Guinea Pigs – A Quick Overview of Breeds

When we think of a guinea pig, we usually picture the American Guinea Pig – the “classic” or “standard” guinea pig – and also the most common. But there are also several other breeds in addition to the common American Guinea Pig. This article will introduce you to a few of the breeds commonly found in homes today.


Abyssinian

The Abyssinian is a long-haired breed. The coat on this animal is quite distinctive because it tends to curl itself into whirls and swirls. These whirls and swirls are called rosettes. The Abyssinian is one of the oldest breeds that can be found today. If you are looking for a low-maintenance guinea pig, keep looking. This particular breed requires daily attention to the coat to avoid tangles and keep the pig looking well-groomed.

American Guinea Pig

This is the variety that first comes to mind when we think of the words “guinea pig”. It is also sometime called an English guinea pig. This is a short hair breed which makes it suitable for a pet. It does not require grooming and can be handled and petted without messing up its coat.

Peruvian

The Peruvian breed is an extreme long-haired breed. Its hair can grow to an amazingly long length of a foot or more. The hair is smooth and straight and tends to part in the middle and hang naturally to either side of the pig. The long hair requires a lot of care; so many owners prefer to keep the coat trimmed to make this task easier.

Silkie

The Silkie is a less common breed and is also referred to as a Sheltie. It has a very long (and, of course silky) coat – similar to the Peruvian. In contrast to the Peruvian, the hair does not tend to part naturally down the center of the back. The hair of the Silkie sweeps backward from the head. The coat of the Silkie is also softer than that of the Peruvian.

This article has presented a short survey of some of the more common guinea pig breeds. No matter what the breed, guinea pigs can make great loving pets and help to brighten a household. Although long haired breeds tend to look more exotic and sometimes make good show animals, the common short-haired American breed is a very popular household pet because its coat requires very little care.

HUGE C&C Guinea Pig Cage - 3-Level Deluxe Large Custom Cage Design by BlueStoneCommerce

Check out our very first infomercial - made to appear in our eBay listing for this cage. This video shows you our biggest cage ever - the Deluxe Colonial Homestead with Storage. Not only is this cage HUGE, but it has four storage bays in the bottom level to store guinea pig supplies. The introductory part of the video is common to all our cage videos. Footage specific to this cage begins at about the 4:12 minute mark. Also, see a couple of our guinea pigs. Charlie is the one in the pet store cage and Pumpkin makes her cameo appearance - being chased around the Colonial. If you're interested a deluxe, new 3-level 2x4 guinea pig custom large cage, visit our store at http://stores.ebay.com/BluestoneCommerce-Cages-and-Guitars or visit our web site at http://www.bluestonecages.com/ because... your pigs are waiting.

Welcome to BlueStoneCommerce Cages!

Hello!

BlueStoneCommerce Cages is committed to providing guinea pigs a larger and healthier environment through our Cubes and Coroplast designed cages. We have been fortunate to be able to share our house with many guinea pigs and a rabbit for many years. Therefore, we have a lot of experience providing a safe and healthy habitat for our pigs and bunny within our home.

We do not want to forget our fifteen pound terrier Cosmo. He has helped to test the strength of our cage lids for our buyers that have cats who jump on the lids to “view” the pigs. I can not say that our water frogs have helped test our cages as they live in an aquarium.

However, that reminds me of a very important tip I can pass along: Never ever house a guinea pig in a glass aquarium. The air can not circulate and the ammonia fumes from the urine can build up and be harmful to the respiratory system of your pig. So, I guess the frogs did help to remind us that the glass aquariums are only for animals that live in water.

Hope you enjoyed our video from the last post. After viewing it if you have any questions or concerns please feel free to contact us at bluestonecommerce@yahoo.com. We would be happy to help you!

Warmest Regards,
Nancy from BlueStoneCommerce Cages