Guinea Pigs

Would you have ever imagined a rodent to be your best friend? I am here to tell you some more about these furry companions, about their dietary needs, safe and non-safe bedding, breeding, and so much more.

Guinea pigs have a particular diet. They are vegetarians (a vegetarian means they eat only fruit and veggies). If mal-nourished, cavies have a hard time being that lovable animal you’ve always known. Right now let’s just focus on the basics of every day needs. Your little guy needs a balanced diet of pelleted food, hay, and water. Some safe foods include the brand name Nutriphase Gold, Hartz Bonanza, and many others. Some treats to feed your pets are celery, carrots, parsley, kiwi, apples, pears, broccoli, and kale. Some things to definatly stay away from, if you want a happy healthy cavy, are cilantro, pizza, chocolate, iceberg lettuce, spinach, beet tops, and the green parts of potatoes.

Guinea pig cages need to be in a cool area whether its in your house or outside. There are several different types of bedding available. A pet owner should be cautious when choosing the proper bedding. There are wood shavings, recycled, shedded or pelleted paper biproducts, grass hay, chopped straw, woodchips, sawdust, and corn cobs. Although you may find these all available at the pet store, not all of those are good for your little furry friend. Pine, cedar, wood chips, sawdust, cat litter, and corn-cob pieces may all cause health issues including sore feet, dry skin, and respiratory problems.

Breeding guinea pigs can be a hobby or just something you would like to try. There are ups and downs to breeding. The mother is always in danger of death in this process. She could become ill during pregnancy or simply her body is just too fragile to handle all the stress. The mom becomes more and more detached from her owner while pregnant. Though guinea pigs have a certain period in time when they are the best to breed,for example girl cavies can only breed before they hit the age of 2 years old(some have earlier deadlines then that), once they have mated it may take an average of 20 hours for her to concieve.Then after that it takes her two months until she is to expect.

Before you take on the responsibility of owning a guinea pig, talk to an employee of your local petstore. You will also need to look more online or in books to find out any information you may need to know about other topics that we didn’t cover. Guinea pigs can be a joy to have around if you want to take the commintment of owning these cudly little friends.