guinea pig pregnancy stages week by week

So you wouldnt have to worry about them running away to places they are not supposed to go. Though it is usually closer to 3-4 months. Guinea Pig Pregnancy Stages - YouTube 0:00 / 2:14 Guinea Pig Pregnancy Stages 64,851 views Jul 6, 2014 550 Dislike Share Save Squishy Bubbles 5.62K subscribers Are you wondering if your. If you do decide to have your guinea pig spayed or neutered, seek out a veterinarian who has successfully done a large number of these surgeries. The gestation period in guinea pigs could be anywhere between 59-72 days. If you feel something and you're not certain what it is, then consult your veterinarian. This article was co-authored by Pippa Elliott, MRCVS. You should also provide a box, like a small shoe box on its side. Reduce exposure to loud noises or bright lights. Not all guinea pigs are capable of handling the stress of a pregnancy. So do not be surprised if a young little guinea pig you just brought home is already pregnant! have company. But compromising on the perfection of those necessities wont cause much immediate trouble when she is not pregnant. It goes without saying that they need emotional stability during pregnancy when they are drowning in fluctuating hormone levels. "I had a male guinea pig for about a year and a half. What is the one thing that could get a guinea pig pregnant? The mothers weight will vary for a few days whilst she re-adjusts but should settle within five days. The kidney, bladder, or even fecal pellets can all be easily mistaken for fetuses. Safety from injury should take precedence over hygiene. This helped me, "Glad we got educated early. If it is pregnancy, your veterinarian will give you an appraisal of the progress and give you advice on how to care for your piggy. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. This causes mineral deficiency. Clean the water bottle weekly to prevent the build-up of algae and bacteria. Things to RememberAbout Guinea Pig Pregnancy and Breeding, Terms and Conditions for Pocket pet central, Keeping them in the rooms of your home where loud noises cant be heard, Guinea pigs tend to get stressed when they do not have a pattern in their food, drinking, and outdoor timings. Handbook of Rodent and Rabbit Medicine. Because guinea pigs have a high infant mortality rate. Were committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Males are territorial. But thats wrong! After about two or three weeks of pregnancy, the baby guinea pigs can be physically felt. if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[250,250],'pocketpetcentral_com-narrow-sky-1','ezslot_15',130,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-pocketpetcentral_com-narrow-sky-1-0');The lactational amenorrhea method (LAM) can be a helpful natural contraceptive in case of humans for a brief period after the birth of a child. It is not recommended to breed guinea pigs. Remove any other pregnant sows. Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 324,740 times. Rough handling may cause miscarriage. Pregnancy is risky for female guinea pigs, particularly for those older than 8 months and younger than 3 months and sows over the age of 2 years who have already had 2 litters. There is a high maternal mortality rate for guinea pigs (about 20%) as they are vulnerable to complications and illnesses such as toxemia. Neutered boars should be kept separate from sows for four weeks after surgery. Another sign is a hike in food intake. Support wikiHow by The guinea pig may die during or after pregnancy due to complications during pregnancy or birth, or from toxemia after birth. As a general rule, the larger the litter, the shorter guinea pig gestation tends to be. The more the number of baby guinea pigs, the shorter is the period of pregnancy. Did you know you can get expert answers for this article? The normal pregnancy period of a woman is 40 weeks. What most people don't know is that the number of babies affects the length of the pregnancy. The female has a short postpartum estrus that will last for only about half a day and, without a dominant male, all of the males will try to mate with the new mother. If at any point her weight begins to fall or if she begins to show signs of illness, consult a vet immediately. However, guinea pigs often do not react well to surgery, anesthesia, or being kept in unfamiliar surroundings. Has She Interacted With an Unneutered Male? Make note of the time and amount of water during each refill. Increased fiber intake can prevent hair thinning, which is common in the last stage of pregnancy. Guinea Pig Foot Spurs {Everything You Need To Know Here}, Basic QuestionsAbout Guinea Pig Pregnancy. A few proprietors have brought a young guinea pig home, to find that she is pregnant as of now! It is worth noting that female guinea pigs can get pregnant at four weeks old. Publisher: Pergamon. How long is a guinea pig pregnant for? The minute you are sure your guinea pig is pregnant, make sure you get it to your vets attention. If you have any concerns, do not hesitate to get to a