Longhair guinea pigs: features, breeds and recommendations for care

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 animals is to show themselves at all kinds of exhibitions and touch their breeders.

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

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

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

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

The life expectancy of the animal does not exceed 6-8 years, the strongest specimens in comfortable conditions can live a dozen 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 differ in their decorative appearance and rather extraordinary character.

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

Main characteristics:

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

Life expectancy is about 5-7 years, quite rarely, but still 8-year-old individuals are found.

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

The breed was selected by a breeder from the UK in the 70s of the last century, the peculiarity of these animals is the likeness of a crown on a small head, the hair of rodents grows in a special way, as if forming an elongated rounded crest.

The head is quite wide, but short, eyes are bulging, wide apart, ears resemble rose petals, stick up. The body is quite compact, dense, firmly knocked down. 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.

Lunkaria is the most original of all artificially created breeds. This is another long-haired guinea pig whose hair cannot be combed or straightened. Even after thorough combing and conditioning treatments, it is still almost immediately knocked into corkscrew curls that perfectly keep their shape. Due to this feature, no debris clings to the wool.

Another English breed that has won the hearts of breeders due to the rather long curly hair, which makes the animal look like a miniature sheep.

The animal is distinguished by a long curly hair of the most variable color, its head is quite wide, round, nose with a small hump. The mass of an adult animal is 1 kg. Such pets live for about 4-5 years. The breed is very popular in England, and 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 maintenance, and are distinguished by their 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 the outward resemblance to Yorkshire terriers, but in a miniature version. The length of the animal's hair is about 50 cm, a straight parting is drawn along the spine, and an elongated bang closes the wide muzzle of the rodent.

In the sacral region 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 bead eyes, ears of the most standard form, slightly hanging down. Color can be very different, the size of the body is about 35-40 cm, weight - up to 1.5 kg. They live in captivity for about 5 years, 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 gained scientific recognition only in 1999. The length of rodent hairs varies from 12 to 18 cm, the color can be very diverse, the body is compact, strong, with well-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.

The ears are rather fleshy, the legs are shortened and straightened. The length of the body 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 crossbreeding.

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

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

Guinea pigs with elongated hair are quite harmless animals, they are very sociable, like to play, do not bite, and, it would seem, are ideal for children's fun. Nevertheless, in a family where young children live, it is better not to take them, because the kids 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 a domestic rabbit will be an ideal neighbor for them.

Most often, such pigs live in gay couples - the males are friends with each other, and the females together raise cubs. For full growth and development, they need a correctly selected cell. One rodent needs an aviary with a size of at least 60x40x40 cm, 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 near air conditioners, radiators and other climatic devices.

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

• Drinking bowl. It can be purchased at the pet store, size and shape do not matter, since for the most part the product is standardized.
• Day nursery. In other words, a feeding trough. It is advisable to purchase a plastic product, because in this case it will be much easier to wash and clean from contamination. A ceramic fixture is also suitable, but a wooden model is inappropriate here - the tree not only absorbs odors and moisture, but also bites the animals.
• Sepia. For the necessary grinding of teeth, sepia is established - this is a solid mineral stone, if it is not in the aviary, then the guinea pig will begin to grind its teeth on any object that gets in its way.
• Twigs. These are shoots of fruit trees, linden and many others, their main task is to distract the animal from the constant desire to gnaw at home furniture or wooden accessories. At the same time, the presence of sepia does not exclude the need for an animal in 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 finished house.
• Tray with chips or sawdust. Used by rodents instead of the toilet, the litter can be changed every 2-3 days, while no smell appears in the room. Wood has the ability to absorb odors and excess moisture, so using sawdust eliminates the need for additional disinfection of the tray.

Traditionally, guinea pigs are awake in the daytime, and sleep soundly at night. To compensate for the lack of movement, you should let the animal out for a short walk around the house. In warm time, they take the animal with them to a country house or garden, where they equip it with a small enclosure made of metal mesh - it is advisable to place it in the shade.

Long-haired pigs belong to herbivores, so the food should be mainly plant, The following combination is considered optimal:

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

It is best to purchase hay in a specialized store, in which case you can be sure that it will be of proper quality. When buying on the market from hand, you may come across irresponsible sellers who, when harvesting fodder, did not remove poisonous grasses or were harvesting near motorways and large industrial facilities.

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

Try to make your pet's nutrition as diverse as possible, the body should receive a full complex of vitamins, macro- and microelements. If the pet eats only cabbage or carrots, this will most negatively affect his general well-being.

The situation will be ideal 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 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 requires table salt, so you will need to buy salt. Unfortunately, with other products, the pet will not be able to get the required amount of salt, while it is very important for normalizing the digestion process.

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

As for dipping, here you need to focus on the juiciness of the main feed. If the pig receives enough fluid with food, it may not drink water at all. On average, 60-70 ml of water per day is enough for an adult pet. Few people know, but the body of rodents is not able to absorb vitamins B and K at the very first passage of food, so many animals often eat their own feces, because when they pass through the digestive organs all substances are absorbed in full.

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

In order not to have to pull the hairs, it is better to sprinkle them lightly with water from the spray gun. Keep in mind that combing can be started only after the complete removal of the tangles. If the animal’s hair is too long and thick at the same time, then by the summer you can trim the pet a little.Also, the hair is sheared from nursing females, but not completely, but only near the nipples.

From time to time, you need to bathe a guinea pig with a special shampoo for animals, after which it will be blotted with a warm terry towel and dried with a hairdryer (keep it away so that too hot air does not burn a small animal).

Some breeders curl the hair of their rodents into papillots, so the animal gets the opportunity to move briskly, while the hairs do not roll and do not get dirty. The ears of the hairy rodent are carefully cleaned with cotton flagella, the eyes are treated as necessary and sharp claws are cut.

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

Pathologies of non-infectious origin can also include:

• a cold that 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 physiological characteristics, any injury or fall can lead to the death of a furry pet.

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