CLASSIFICATION
| Class: Mammalia Order: Rodentia Suborder: Hystricomorpha Infra-order: Hystricognathi Family: Caviidae Subfamily: Caviinae Genus: Cavia Species: C. porcellus |
ORIGIN AND CHARACTERISTICS
The guinea pig originates from the Andean region in South America where it was bred for centuries by the Indians for meat. The guinea pig is extinct in the wild, even though other species of the same genus still exist. Its original natural habitat was high grasses and a dry, semi-arid climate that was stable all year round, with temperate days and cold nights.
Guinea pigs are gregarious, crepuscular animals. They do not dig burrows, but seek refuge in already made shelters (e.g. burrows dug by other animals), and are obligate herbivores.
The guinea pig is a popular pet because it reproduces readily, is easy to rear and is docile when handled. It is a sociable animal that needs company from other guinea pigs or at least care, caresses and cuddles from its owner. A guinea pig kept on its own is very susceptible to the stress of environmental changes, whereas the effect of these are minimal on guinea pigs kept in pairs or groups.
The social structure of guinea pigs has a rigid hierarchy in which a dominant male (the alpha male) forms a harem with several females and their offspring and does not accept the sexual activity of other males. When a young male reaches sexual maturity there are often fights for dominance. The females also establish a hierarchy among each other, but the submissive females are not turned away. Problems of dominance are not observed if two uncastrated males are kept together from infancy or if the males are castrated. Guinea pigs communicate with each other (and with humans) using a broad range of squeaks.
The guinea pig is a good pet: it is amenable, becomes attached to its owner and communicates with him or her through its squeaking; it adapts to life in captivity well and is easy to manage. Guinea pigs do not, however, tolerate solitude and must, therefore, be given a lot of attention or be kept with other guinea pigs. A guinea pig can also be kept together with a rabbit, provided that this latter is sterilised.
There are more than ten breeds of guinea pig, which differ by type of hair (Figs. 1, 2 and 3), its length and colour, and over 20 colour variants; the three fundamental colours are black, white and red. The breeds are divided into self (short-haired of a single colour) and non-self (all the others). The main breeds are short-haired (English or American), semilong-haired (Abyssinian) and long-haired (Peruvian), while less common breeds include Teddy, Texel, White Crested, Merino and Coronet.
