Guinea Pigs

.../> Yes I am a Guinea pig, or cavies as we're professionally known as, we originated three thousand years ago from South America where today we still live wildly. There we live in the grasslands, rocky areas and near forests. The Incas spent many years selectively breeding us and when the Spanish conquered the Incas they brought the domesticated cavy back to Europe. Our arrival in England did not come until around the 17th Century, and the same guinea ...
...I need fresh water and guinea pig food everyday. On the bottom of my cage I need either newspaper or wood chipping and then haw or straw all over the top. This is good as I sleep in it but the hay is also very tasty! Yum yum! If you don’t clean out the nasty bits I will get very smelly and I don’t like that. Also I don’t like the taste of wood chippings so when it gets in my hay I don’t like that at all.


MY FOOD

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Hello, I am Fudge and I am going to tell you how fun it is looking after a pet like me and how you look after me!

OUR ORIGIN
Yes I am a Guinea pig, or cavies as we're professionally known as, we originated three thousand years ago from South America where today we still live wildly. There we live in the grasslands, rocky areas and near forests. The Incas spent many years selectively breeding us and when the Spanish conquered the Incas they brought the domesticated cavy back to Europe. Our arrival in England did not come until around the 17th Century, and the same guinea pigs are still with you today as much loved pets. We show similar behaviour to that of our ancestors. We are timid, very alert and are ready to react in case of danger.

ALL ABOUT US

I am rather plump! And when I first come to live with you I weigh about 350 Grams (12oz) when I am an adult I will weigh about 1-1.4 kilograms (2-3 pounds). My fur is usually very shiny and soft but some of my long haired relations need brushing everyday! My fur can be mixed colours or just one colour. These colours are black, brown, red or white. I am not actually a pig! People say I look like one when I run! But like a pig a male is a Boar and a female is a Sow. I feet are slightly odd since I have 4 claws on my front feet and 3 on my back!! My teeth keep growing so you will have to give me something to chew on to keep them short and so does my nails! I will need to go on rough surfaces to ware them down or you can cut them with special nail clippers or even take me to the vets for them to cut them! I normally live till I’m about 5 years old.
I get rather scared when you pick me up sometimes so please be careful! Just carefully slide one hand underneath me and lift me up gently put your other hand round my body, just behind my front legs and hold me close to your body!

BRINGING ME HOME

It’s best to buy me from a pet shop or breeder rather than a rescue home if you have not had one of my types before. You should make sure than I have shiny fur with no bald patches, nor insects in my fur. Ask if you can hold me and make sure I am not thin and ill. Look at my teeth are they touching my bottom ones? Are my eyes bright and shiny? Look at my feet as well. Are the nails short?
It’s best to buy 2 of us or a rabbit a similar age and we will get along fine. But remember me and rabbits eat different foods. Bring me home in a carry case with hay and pop me and my mate in the cage and feed us and give us water every day and leave us to get use to the surroundings.
HOME SWEET HOME

My very fist home may be a box made of plastic but after a while we will get a bit big for it!! So you can still use it for trips to my doctors but not to live in. I will need lots of exercise and I like going outside in a run and it will stop me getting fat! I like a nice warm wooden hutch with one side with wire mesh so I can have light and the other side needs to be solid wood. I sleep in this side. Also my run for out side needs to have a shelter area so I can hide when I get scared and get out of the sun or rain! My hutch needs to have legs so it is off of the ground and it doesn’t get damp. In the winter I would really like to be in a shed or garage or even in a little plastic cage that you can buy from pet shops and I could even live in your home!! If you leave me out I could even catch a cold and get very ill.

CLEANING ME OUT

I will need cleaning out once a week but I need my bedding changed every day and I need fresh water and guinea pig food everyday. On the bottom of my cage I need either newspaper or wood chipping and then haw or straw all over the top. This is good as I sleep in it but the hay is also very tasty! Yum yum! If you don’t clean out the nasty bits I will get very smelly and I don’t like that. Also I don’t like the taste of wood chippings so when it gets in my hay I don’t like that at all.


