history of guinea pigs

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Wlid & Pet GUINEA PIG

wild G-Pigs

Diet and Habitat

Wild guinea pigs enjoy vegetarian diets. They enjoy feasting on leaves, hay, grass, and even flowers. Clovers are a special treat to the guinea pig's palate. Guinea pigs enjoy burrowing themselves underground and co-exist in family groups. Their underground burrowing habits are a good explanation as to why pet guinea pigs enjoy running around and playing in makeshift tunnels and hideaways in their cages. Wild guinea pigs are awake and active during dawn and dusk.

Wild Guinea Pig Dangers

Being a small animal, guinea pigs face an array of challenges being in the wild. They are the prey of larger animals including wild cats, owls, coyotes, and wolves. Snakes may also target guinea pigs for a meal. Humans are yet another threat to wild guinea pigs, as they may hunt them or take them out of their native habitats to sell or breed them. Folk doctors in the Andes mountains believe that guinea pigs are helpful little assistants in detecting the source of a disease or illness in a person's body by squealing at the source.

Communication

Wild guinea pigs communicate with one another by making sounds and using body language. They may make grunting, gurgling, and rumbling noises to communicate with one another. A growl or grunt is actually a friendly welcome to fellow guinea pigs. Guinea pigs may also show signs of submission to larger and stronger guinea pigs by lowering their head and making a rumbling noise.

Reproduction

Summertime is the time of love for guinea pigs. After a 60-70 day period of gestation, a female cavy will give birth to a litter of one to four guinea pig babies. At birth, guinea pigs are already covered in fur and look basically like a small version of their moms and dads. Guinea pig young don't stay with their moms for very long though, as they can be completely independent at just five days old.

Pet G-Pigs

Diet and habitat

pet guinea pig eat pellets and alot of veggies also hay,even they were pet guinea pigs ,they also need a large place for them, they love to make a mess.

Pet guinea pig dangers

they will just hide in a corner,under some shady place and dark place

communicate

they will use their own language by body just like wild pigs

The guinea pig (Cavia porcellus), also called the cavy or domestic guinea pig, is a species of rodent belonging to the family Caviidae and the genus Cavia. Despite their common name, these animals are not in the Suidae, or pig family, nor do they originate from Guinea. They originated in the Andes, and earlier studies based on biochemistry and hybridization suggest they are domesticated descendants of a closely related species of cavy such as Cavia aperea, C. fulgida, or C. tschudii and, therefore, do not exist naturally in the wild.[1][2] Recent studies applying molecular markers,[3][4] in addition to studying the skull and skeletal morphology of current and mummified animals,[5] revealed that the ancestor is most likely Cavia tschudii.

The domestic guinea pig plays an important role in the folk culture of many Indigenous South American groups, especially as a food source, but also in folk medicine and in community religious ceremonies.[6] Since the 1960s, efforts have been made to increase consumption of the animal outside South America.[7]

In Western societies, the domestic guinea pig has enjoyed widespread popularity as a household pet since its introduction by European traders in the 16th century. Their docile nature; friendly, even affectionate responsiveness to handling and feeding; and the relative ease of caring for them, continue to make guinea pigs a popular pet. Organizations devoted to competitive breeding of guinea pigs have been formed worldwide, and many specialized breeds of guinea pig, with varying coat colors and compositions, are cultivated by breeders.

Biological experimentation on guinea pigs has been carried out since the 17th century. The animals were frequently used as model organisms in the 19th and 20th centuries, resulting in the epithet "guinea pig" for atest subject, but have since been largely replaced by other rodents such as mice and rats. They are still used in research, primarily as models for human medical conditions such as juvenile diabetes, tuberculosis,scurvy, and pregnancy complications.

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