Long-haired guinea pigs: features, breeds and care recommendations

Long-haired guinea pigs were born thanks to the efforts of breeders - only individuals covered with short hair are found in nature. The length of the "hair" of these charming rodents reaches 20-45 cm, and the main purpose of the animals is to demonstrate themselves at all kinds of exhibitions and to touch their breeders.

The long-haired guinea pig has an oval body, which smoothly turns into a rounded muzzle, while the profile can be safely called "Greek", since the nose and forehead are one whole here. The ears of a shaggy guinea pig are very funny - folded in an envelope, they can be flattened against the head or be protruding, the eyes are dark, like beads.

Both the lower and upper incisors have no roots, grow throughout life, and are sharpened with food. The paws are shortened, on the front there are four toes, but on the back - only three, the tiny tail is hardly noticeable. The mass and dimensions of the animal depend solely on the variety, but on average such a rodent can grow to about 25-30 cm, an adult male weighs about 1.5 kg, and the mass of a female is usually 0.8-1.3 kg.

The most common range is considered to be reddish-brown with various types of shades and blotches, but less often than others, you can find an animal of tortoiseshell color. By the way, rodents with such an exclusive color are usually born exclusively within one breed, and the most unusual three-color pattern is obtained when at least 100 rodents are crossed with each other.

Guinea pigs with elongated fur are completely different from each other - there are individuals with long strands, curly-haired rodents are no less common. Fur can differ in structure, direction of growth, as well as the presence or absence of shaggy sideburns, all kinds of bangs and rosettes.

The life span of an animal does not exceed 6-8 years, the strongest specimens in comfortable conditions can live for ten years, but, as practice shows, on average, these animals live 4-5 years.

Among the long-haired varieties of guinea pigs, there are several of the most popular, which are distinguished by their decorative appearance and rather extraordinary character.

This breed was the result of the experiments of American breeders, the animals got their name due to the rather thick cover - it can even be compared with the fur of valuable llamas.

Main characteristics:

• the weight of males is 0.9-1.2 kg;
• the weight of females is 0.6-0.8 kg;
• the length of the body of males is about 20 cm;
• body length of females - 17-18 cm;
• fur length - 10-15 cm;
• colors - black and white, Himalayan, brown.

Life expectancy is about 5-7 years, it is quite rare, but still there are 8-year-old individuals.

A characteristic feature of this breed is the peculiar growth of the fur. Reaching a certain length, the hairs curl upward, and the rodent takes on a rather funny look, somewhat reminiscent of a caricature of an aristocrat.

The breed was bred by a breeder from Great Britain in the 70s of the last century, the peculiarity of these animals is the semblance of a crown on a small head, the hair of rodents grows in a special way, as if forming an elongated rounded comb.

The head is rather wide, but short, the eyes are protruding, widely spaced, the ears resemble rose petals, sticking up. The body is rather compact, dense, tightly knit. The coat is smooth, with a pronounced texture, the density is uniform in all areas, the animal can be two- or three-colored. These shaggy pigs live for about 5 years.

Luncaria is the most original of all artificially created breeds. This is another long-haired guinea pig, whose fur cannot be combed or straightened. Even after careful combing and conditioning, it still almost immediately collapses into corkscrew curls that perfectly hold its shape. Thanks to this feature, no debris clings to the fur.

Another English breed that has won the hearts of breeders thanks to its rather long curly coat, which makes the animal look like a miniature lamb.

The animal is distinguished by long, curly hair of the most variable color, the head is rather wide, round, the nose with a slight hump. The weight of an adult animal is 1 kg. Such pets live for about 4-5 years. The breed is very popular in England, this is not surprising, because, in addition to their exotic appearance, these animals also have a very calm character, unpretentiousness to the conditions of their keeping, and are distinguished by unpretentiousness in food.

This breed was bred in the countries of the Old World at the beginning of the 19th century, where it quickly gained incredible popularity due to its external resemblance to Yorkshire Terriers, but in a miniature version. The length of the animal's hair is about 50 cm, along the line of the spine there is a straight parting, and the wide muzzle of the rodent is covered with an elongated bang.

In the region of the sacrum there are two pronounced rosettes of irregular shape, the body is oval, rather dense, the shoulder girdle is widened, the back is aligned, the head is small but well developed. There are small beady eyes, ears of the most standard shape, hanging down slightly. The color can be very different, the size of the body is about 35-40 cm, the weight is up to 1.5 kg. They live in captivity for about 5 years, they are completely undemanding to the conditions of detention, although caring for long hair requires some skill.

The breed was obtained in the late 80s of the last century, but received scientific recognition only in 1999. The length of the hairs of rodents varies from 12 to 18 cm, the color can be very diverse, the body is compact, strong, with developed muscles: broad shoulders, powerful chest cage and straight back. The head is strong, round, of medium size, moreover, the nose is also of medium length, with a slight hump.

Ears are rather fleshy, legs are shortened, straightened. The body length reaches 25-35 cm, the weight of an adult is about 1.7 kg. Usually, representatives of this breed are used for display at exhibitions or for the purpose of crossing.

The first representatives of the Sheltie breed were introduced almost a hundred years ago. These pigs are characterized by soft, thick and silky wool of the most varied shades, the body is compact and strong, the head is short, rounded, the eyes are black, bulging, the ears are slightly lowered down. The form is standard, the animal is bred mainly for demonstration at exhibitions, since in everyday life it requires special care.

The fact is that the coat of this pet will have to be constantly looked after, otherwise, the look of the rodent will be very unpresentable.