vet. We had no idea of when Theo would have become pregnant, so we just counted the days from when we brought her home. Being wrong about the pregnancy couldnt hurt more than the consequences of neglecting it!if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[336,280],'pocketpetcentral_com-sky-4','ezslot_23',110,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-pocketpetcentral_com-sky-4-0'); There are actual people that I know who neglected the weight gain in their guinea pigs. Discovered how versatile a. Once the pups are weaned, the mother should not require vitamin supplements anymore, unless you gave them to her as part of her regular diet anyway. If you are a woman reading this I bet that you are thinking thank god there aint anything like that in humans!. ", How to Tell if Your Guinea Pig Is Pregnant, Unlock expert answers by supporting wikiHow, https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/small-pet-care/guinea-pig-care, http://kb.rspca.org.au/I-think-my-guinea-pig-might-be-pregnant-what-should-I-do_354.html, http://www.guinealynx.info/reproduction.html, https://petguineapigcare.com/breeding-babies/, saber si tu conejilla de Indias est preada, , Saber se seu Porquinho da ndia Fmea est Grvida, Erkennen ob dein Meerschweinchen trchtig ist, savoir si son cochon d'Inde attend des petits. Thanks for helping me realize that she is pregnant after all! But it contains more than necessary amounts for a regular guinea pig. So it is well over 3 months since the operation. If you are not prepared to care for them yourself, a more experienced guinea pig owner may be willing to take them or you may make the decision to have them put down. My guinea pigs continued to grow (4-5 months when I got them early May, so the new ones are 8 months old now) - to like perfectly normal guinea pigs. ask a friend or neighbour to check on her. It is important to begin to carefully handle young guinea pigs when they are only 2 or 3 weeks old. Pups from small litters are usually bigger than pups from large litters. o [alopecia OR hair loss ], , BVSc, DVP, DACLAM, DABVP(ECM), The Kenneth S Warren Institute. . This is the period when young guinea pigs will develop bonds with humans and learn to accept being held. So I am morally obligated to answer it. We do not control or have responsibility for the content of any third-party site. But doctors these days make the surgery sound like the only choice so that they could fill their pockets. Ultrasounds are non-invasive and do not require sedation. The gestation period of a guinea pig can last anywhere from 59 to 72 days depending on how many babies she's carrying. Ammonia irritates the lungs of pigs and will predispose the pregnant mother to lung infections. Shortly after giving birth, guinea pigs begin a fresh estrous cycle that lasts only about half a day. The expected duration of a pregnancy is at least 65 days, but it still relies on the number of offspring she is carrying. My guinea pig's quite fat, but when we went to the vet, she wasn't pregnant. This is going to be all the more obvious if she was a very active female before she was pregnant. "Just found out our rescued pig was pregnant even after two exams and one ultrasound. The mothers lactation period lasts for about two or three weeks. Guinea Pig Vomit: Everything You Need To Know. On average, baby guinea pigs come in litters of 2-4, and weigh 70-115g. There is no need to remove other sows, they may even help with the pups. I guess it is not too difficult to believe that hormone levels go crazy during pregnancy irrespective of which animal it is. The ultrasound will also be able to confirm how many pups there are, and how many of them are alive. Guinea pigs are brilliantly expressive creatures. It is not enough if you understand that. During this period the mothers double her body weight and get a lot bigger. So, better to be overly cautious than to be negligent.if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[250,250],'pocketpetcentral_com-sky-3','ezslot_22',111,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-pocketpetcentral_com-sky-3-0'); Make sure you monitor your guinea pigs weight every week. If you are not certain that the pups are weaned at 21 days, the males should be removed anyway to prevent pregnancy. This article made the information I, "This helped a lot. ", know if the sow is having a baby or babies. Is it OK to leave the non-pregnant girl with the pups? Guinea pigs have a much shorter timeline of pregnancy than humans. If the food has been stored for a while at the retail outlet, the chances are the vitamin C content is already negligible by the time you open the bag. wikiHow is where trusted research and expert knowledge come together. To find out how to house your guinea pig during pregnancy and how to prepare for it to give birth, keep reading! To tell if your guinea pig is pregnant, start by observing her eating habits to gauge whether she's eating and drinking more than usual. Females can have estrous or fertile periods at any time of the year, but they are most common in the