Domesticated guinea pigs come in many varieties which have been developed since their arrival in Europe and North America. These varieties vary widely in hair and color composition. The most common varieties found in pet stores are the English Short Hair (also called American) which has a smooth, glossy, short coat, and the Abyssinian which has a rough coat made of cowlicks, crests, and swirls called rosettes. Each of these varieties come in a number of colors and color patterns. The rarer Peruvian has very long hair, hanging all the way to the ground. A rare new breed known as the Texel has long hair like the Peruvian, but this hair is curly and doesn't come over their face.
All over the world there are Cavy Clubs and Associations dedicated to the
showing and breeding of guinea pigs. ACBA (American Cavy Breeders Association)
is the governing body in the U.S. In Canada, the OCC (Ontario Cavy Club) is the
most prominent club, and many others exist. Each club publishes it's own
Standard of Perfection and determines what breeds are eligible for showing.
ACBA has many accepted breeds. These include:
Abyssinian: The Abyssinian cavy has 10 rosettes- one on each shoulder, four
across the "saddle", one on each hip, and two on the rump. An ideal Abyssinian
has a harsh textured coat that stands on end in straight ridges, forming the
rosette pattern. Rosettes should have pinpoint centers.
American (AKA Smooth Coat): The American cavy has short smooth hair all over the
body.
Crested: A Crested is like an American, but has a single rosette on the top of
the head. According to ACBA standards, the Crest must be white coloured with no
white present on the body of the animal. Other clubs allow the crest to be any
colour.
Teddy: A Teddy guinea pig has short, rough hair that stands on end all over the
body, resembling a plush teddy bear.
Silkie: A Silkie has long hair, sometimes up to 24 inches, that flows back over
its body. When viewed from above it should be a teardrop shape.
Peruvian: A Peruvian cavy has long hair like a Silkie, but the hair flows over
the whole body from the center and spreads out, covering the face. When viewed
from above it should look like an oval and the head cannot be distinguished from
the rear.
Coronet: A Coronet cavy has long hair like a Silkie, and a crest like a Crested.
Texel: A Texel is like a Silkie, but with curls. The curls should ideally be
tightly wound corkscrew curls.
Merino and Boucle: Merino is the curly equivalent of a Coronet and a Boucle is
the curly equivalent of a Peruvian. These breeds are not yet accepted according
to ACBA regulations.
All breeds also come in a Satin variety. A satin cavy has a different type of
hair shaft that reflects light, giving it a beautiful, shiny appearance.
Cavies come in many colours, including Black, White, Red, Buff/Cream (blonde),
Chocolate and Beige.
Agouti coloured cavies have a hair tip and root that are different colours, much
like someone whose roots are showing from dyeing their hair. Golden Agouti has a
red tip and black root, Silver Agouti has a white tip and black root and Dilute
Agouti can have a variety of different combinations.
Parti coloured cavies have two or more colours on the body, often white and
another colour. To be eligible for showing, each colour must be present in at
least a one inch by one inch patch. An ideal cavy has several patches of each
color on its body, evenly distributed so that the animal has an equal amount of
each color no matter what angle the animal is viewed from.
Tortoiseshell coloured cavies are black and red.
Roan cavies have white and one or more coloured hair intermixed throughout the
body.
Brindle cavies have two different colour hair intermixed throughout the body
like a Roan.
Dalmation cavies have white hair and black spots. Dalmations also have a unique
eye colour- blue with a red rim.
Two abyssinian guinea pigs. Guinea pigs are widely considered to be good
pets. They are generally easy to care for, and while they do require frequent
cage cleaning and companionship, with a little diligence all their needs can
easily be met. They are considered by many to be very cute and are very verbal
(they squeak) in contact with humans. Guinea pigs who become familiar with their
human seem to consider them part of their herd, and become distraught when
separated for long periods.
Habitat
Guinea pigs can be kept in cages with low sides as they will rarely climb out.
The cage should ideally be as large as possible – 7.5 square feet (0.7 square
metres) for one guinea pig is about the minimum to allow space for moving about,
exercise, and exploration, as they are naturally curious animals. If the guinea
pig is kept in a smaller cage such as those sold in pet stores, it is essential
to allow them daily time to move outside the cage (and this is always a good
idea no matter how big the cage is.) Wire floors should not be used unless the
gaps between the wire are very small. Guinea pigs do not have hair on the soles
of their feet the way most rodents do. If they live on wire floors, they can
develop terrible foot sores. For this reason, it is essential that they be given
a carpet or block of wood to sit on. If the wire grid is too large, their feet
can slip through the wire, causing them to break toes, feet, and legs.
