i just brought 2 lovely 6 week old guinea pigs male/female, there adorable?

Question

ive heard they can mate as young as 3 weeks old does any1 know if this is true an wot the signs would b if she woz i know the obvious (getting fat lol) just need a bit of advise about them the pet shop wasnt that helpful think there were more interested in getting money lol thanks for ur time

Answer 1

Congratulations on your family additions! Here's a few excellent websites on guinea pigs, hope they give you some good info -
http://www.russelrabbit.com/languages/suk/36.htm
http://jackiesguineapiggies.com/guineapigbehaviour.html
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AirfPCC_WDppIZHBxdJD09Lsy6IX?qid=20060911111007AAtjsNF
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guinea_pig - this Wikipedia site's page has got lots more links down the bottom of the page, too. Hope they all give you some good advice and more contacts too.

Answer 2

Males (boars) have been known to be fertile as early as 3-4 weeks of age but more typically around 5-6.
Females can be fertile as early as three weeks and can carry litters before they themselves are adults.

You better separate those 2! I ended with 10 guinea pigs from 3 because the male one mated with 2 females at the same time! But they're adorable :)

Mmm..when my guinea pigs were pregnant they grew large and egg-plant shaped.. When the babies become larger you can actually feel "lumps" in her tummy.. Lol.. One of my guinea pigs developed the dislike of people touching her tummy when she's pregnant.. She'll start jumping when i put my finger there...

Answer 3

You could breed them at 3 weeks - but the female would die!!!! You need to wait until the female is older than 6 months and younger than 1 year for her to be able to have them without any troubles. She will get very fat, she will also start picking on the boy, fussing at him over food and water, running him out of the pigloo if you have one, stuff like that. That's when he needs to get out. So just remeber 6 months - 1 year is the time to breed. They are always in heat so it will take no time at all. Do not breed after she is 1 year old, it will kill her. So make sure to wait 6 months - 1 year, So that the mom and babies will all have more chance to survive. Good Luck!!!

Answer 4

As an avid lover of the piggies, i might want to ought to assert that this isn't wide-spread, in spite of the undeniable fact that this is not unusual both. I easily have owned 6 over the previous 10 years or so and all of them have nibbled in some unspecified time sooner or later, in spite of the undeniable fact that the girls in basic terms did it even as they were youthful and afraid of their new ecosystem, in spite of the undeniable fact that it finally stopped. The male I in basic terms lost this three hundred and sixty 5 days develop into consistently a nibbler from the starting up. men can sometimes be extra aggressive. What I used to do when I held him develop into have a carrot or bite of apple interior sight in case he felt the prefer to chew. Or i might want to easily carry him in my lap and puppy him so he couldn't chew. They cant very fairly turn round so by employing petting his nostril and head he couldn't attain me. i desire he grows out of it once he receives used to you and his new abode! they seem to be a lot extra accessible to love once you may carry them!!

Answer 5

Yes this is true. I work at a rescue, and we have to have all males neutered before we put them with the rest of the guinea-pigs. Check with your vet, as to when she/he would be happy to neuter the male. Nice to see you have two. They are very sociable creatures and they get depressed when kept on their own.

Answer 6

you could go to the vet and get the male neutered, it only costs a few dollars... and if you don't feel like doing that they only mate when shes in heat which you will most likely see blood or lots of urine.... or if he starts humping her often you know you might have a problem... and if she gets pregnant you will notice her teats getting bigger

Answer 7

Get a book. You need more information than just that on keeping the little guys.

Answer 8

Go to the site below and it will take you to where you want to go on when your guinea pigs is in heat.

Each guinea pig will have different tastes and not all guinea pigs like the same things to eat. However, it is important to know what can and cannot be fed to guinea pigs to avoid harming the guinea pig and to help keep the guinea pig healthy.

Guinea pigs must have a constant supply of hay as this is vital to their digestion and forms the bulk of their diet in addition to guinea pig mix. Any hay must be dry, clean and free from dust and mould. Grass hay such as Timothy or Oat hay is best - Alfalfa hay although beneficial for young and nursing or pregnant guinea pigs is too rich in calcium and protein and should be not be used continually but can be given as an occasional treat to adult guinea pigs.

In addition guinea pigs must be fed fresh fruit, vegetables or plants daily as these are a good source of vitamin C. Guinea pigs lack the enzyme that makes vitamin C and so they must intake vitamin C daily in order to remain healthy.

Although the guinea pig mix and hay will provide the guinea pig with a good basic diet it is necessary also to feed fruit, vegetables or plants as a source of Vitamin C as guinea pigs lack the enzyme to produce this.

An adult guinea pig needs 2.3 mg of Vitamin C per pound of their body weight and pregnant guinea pigs require 13.4 mg of Vitamin C per pound of body weight. The guinea pig will appreciate some variety and so it is best to feed a mixture of fruit, vegetables and plants.

If too much fruit or vegetables is fed and left in the cage this should be removed and replaced the next day to avoid it being left and becoming mouldy.

Some Fruit, vegetables and herbs that are safe to feed a guinea pig are listed below with the mg Vitamin C per 100 grams marked in brackets (according to the USDA Nutrient Database).

Apple (seedless) (5.70)
Asparagus (13.20)
Basil (18.00)
Beet Greens
Broccoli (93.20)
Brussel Sprouts (85.00)
Cabbage (32.20)
Cantaloup Melon
Carrots (9.30), Baby Carrots (8.40)
Carrot Tops
Cauliflower leaves and stalks (88.10)
Celery (7.00)
Chicory Greens (24.00)
Chinese Parsley
Cilantro
Corriander greens
Cucumber (5.30)
Endive (6.50)
Garden Cress
Grapefruit
Gooseberries
Guava
Honeydew Melon
Kale (120.00)
Kiwi Fruit (98.00)
Mango
Mustard greens
Orange (71.00)
Parsley (133.00) - a good tonic
Parsnip (17.00)
Peas (40.00)
Red Cabbage (57.00)
Red Chard
Romaine Lettuce (24.00)
Savoy Cabbage (31.00)
Spinach (28.10)
Strawberries
Swiss Chard
Tangerine (30.80)
Tomatoes (variable dependent on variety and season)
Turnip Greens (60.00)
Tuscan Cabbage
Water Cress

Some vegetables and herbs that should not be fed are:


Potato and Potato Tops
Rhubarb and Rhubarb Leaves
Tomato leaves
Tamarillo leaves


Order
Rodentia

Family
Caviidae

Genus
Cavia

Specie
porcellus

Size
25-36 cm

Weight
60-115 grams (birth), 700-1,500 grams (adult)

Body temperature
98-103F

Heart rate
230-380 beats per minute

Respiratory rate
42-104 per minute

Toes Front
4

Toes Rear
3

Adult Food consumption
42-90 grams per day

Adult water consumption
70-150 ml per day

Female Mammae
2

Gestation period
59 to 72 days

Captive Lifespan
4 to 8 years


Guinea Pigs are sociable and will appreciate the company of others. However, sexually mature boars are intolerant of each other if there are Sows (females) around and fighting is likely to occur. However, Boars will live together provided they have sufficient room and no Sows are nearby. Sows will live together happily in a single sex group or with a single boar.

Answer 9

We thought we had a male and female, we were wrong and they hated each other, we had to separate them

Answer 10

well... they did succeed in getting your money! lol