spring. Pet stores also often house both sexes together, and some breeders do not separate the sexes early enough so it is possible the sow was already pregnant when you bought her. Guinea pig pregnancy, there is a fine line between it sounding scary and it sounding heartening. However, both males and females can mature and be fertile even earlier. When your guinea pigs reach 16 weeks of age, it is the time that they mature significantly. As a small thank you, wed like to offer you a $30 gift card (valid at GoNift.com). At what age can you neuter your guinea pig? Cavy Slave. So you may think that grooming them with regular attention, or even more during pregnancy, is needed. WRONG! X Normally, it wouldnt. if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[336,280],'pocketpetcentral_com-netboard-2','ezslot_18',122,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-pocketpetcentral_com-netboard-2-0');Well, not too many similarities are shared by guinea pigs and humans in their pregnancy. Guinea pigs reach sexual maturity early in their life- as early as six weeks!if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'pocketpetcentral_com-leader-1','ezslot_6',108,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-pocketpetcentral_com-leader-1-0'); So, remember that when you are wondering about the probable pregnancy of your guinea pigs. Even though having a vet all the time is not convenient. Then they started to do an unusual sound, which I suspected was a mating call. I would start looking up local guinea pig rescues so they can take some babies and help getting all the pigs fixed before she gets pregnant again (this can happen very fast after she gives birth). The litter size ranges from 1 to 8 pups, but a litter of 2 to 4 is more common. % of people told us that this article helped them. unlocking this expert answer. An unneutered male guinea pig! Guinea pig's pregnancy: final stage. Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered. The larger the size of the litter, the shorter the time they could stay inside in the same area where a smaller litter could stay longer. If the sow becomes uninterested in food contact your veterinarian immediately. If you let your guard down after one litter being born, without watching the females interaction with un-neutered males, the mother who just delivered a litter could get knocked up once again! By signing up you are agreeing to receive emails according to our privacy policy. This way you can keep track of her weight in order to determine any patterns of weight gain that may be indicative of a pregnancy. How many babies do guinea pigs get per litter? The boar must be removed by 50 days as he may continue to mount her which can be stressful or painful in later pregnancy, and she could become pregnant again as early as two hours after the birth. As weeks go by, the mother's belly will become tighter and bulkier. Begin by making a "C" shape with your thumb and first finger, and then sliding the thumb over the top of her tummy and the forefinger underneath her belly. Excess vitamin C is passed in the urine so cant be over-dosed, but other vitamins can build up and create problems. Guinea Pig Pregnancy Stages Week By Week - Pregnancy Nicky Dalere (@NickyDalere) August 29, 2016 //platform.twitter.com/widgets.js August 29, 2016 at 01:30AM Outdoor time, again, with your availability to monitor. We got her without knowing that she was a pregnant guinea pig. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. Vitamin C is highly unstable and breaks down within 8 weeks of the manufacturing date. By signing up you are agreeing to receive emails according to our privacy policy. However, both males and females can mature and be fertile even earlier. Other adverse effects include a loss of appetite out of fear, which could also result in fatal effects. Until we noticed that her belly got bigger than it should be. There will come a time when you'll be able to clearly see the babies moving inside the mother, and even the different parts of their anatomy. AmberCalzone Well-known Member. A female is fertile for about 6 to 11 hours, most often during night hours. Dr. Elliott, BVMS, MRCVS is a veterinarian with over 30 years of experience in veterinary surgery and companion animal practice. Right? Interesting fact - The largest numbers of pups a sow has given birth to was 14! Pregnancy is hard work for a female guinea pig. ", Unlock expert answers by supporting wikiHow, Aiutare un Porcellino d'India in Gravidanza, s'occuper d'un cochon d'Inde durant la priode de gestation. Alfalfa hay is great for pregnant, nursing and young guinea pigs but the calcium content is too high for normal guinea pigs as a build-up of calcium can cause bladder stones. A female can give birth to up to 5 litters per year. They are born precocial, which means they already have teeth and fur, and from their earliest moments they can see, hear, and move about. If your guinea pig allows you to touch her, use your fingers to gently examine her sides and stomach. Note that the gestation period is usually 66 - 72 days. Of course, as you probably already know, a break between two consecutive estrus cycles can be caused only by a pregnancy. Laber-Laird, Swindle, & Flecknell. The labor: You can hear distinct cries of her before she goes into labor. Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered. At birth, baby guinea pigs can weigh between 2.1 and 4.2 oz (60 and 120 grams) and have an average size of 3-4 inches (8-10 cm). HappyPiggies14 Well-known Member. Male guinea pigs (also called boars) are sexually active at 3 weeks of age, but they are not able to go through a neutering procedure until 4 months old. Stage #3. Females can have estrous or fertile periods at any time of the year, but they are most common in the spring. Pregnancy Symptoms Week 14. If there is a likelihood any of the pups are born with this condition you must decide what action you will take. It is often difficult to find homes with caring and responsible pet owners for young guinea pigs. Breeding often reduces the lifespan of female guinea pigs. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. They may be willing to attend themselves, or you may have to contact an experienced breeder. We took her to vet for check up.. The vet may try to manipulate the piglet into a position where the mother can pass it. During the last two weeks of pregnancy, do not handle the sow. Publisher: Pergamon Research source Well, I guess this is the most important section of this post. By this time, your pet's pelvic bones will have widened enough to make way for the pups . Neutering is advised only after the age of 4 months. These pups may die within a few days of birth, or may live for several years. For older guinea pigs, this may include her carrying out her pregnancy and birth housed at the vets, as she is more likely to need intervention. This happens not only in human pregnancy but also in the case of animals. Approved. Yeah, tests are very very important to take appropriate care of your pregnant guinea pig. This could increase her stress and affect her eating and drinking habits. It will be too stressful for her. Make the introductions gradual as the adults will be a lot larger and could do them serious harm. The probe records the echoes as the sound waves bounce back in order to determine the size, shape, and consistency of internal tissues and organs. So how long are guinea pigs pregnant? Not only does it scare her, but also causes pain due to the pressure put by our arms. :)", understand just in case for the future as well, thanks so much for the info. At birth the pups should weigh roughly 2 to 3 oz. Do not crowd the mother have only one person in the room, but another on standby to make calls if necessary. Starting from how to know if your guinea pig is pregnant, to how to care for a pregnant guinea pig, to all characteristics of the gestation period, to the birth of the litter, I will lead you through every little detail of guinea pig pregnancy in the upcoming sections of this post! Since guinea pigs attain sexual maturity as early as 6 weeks in their life, even young guinea pigs are bound to get pregnant. This information is then translated into an image. In general, veterinarians do not recommend that individual pet owners attempt to breed guinea pigs. o [pig guinea] Last Updated: September 18, 2022 Guinea pigs should be split into same-sex groups at 3 weeks old. But that does not mean that you should not give them access to outdoors. However, there are some signs you can watch for at home. But that should be done only when you are present to monitor. Please confirm that you are a health care professional. The sow should gradually put on weight. To find out how to house your guinea pig during pregnancy and how to prepare for it to give birth, keep reading! This article received 14 testimonials and 88% of readers who voted found it helpful, earning it our reader-approved status. Feed your guinea pig alfalfa hay instead of timothy hay so that she gets more protein and calcium. For obvious reasons, your guinea pig needs extra nutrition when she is pregnant. This is an emergency situation requiring an immediate c-section. Females can become pregnant immediately after giving birth so make sure that there are no males nearby. At what age can guinea pigs mate? A pregnant sow will begin to drink and eat more as the pregnancy advances. If I felt my pregnant guinea pig's belly and caused her a miscarriage, what would the signs be? Recovery from neutering could take as long as 6 weeks. If your sow is carrying more pups rather than less, her length of pregnancy will more likely be closer to 60 days than 70. Stage #2. This article has been viewed 447,279 times. There are 7 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. Breeding a female guinea pig for the first time after she reaches 8 months of age can be very dangerous because of the normal stiffening of the pubic symphysis (a joint of tough fibrous cartilage between the 2 pubic bones of the pelvis) that occurs when the female reaches adulthood. 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