Breeding
Guinea
Pigs
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GUINEA PIGS - BREEDING
The single most important breeding consideration is that female
guinea pigs should be first bred before 7 months of age. If the
first breeding is delayed beyond this time, serious (sometimes life-
threatening) problems with delivery are encountered. Females should
be first bred between 3 and 7 months of age. Males should be 3-4
months old at their first breeding.
The guinea pig's heat cycle lasts 16 days. The period during
which the female is receptive to the male and will allow breeding
lasts about 8 hours. Female guinea pigs can come back into heat 6-15
hours after giving birth. This is called a "postpartum estrus",
which means that they can be nursing a litter and pregnant at the
same time!
Pregnancy lasts an average of 63-68 days. The larger the litter,
the shorter the term of pregnancy and vice versa. The duration of
pregnancy for guinea pigs is unusually long when compared with that
of other rodents.
Pregnant sows (females) exhibit a grossly enlarged abdomen
during the latter stages of pregnancy. It is not uncommon for their
body weight to double during pregnancy. The time of delivery may be
difficult to determine because of the relatively long gestation
period and because pregnant sows do not build nests. However, the
week before a sow is about to deliver a litter, a slowly widening
separation of the pelvis develops just in front of the external
genitalia. This separation reaches slightly more than 1 inch in the
hours just before delivery.
This separation of the pelvis does not develop in females that
are bred for the first time after 7 months of age, creating an
impossible and tragic situation. Delivery of the young is not
possible and a cesarean section must usually be performed to save the
life of the sow and her babies.
An uncomplicated delivery usually requires about 1/2 hour, with
an average of 5 minutes between delivery of each baby. Litter sizes
range from 1 to 6 young, with an average of 3-4. Litters resulting
from the first breeding are usually very small. Abortions and still-
births are common with guinea pigs throughout their breeding lives.
The young are born relatively mature. They are unusually large
and fully furred, and can walk about. They also have teeth and open
eyes at this time. Even though newborn guinea pigs can eat solid
food and drink water from a container, they should be allowed to
nurse their mother for at least 2 weeks.
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