MY FOOD

I have to have plenty of vitamin c as I don’t produce it on my own so lots of green vegetables are good for me but not too much as it will give me stomach ache! When you bring me home ask the place what they have been feeding me and then you can keep me on the same thing and if you want to introduce another food do it slowly. I eat guinea pig dry mix or pellets and I may eat your bran and oat mix but I think I’d rather complete mix! An ideal diet is grass, hay, seed, nuts, fruit and vegetables. I like my food to be clean and fresh don’t you?
My favourite foods are:
• Grass
• Cabbage
• Peas
• Spinach
• A little Broccoli
• Carrots
• Parsnips
• Swedes
• Apples

You must NEVER give me Bracken, Ragwort, Buttercup or Laburnum they can really hurt me or even kill me! When you pick me grass make sure you wash it so it doesn’t have any germs or nasty stuff on it I don’t like that! YUK!
I cannot have too much cucumber or red or white cabbage but you can give me small amounts of that.
I love dandelions and marigold petals. Sunflower seeds are also a good snack.

FEEDING TIMETABLE

Now I am very fussy and you need to feed me the same time everyday or I will get very angry and upset!
I need about 40-70 grams (1.5-2.5oz) of juicy food everyday.

Breakfast
Fill my bowl up with guinea pig mix and put fresh food in another bowl. Put in more hay and check my water.

Dinner

Top up my dry food, take away any fresh food I haven’t eaten and put a tiny bit more of food. Check my hay and water again.

TREATS AND TIT BITS

I love my treats though I shouldn’t have too many!! Otherwise I’ll get very fat! There are treats made especially for, me some with honey and fruit and nuts. I love nibbling wood so a small log is an ideal treat it also keeps my teeth in good shape. I also love mineral blocks and alfalfa squares. Surprisingly I like small dog biscuits!!!

TOYS AND PLAYTIME

I may not want to play with you when I first come home but when I understand you will not hurt me we will become great mates! You can buy toys for me from pets shops I am very adventurous and I love running through tunnels. I cannot climb but I like looking from a look out block and I feel like I am very special!
You can also let me out into a room in your house but there must be NO things for me to go under and hide and all doors must be shut so I can’t escape! I like escaping!

LOOKING GOOD

I love being pampered and I like looking my best. If I have long hair you will need to brush me every day and maybe even bath me once a month! I might not like this to start off with but I’ll get use to it. If I have short hair I will need brushing once or twice a week and I will not need a bath! Hurray!!
When you’re brushing my hair please be careful because If I have any knots it will hurt if you just brush through it. Try and get rid of the knots in my hair with you fingers gently.


VISITS TO MY DOCTOR

I really don’t like the vets but its good for me to go for check ups as my nails could get too long or I may be ill. You will need to watch out for fleas, runny noses and eyes and diarrhoea and constipation can both be caused by too much green vegetables so be careful on what you feed me please!
Every week you should feel for lumps and bumps in my body .i don’t need injections like dogs and cats. Whew!

MY TYPES

Satin: a most attractive variety of guinea pig, with a very special shiny coat that really shimmers.

Rex: these have fairly harsh, slightly wavy coats that stand out from the body. These are very similar to teddy guinea pigs.

Peruvian: The original long-haired breed. The Peruvian has long fur which covers all its body even its head. Its hair can grow to 60cm!

Sheltie: another long–haired variety. The hair is short at its head but as long as a Peruvians at its body.

Coronets: These are shelties but with a crest on their heads.

Texels and Alpacas: shelties and Peruvians originally were bred to rexes to produce Texels (curly coated shelties) and Alpacas (curly coated Peruvians)

These are only some of the breeds there are over 25 different types!!

Well I hope you would like a guinea pig like me! I hope you enjoyed reading this too!

Thanx

Natz (fudge!!!!)
 

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