Guinea pigs do best in groups of two or more guinea pigs, as they have a herd
mentality. However it is not advisable to keep guinea pigs and rabbits together
as it is not uncommon for a guinea pig to be badly, if not fatally, injured by a
rabbit suddenly kicking out with its paws or an overly romantic rabbit
repeatedly trying to mount a guinea pig. Nor should guinea pigs be kept in the
same cage or enclosure with domesticated rats (or any other species of rodents
for that matter). Guinea pigs have a natural fear of rats and although their
friendly appearance does not show it, a threatened cavie can seriously injure a
domesticated rat.
Domestic Guinea pigs' cages are often lined with wood shaving or a similar
material; paper and aspen are generally considered safe bedding. Cedar and pine
beddings which were common in the past, have harmful phenols (oils and scents)
that can cause upper respiratory infections (which are fatal for many cavies).
Many stores still sell cedar and pine beddings as safe for Guinea pigs, but
there is growing pressure to stop the practice. A much safer bedding type is
made from recycled newspapers.
A common cage type is the C&C, or coroplast and cubes cage, made from corrugated
plastic and wire squares. These wire squares are generally a kind of unassembled
shelving. These C&C cages are a much cheaper and spacious alternative to
store-bought cages, and can be assembled in many creative ways.
Diet
They must be fed fresh vegetables and a commercial food made for guinea pigs.
Rabbit food, for example, is not fortified with the vitamin C that guinea pigs
must have in their diet. Like humans but unlike most other mammals, guinea pigs
cannot synthesize their own vitamin C, but must obtain this vital nutrient from
the food they eat in order to stay healthy. Also like humans, if guinea pigs
cannot get enough vitamin C they will suffer from scurvy and ultimately die.
Commercial vitamin C pills are also an excellent source. There are several
approaches for feeding the pills, but in practice most guinea pigs quickly learn
to like them. After a brief period of 'friendly-force-feeding', the animals
start eating the pills from their owners' hands, making it an ideal source of
essential vitamin C. Oranges can be fed, but some guinea pigs will develop
irritations on their lips from the acid.
Guinea pigs are probably the smallest grass-eating mammals. Grass digestion
requires a special digestive system: whereas most grass-eating mammals are quite
large and have a long digestive tract, guinea pigs use a more unusual method:
they practice coprophagy, the eating of one's own feces. However, they do not
consume their feces indiscriminately. They produce special soft pellets, called
"cecotropes," which contain the B vitamins and bacteria required for proper
digestion. These pellets are not the same as regular feces. They share this
behaviour with rabbits.
Cavies also need unlimited timothy hay. However, alfalfa hay, which is richer,
may be more appropriate for young guinea pigs. This provides roughage and fiber
needed in their diet. A list of fresh food and more information about feeding
fresh foods can be found at http://www.guinealynx.info/nutrition.html. Cavies
should be fed approximately one cup of fresh vegetables daily. Favorites include
apples, bananas, parsley and green peppers. They should not be fed "watery"
vegetables such as celery stalks or iceberg lettuce, as this can give them
diarrhea.
Pelleted food is available under many different brand names, however most
experts feel many brands are unacceptable to meet a cavy's needs. Alfalfa-based
pellets (the most common pellet based food available) should be fed only to
cavies one year of age or younger. Timothy-based should be fed to cavies older
than one year. A number of timothy hay brands make commercially prepared pellets
based on dehydrated timothy hay, which is ideal for guinea pigs over six months
that are not pregnant or lactating.
Alfalfa, like other foods rich in calcium (such as spinach) should only be fed
to adults in moderation. Being fed too much calcium-rich food can result in an
animal developing problems with bladder stones and similar disorders.
Health
Guinea pigs need to be seen by a vet just like any other pet. Be sure your vet
is "cavy savvy" and knows about the special needs of Guinea pigs. A lot of
antibiotic medications, like those that are penicillin based, are toxic to
Guinea pigs.
Common ailments in domestic guinea pigs include wet-tail, abscesses (large
amounts of a thick pus that create a bulge, often in their neck, due to infected
internal scratches from hay that is too hard or infected external scratches
received in a variety of ways), and mites (which look like small pieces of
moving dandruff, which can be removed with small animal mite sprays).
The source of this article and the photo shown is
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