Guinea pigs with elongated hair are quite harmless animals, they are very sociable, love to play, do not bite, and, it would seem, are ideal for children's fun. Nevertheless, it is better not to accept them in a family where young children live, since babies may not measure their physical strength and break the fragile spine of a rodent. The pet does not tolerate intimacy with domestic cats, dogs, decorative rats and feathered pets, but the domestic rabbit will become an ideal neighbor for them.

Most often, these pigs live in same-sex couples. - males are friends with each other, and females raise young together. For full growth and development, they need a properly selected cell. One rodent needs an aviary at least 60x40x40 cm in size, respectively, if there are several animals, then the dimensions must be increased.

The cage must certainly be roomy, usually it is placed away from direct sunlight and drafts; it is also undesirable to place it next to air conditioners, radiators and other climatic devices.

The cage must be equipped with everything necessary to maintain the normal life of the pet.

• Drinking bowl. It can be purchased at a pet store, the size and shape do not matter, since for the most part the product is standardized.
• Manger... In other words, a feeder. It is advisable to purchase a plastic product, since in this case it will be much easier to wash and clean it from dirt. A ceramic fixture is also suitable, but a model made of wood is inappropriate here - wood not only absorbs odors and moisture, but is also gnawed by animals.
• Sepia. For the necessary grinding of teeth, sepia is installed - this is a hard mineral stone, if it is not in the aviary, then the guinea pig will begin to sharpen its teeth on any object in its path.
• Twigs. These are shoots of fruit trees, linden trees and many others, their main task is to distract the animal from the constant desire to gnaw furniture in the house or wooden accessories. At the same time, the presence of sepia does not in any way exclude the animal's need for branches.
• House. In it, rodents hide from the hot sun or use it as a shelter. It is best to purchase a cage with a ready-made house.
• Tray with shavings or sawdust... Used by rodents instead of a toilet, the bedding can be changed every 2-3 days, while no smell appears in the room. Wood tends to absorb odors and excess moisture, therefore, using sawdust, there is no need for additional disinfection of the tray.

Traditionally, guinea pigs are awake during the day and sleep soundly at night. To compensate for the lack of movement, you should let the animal go for a short walk around the house. In warm weather, the animal is taken with them to a country house or vegetable garden, where it is equipped with a small enclosure made of a metal mesh - it is advisable to place it in the shade.

Long-haired pigs are herbivores, so the food should be predominantly vegetable, The following combination is considered optimal:

• grass or hay - 60-65%;
• juicy feed - 30%;
• dry food - 5%.

It is best to purchase hay in a specialized store, in this case, you can be sure that it will be of the proper quality. When buying on the market hand-held, you may encounter irresponsible sellers who, when harvesting feed, did not remove poisonous herbs or were harvesting near highways and large industrial facilities.

The food requirement for a shaggy guinea pig is 150 g per day. You can give her dill, parsley, lettuce leaves, the pigs are very fond of strawberries, pears and cherries, they will not refuse vegetables, they especially love carrots, cabbage or zucchini.

Try to make your pet's diet as varied as possible, the body should receive a full range of vitamins, macro- and microelements. If a pet eats only cabbage or carrots, this will adversely affect its general well-being.

The ideal situation would be when at least 3 types of vegetables and juicy greens are present in the daily diet of a rodent. As the latter, you can take the leaves of strawberries, raspberries, black and red currants, carrot and beet tops are very useful for animals.

We pay special attention to the fact that the rodent needs table salt, so you will need to buy a salt stone. Unfortunately, with other foods, the pet will not be able to get the required amount of salt, while it is very important for the normalization of the digestion process.

An animal should not be hungry - if it does not receive food for more than 18 hours, irreversible pathological changes are triggered in the body, which can cause the death of a rodent.

As for supplementing, here you need to focus on the juiciness of the main feed. If the guinea pig is getting enough fluids from her diet, she may not drink water at all. On average, an adult pet needs 60-70 ml of water a day. Few people know, but the body of rodents is not able to assimilate vitamins B and K at the very first passage of food, therefore many animals often eat their own feces, since when they pass through the digestive organs again, all substances are already absorbed in full.

Guinea pigs are quite unpretentious, the main difficulty in caring for a rodent is processing the wool to avoid strong tangling. The pig should be brushed 3-4 times a week.

In order not to have to pull the hairs, it is better to lightly sprinkle them with water from a spray bottle. Keep in mind that you can start brushing only after the mats have been completely removed. If the animal's coat is too long and at the same time thick, then by summer you can trim the pet a little.Also, hair is cut from lactating females, but not completely, but only areas near the nipples.

From time to time, the guinea pig needs to be bathed with a special shampoo for animals, after which it is blotted with a warm terry towel and dried with a hairdryer (keep it at a distance so that too hot air does not burn the small animal).

Some breeders curl the hair of their rodents on papillotes, thus, the animal gets the opportunity to move briskly, and the hairs do not roll or get dirty. The ears of a hairy rodent are carefully cleaned with cotton filaments, the eyes are treated as necessary and the sharp claws are trimmed.

Every breeder should understand that the health of pets primarily depends on the correct diet. Its imbalance leads to rickets, scurvy, obesity, allergies and cardiovascular disease.

Pathologies of non-infectious origin can also include:

• a cold, which quickly turns into bronchitis and pneumonia;
• keratitis and acute conjunctivitis;
• otitis;
• epilepsy;
• baldness;
• cystitis;
• malignant tumors.

The most common viral infections are:

• plague;
• paralysis;
• pseudotuberculosis;
• amoebiasis;
• toxoplasmosis;
• trichomoniasis;
• salmonellosis;
• enteritis;
• herpes;
• ringworm.

Also keep in mind that due to the peculiarities of physiology, any injury or fall can lead to the death of a fluffy pet.

The rules for caring for a long-haired guinea pig are discussed in the next video.