Cavy Care!
Spud
What is a Guinea Pig?
Guinea Pigs are also known as cavies and the wild cavy comes from Peru in South America. They make very good pets for children as they are easy to handle and very rarely bite or scratch. The domesticated pet cavy comes in a variety of breeds, colours and coat types and one litter can vary dramatically! Some breeds require little or no grooming but there are some breeds, for example the Peruvian, that require daily grooming when in full coat. Guinea Pigs have an average lifespan of around 5-6 years although some have known to live past this. Just like pigs on the farm, male guinea pigs are called Boars and female guinea pigs are called Sows. They have a gestation period that is the same as a cat and a dog of around 63-73 days and the babies are perfect miniatures of the adults, fully furred and reasy to go! Guinea pigs are highly sociable animals and should always be housed in same sex pairs or groups and NEVER with a rabbit. Parents must always supervise small children around animals and take the overall responsibilty for them. Handling guinea pigs is fairly easy however they can be quite wriggly as babies and will have to get used to you handling them! Always handle them sitting down so that if they do wriggle free they don't have so far to fall! Baby guinea pigs don't sit still for long so be prepared!
Guinea Pigs are also known as cavies and the wild cavy comes from Peru in South America. They make very good pets for children as they are easy to handle and very rarely bite or scratch. The domesticated pet cavy comes in a variety of breeds, colours and coat types and one litter can vary dramatically! Some breeds require little or no grooming but there are some breeds, for example the Peruvian, that require daily grooming when in full coat. Guinea Pigs have an average lifespan of around 5-6 years although some have known to live past this. Just like pigs on the farm, male guinea pigs are called Boars and female guinea pigs are called Sows. They have a gestation period that is the same as a cat and a dog of around 63-73 days and the babies are perfect miniatures of the adults, fully furred and reasy to go! Guinea pigs are highly sociable animals and should always be housed in same sex pairs or groups and NEVER with a rabbit. Parents must always supervise small children around animals and take the overall responsibilty for them. Handling guinea pigs is fairly easy however they can be quite wriggly as babies and will have to get used to you handling them! Always handle them sitting down so that if they do wriggle free they don't have so far to fall! Baby guinea pigs don't sit still for long so be prepared!