First Coast Pet » guinea pig care

How do I Care for a Guinea Pig?

Guest — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 22:09:31 +0000

As in any pet care, the wild origins dictate a lot of what is important in Guinea Pig care. The guinea pig is a species of rodent sometimes known as the Cacy. They are not in fact pigs, as their name would have suggested. They come from the moutains of South America, and studies have shown they have been breed from closely related species such as Cavia aperea, C. fulgida, or C. tschudii, and do not exist naturally in the wild.
They play an important role as both a food source and the culture of many South Americans. Guinea Pigs were domesticated 5000 years ago for nourishment and have appeared in many folk stories and are often used in metaphors.
They came to Europe in the 16th century by European traders and since then has seen common reputation as a household pet. Originally they were seen as an exotic pet and even Queen Elisabeth I had one. They were widely used for biological experimentation since the 17th century, giving way to the metaphor “guinea pig” for a test subject, though more recently they have been replaced by mice and rats.
They are very calm easy to care for and are easy to handle and feed and are therefore popular with pet sitters. They are timid explorers and rarely attempt to escape. Guinea pigs will often make a noise like a whistle when interested, like for when the owner comes – or they hear the food container opening.
There are many breeds of domesticated guinea pigs, which differ in color and hair differences. The most normal varieties are the shorthair (or American shorthair), the Abyssinian with a ruffled coat. More unique long hair types include the Peruvian and the Sheltie (or Silkie) and the curly long hair Texel.

So should I choose a Guinea Pig?

Guinea Pigs are very sociable animals – so require time for fuss, otherwise they will feel lonely and this might lead to stress and sickness. This could be important if you are buying one for the kids, on the understanding that the children will care for the guinea pig. Noting they typically live for around four, but may live for 8 years and the Guinness Book of Records has the record age for a guinea pig at 14 years.
Guinea pigs are relatively big for rodents, weighing between 700 and 1200g (1.5-2.5 pounds), and measuring between 20 and 25 cm (8–10 inches) in length. So they need quite a large cage. Though as a tough pet, this could be located in a shed or a protected spot outside. They will deal with cold better than excessive heat. Avoid wire mesh floored crates, as this can damage their feet and lead to infection.
As for many pets you do not want to put two males together as they will fight together when they become mature at about 6 months for leadership. Females can however be grouped together. Obviously you do not want to add a male to the group as they breed very easily.

Grass is their normal diet in the wild, so they have a very long colon to help the digestion. This is however not long enough, so if they are eating a lot of grass you will see them eat their faeces. Like humans they cannot produce vitamin C and will need to acquire obtrain this through their food, the guinea pig version of scurvy is deadly. Scurvy is often identified by sluggishness. So feed them regularly fresh, raw fruits and vegetables (such as cabbage, broccoli, apple, carrot, spinach and celery). Alternatively, but not a preferred option through dietary vitamins. They are fickle eaters when mature, so with a young guinea pig give a wide variety of foods. They feed continuously, so ensure there is hay available for them to eat.
Guinea pigs, as well as scurvy, may also suffer from respiratory tract infections, diarrhea, abscesses due to infection (often in the neck, due to hay embedded in the throat, or from external scratches), and infections by lice, mites or fungus.

They are energetic throughout the day and will sleep on and off, waking for some activity. They often groom themselves and will groom others.

Learn How To Care For Guinea Pigs as Pets

Guest — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 12:09:17 +0000

Have you got some guinea pig pets? Then, you better teach yourself the right way to take care of the little guys and you know why? It’s because, either the lack of knowledge for a good care or the wrong way can be disastrous for them. They get sick all the time and easily and would die quickly. That’s why, before you can even train yourself to train him or do other things, you need to know how to train yourself to take care of him. Right now, all over the Internet, a lot of book guides are being promoted and they have explained in full detail on how to care for a pet guinea pig.

Believe it or not, but there are dozens of guinea pig care book guides out there that have been flooding the market already, offline and on the Internet. Any person who owns a pet guinea pig will be astounded by this fact but the truth is, more and more people are turning to guinea pigs if ever they wanted to have their own pets in their nice abode. More and more of them are getting annoyed by man’s best friend and guinea pigs can sure be great pets if you have kids in your house and you don’t want a pet whose mouth is so big that your kid’s head will fit right into it. You want something small. So, it’s best that you have your own guinea pig.

Although these are small animals and they could look very fragile and weak, if given the proper care and training, they can be as fun as you want them to be. As a matter of fact, you can learn how to train them like the way a person will train a dog and they can be very interactive, too. All you need is a book guide that explains the right guinea pig care and training methods

Learn The Best Guinea Pig Care

Guest — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 16:38:44 +0000

You may be one of those cute people who wants to have cute guinea pigs as pets and if you are, then, you are standing on holy ground when it comes to taking care or a pet guinea pig so you better take off your sandals. Seriously, guinea pigs are just some of the rare type of animals that anyone can think of as pets. For those with untrained eyes and with little knowledge, they will surely scoff at the idea of having guinea pigs as pets. Who on earth would want to have a cute little animal who do nothing but eat all day all cramped up in a tiny cage? For them, they wants pets that move around, that plays and would interact with them. Maybe they are thinking about dogs or cats but with a guinea pig, they will just tell you: “No way, Jose…”

But what they do not know is Guinea pigs are relatively very interactive animals, too. They are very delicate animals and they need special attention. They die quickly and they get sick quickly. That’s why, for serious Guinea pigs lovers, it’s very essential that they should learn the proper way of taking care and handling these poor guys. Just by looking at their eyes, you can say that they are way too cute and way too lovable to be wasted away.

Anyway, if your truly love Guinea pigs, you will love to have your own book guide that will teach you how to give some little Guinea pig care for them that will surely make them happy, thriving and alive. Actually, on the Net today, there are more than one book guide that can teach you all the things you need to know right in your own home at your own pace and time. What you just have to do is to read some reviews first especially of the most comprehensive Guinea Pig book guides so you will have some information on what the best guides to choose.

A Guinea Pigs Care Book Guide

Guest — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 09:04:18 +0000

Have you got a guinea pig as pets? Then, you better train your own self the precise technique to take care of the little guy and you know why? It’s because, either the deficiency of knowledge for a good care or the erroneous method can be disastrous for him. He gets sick easily and would die quickly. That’s why, before you can even train yourself to train him or do other things, you need to know how to train yourself to take care of him. Right now, all over the Internet, a lot of book guides are being promoted and they have explained in full detail on how to care for guinea pig pets.

Now, these book guides are spreading all throughout the Information Highway and each one of them is based on actual and real tips given by many experts in guinea pig care. What they do is to research each and every available resources, carefully experimenting on them and come up with their own way of teaching people. That’s why, you can’t find not only book guides to teach you how to care for a guinea pig but online tutorials as well and they also come in the forms of software or audio files.

With this in mind, you will surely get dazed and confused in choosing the right book guides to learn how to care for guinea pigs. So as not prevent you from being perplexed, it would always be wise to read more product reviews of different guinea pig care book guide so you can choose the one which you think is best. And do you know what the other best things that you can get when you have chose the right book guide? Not only you can get to learn how to care for them but you will also learn how to teach them tricks and believe it when somebody will come up to you and say that guinea pigs are also intelligent and very interactive animals.