Just a friendly guide to start with for new guinea pig owners.

Somethings to note about of the Guinea Pig is that their body temperature is 37 – 39.5°C, Heart rate is 240-350 beats per minute, Respiratory rate is 40-150 breaths per minute, An average adult male weights 900-1200 grams, An average adult female weighs 700 – 900 grams, Life span is 4 – 8 years, Guinea pig’s teeth are open-rooted, that is they continue to grow.

Guinea pigs are STRICT HERBIVORES. Which means, NO Dairy products and NO Meat.
DIET — A basic diet of quality hay, pellets and vegetables will keep your Guinea Pigs healthy.
Hay — For guinea pigs which are 6 months or lesser, they are encouraged to have more intake of Alfalfa Hay instead of Timothy Hay because Alfalfa Hay has more Calories and Calcium which promotes better growth for young guinea pigs.
Nutrition — Guinea pigs are strict vegetarians.
Pellets — There are 2 different kind of pellets that is being used commonly which is 1: Young Guinea Pig Pellet, 2: Adult Guinea Pig Pellet. Guinea Pig who are younger than 6 month old should be taking the young guinea pig pellet to ensure that adequate amount of nutrients are being taken in from the pellets.

Vitamins for the guinea pigs?
YES. This is important for guinea pigs as they do not produce vitamins from their body and requires to have oral intake of vitamins DAILY which comes from the Hay, Pellets and Vegetables and maybe Vitamin Tablets. Adult Guinea Pigs requires  30-50 mg per day of Vitamin C. Just from the pellets and hay isn’t enough. So fresh vegetables are important.

Space.
Are you able to ensure that your pigs have enough space to run?
A rough guide on how much a Guinea pig should have;

Number of Pigs    –    Minimum Space         –     Preferred
1  guinea pig          –    7.5 sq ft (0.69 m)       –      More is better
2  guinea pig          –    7.5 sq ft (0.69 m)       –      10.5 sq ft (0.97 m)
3  guinea pig          –    10.5 sq ft (0.97 m)    –       13 sq ft (1.20 m)
4  guinea pig          –    13 sq ft (1.20 m)         –       More is better

Personally, I built a cage by myself because all the cage that are being sold in the pet stores are practically too small to house guinea pigs as they do not have adequate amount of area to run about. I use fleece instead of bedding as beddings breakdown and does contain some harmful substances due the the INK in the newspaper which were being compressed into the size of a pellet form. For fleece, sweeping daily of the poop is necessary as it is not being mixed by the bedding and is very obvious to see. Clearing the guinea pig cage only cost less than 10 minutes a day. So why not? 10 minutes a day and your guinea pig can rest in a suitable environment which is clean and to their liking.

Guinea pigs teeth.
Guinea pig’s teeth are open-rooted, like mentioned previously, they continue to grow.  Which also means that they need to wear their teeth down by biting objects. So don’t be surprised if your guinea pig starts biting everywhere. Hay does wear down their teeth partially depends on what kind of hay you are using. You may also include toys which they can bite and grind their teeth on.

Amount of Guinea Pigs to be kept?
Guinea Pigs are meant to be kept in a herd. So it’s best to keep at least 2 together. At least they have companions which each other. SOME Guinea Pigs cannot get along with another one. Some prefers to be alone.

Breeding.
Guinea Pigs should never be meant and should be avoided if possible for non-breeders as breeding CAN KILL a female guinea pig. During labor, the female may fracture her hipbone which may lead to Death. Unwanted litters and Unexpected deaths to exist. So we try to prevent them as much as possible. So, Never breed your guinea pigs if you really love them.

Behaviour.
Different Guinea Pigs have different personality just like us, the Humans. Some prefer it this way, Some prefer it that way. Ways to find out is to interact with them as much as you could to find out what are your guinea pig likes and dislikes. Guinea pigs are prey creatures in the wild so, do expected them to shun from you when you first get them and slowly interact with them and let them trust you. Slowly, they will treat you like their friend and start getting close with you. Wheeking around when your bringing food. (Pleasant Noise to hear) This proves that your guinea pig has trusted you to deal with their food and water to be taken care of.

Do you have what it takes?
Do you have what it takes to take care of a Guinea Pig? It’s a living creatures which has feelings like us. So we cannot regard it as an animal but to regard it as our own. Can you afford for the Vet fees, their daily food intake, fresh vegetables and vitamins.

Ending this short guide here and will continue to post about what type of fruits and vegetables Guinea Pigs CAN eat and what they CANNOT eat. Stay tune!