away NOT to bite.
- Usually good family pets (but make sure children handle them gently)
- Guinea pigs live on average 3-7 years.
Article on caring for guinea pigs.