Do You Have What It Takes To Be The Best Guinea Pig Caretaker?

Characteristics Of Guinea Pig

• Life Span: Guinea pigs have a lifespan of six to eight years, depending on heath and care.
• Guinea Pig Breeds: There are short-haired and long-haired varieties. Peruvians, Abyssinians, Shelties, Coronets, Texels, Alpacas and Merinos are some long-haired breeds.
• Show and Pet Quality Guinea Pigs: The most obvious difference between a show-quality and pet-quality cavy lies in the facial features. Only a show-quality cavy would have a “Roman” nose, petal-like ears, and a solid body resembling a small teddy bear’s.

Housing Guinea Pig

• Housing Maintenance: Change cage linings twice weekly, feed daily, and supply fresh water daily too.
• Pairing: Guinea pigs are social animals, it’s best to keep more than one. Do not, however, cage two mature males together as they will fight; quite often one of both get seriously injured.

Diet Requirements For Guinea Pig

• Diet: Healthy eating means fresh pellets as the staple diet, lots of hay, and some fruits or vegetables. Vitamin C is essential. Avoid cabbage and lettuce to prevent colic.

Guinea Pig Grooming Needs

• Long-haired Cavies: Long-haired cavies require daily or at least thrice weekly grooming, as they need more grooming to prevent tangled hair. They also require twice monthly bath to prevent foul smell. Alternatively, you could trim your long-haired cavy’s coat down to lessen the grooming burden. However, you have to do this trimming once every 6 to 8 weeks.
• Short-haired Cavies: If you drag daily grooming routine, you may want to opt for a short-haired breeds as they require very minimum or no grooming at all. Of course, it’s good to give them once monthly bath to keep them smelling fresh and health.

Guinea Pig Behavior

• Body Language: They communicate through body language and a range of sounds. (Stay tune for the next article on guinea pig’s behavioral language.)

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What You Can Expect Once You Take Over Pet Ownership

Dogs

• Cost of Food: $5 to $20 per pack (for small breeds).
• Grooming: From $35. Long-haired breeds require daily brushing and regular visits to the dog groomer.
• Amount of Attention: Dogs need daily walks. They also need their owners to spend quality time with them. They can get bored and lonely if left alone for too long.

Cats

• Cost of Food: $5 to $18 a pack
• Grooming: $70 onwards. Long-haired breeds require daily brushing.
• Amount of Attention: Cats need relatively less attention from owners than dogs. But even though they do not need daily walks, quality time should be spent bonding with them.

Rabbits

• Cost of Food: Pellets from $5. A bag of hay is about $9.
• Grooming: About $15. Long-haired breeds require daily brushing.
• Amount of Attention: Regular cage cleaning is needed.

Guinea Pigs

• Cost of Food: Food pellets are from $5. Bag of hay about $9.
• Grooming: About $15. Long-haired breeds should be brushed daily.
• Amount of Attention: Guinea pigs are social animals. If you have only one, you should spend more time with it to prevent loneliness.

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Pets just can not vocalize their needs in a way we human understand. Regular grooming is one of the best ways to care for him. There are some grooming tools (regardless if you bring your pet for professional grooming on regular basis) that you must have with you when you groom your pet.

Five Basic Pet Grooming Tools

• Brushes: You will want to look for a specific type of dog or cat brush for your pet. Look for pin brushes which have a metal comb and wider spaces between them. This is ideal for those pets that have thicker hair or mats. Once this type of brush is run through the pet’s hair, you’ll want to then use a slicker brush. These are usually shorter and may be bent at the end. Because the spaces are closer together, it gives a more complete comb through.
• Combs: For combs, you’ll want to again look at the distance between the pins. Those that are closer together will give the best comb through, but it is also important for you to ensure that knots or matted hair is brushed through completely before you use a thin comb.
• Nail Clippers: Look for a good quality pet nail clipper. You will want to make sure that the pet gets a clean cut. Use styptic powder to stop bleeds. Make sure to get training on how to cut nails from your vet or your pet groomer before doing it yourself.
• Scissors: You also want to get a pair of grooming scissors to trim around the paws, tail, and maybe inner corner of the eyes (long-coated pets). Make sure the scissors has blunt ends so that you won’t accidentally poke or cut into your pets skin.
• Clippers: If you will be cutting the animals fur, you should look for a good quality clipper. Andis Clipper (Super 2 Speed Model AGC 2) is what I’m using and I highly recommend it. Look for the right size blade—size 10 to 14 are commonly used. Remember that the size of the blade is determines just how close the cut will be. You may want to purchase several.

Most of the grooming tools are available in any local pet supply stores. Or you could shop online for better deals and not to mention free shipping (above certain amount of course).

In any case, you will want to purchase high quality products that will last you quite a while—it’s more value for money. Keep them in good shape, cleaning, and sanitizing (once weekly or monthly) them after each use as directed by the manufacturer.

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Brushing your pet’s teeth is necessary to help remove plaque build up. Most dogs and cats will not get cavities, but they still can suffer from countless other conditions if you do not take care in providing them with a good brushing on a regular basis.

Tools You Need For Brushing Your Pet’s Teeth

Toothbrush: To begin, you will need to find the right type of toothbrush for your pet’s teeth. Don’t bother with a child’s toothbrush. You should instead look at your pet supply store for a pet toothbrush. There are various sizes of toothbrushes for different size of your pet’s mouth. Make sure it has a large handle as well as very soft bristles.

Toothpaste: Next, look for a high quality toothpaste for your pet. Do not use your own toothpaste on your pet as it can cause him to get sick. Instead, look for one that has enzymes in them. Do not use those that have baking soda, salt or detergents in them.

Easy Steps To Brushing Your Pet’s Teeth

Now that you have what you need, you’ll want to get to brushing! Approach your pet in a gentle manner. Do not force the situation. Talk to them encouragingly to get them to open their mouth. It is essential to begin brushing the teeth of a puppy or kitten early on so that he will learn that it is okay. Start out slowly and work the toothpaste over the teeth from front to back. If your pet will not accept this, then begin by using a towel and just wiping his teeth in the same way as you will a toothbrush. After a few weeks, he will let you brush his teeth with a tooth brush.

Be it cat or dog, your pet’s teeth should be brushed daily or at least every other day. By doing this, you will help to keep your pet’s teeth healthy and smelling fresh.

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• Encourage your Pet to Swim. This only applicable to dogs unless you cat adores water like he adores catnip. If you have a swimming pool or you take your pet to the beach, encourage him to get into the water and swim. Once they get over the fear, they will enjoy being wet. Then, the bath will not be so challenging. Of course, you should never throw a pet into the water and he should never be forced into any of these situations.
• Your behavior matters. If you are trying to give your pet a bath and he is fighting you, if you begin to fray and fight it, he is not going to cooperate with you at all. Instead, talk soothingly and calmly to your pet. Encourage him to relax and say reassuring things like “good boy” and “good job” as these will show him that he is not being harmed as well as that he is behaving right. Once you begin to settle your pet through soothing language, he is likely to sit and relax while you wash him.
• Make it Relaxing. Your pet grooming should be comfortable to him. If you yank on his hair and scrub too hard, it will hurt. No one wants to be where they will be hurt. Instead gently wash his fur, down to the skin and rinse him off, making sure to keep the water out of his eyes. Rinse the face last. Cats and dogs enjoy being massaged and petted and this is what it will feel like in a proper bath.

Bathing your pet does not have to be a chore. If he really refuses, take him to the professionals. You can even stay to see how they get your pet to listen and behave during a bath. It is a necessary thing to do to your pet, but it doesn’t have to be a struggle.

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