birth

Question
QUESTION: Hi- My piggie Betty had 3 babies yesterday!! They are super cute! Anyways, she has chewed the sides of her back raw and I was wondering what I can do to help? Thank you so much!!

ANSWER: Hi Julie,

How has she managed to do that? Does she have mites? Have the babies done it? It seems very unusual to me and I need some more information before I can help.

Congratulations on the newborns! Avoid touching the babies for the first few days (although this will be tempting, as they are very cute) as if you pass your scent onto them, their mother may reject them, and hand-rearing a guinea pig is not easy! You can and should watch them, though. Make sure she isn't too rough when she is cleaning them, and check that all babies get a more or less equal share of her milk. A female guinea pig has only 2 nipples, so if she has 3 or more babies, they will have to take turns to suckle!

The babies can eat solid food from day one so start putting extra veggies in the cage, but they will also drink their mother's milk until they are around 3 weeks old. They will drink the water too, so make sure the bottle is low enough for them to reach. Don't put a small plate in; things will just get get messy!

Once they are weaned from their mother's milk, you will need to move any males to a separate cage. Make sure you do this by the time they are 4 weeks old, as at 4 weeks they reach sexual maturity and will be able to get their mother and sisters pregnant! It can be tricky to tell the gender of baby guinea pigs, but by the age of 2 weeks you will be able to tell for sure. If you cannot keep all the babies and need to rehome some, make sure they go in same-sex pairs, and do not give them away or sell them until they are 6 weeks of age.

Was your guinea pig pregnant when you bought her? If the father (or any other male guinea pig) is living in her cage you will need to put him into another cage. Adult males are too rough and bouncy to be trusted around small babies, and he will also try to re-impregnate the mother, and to mate with the female babies. Even if you want your female to have more babies, now is not a good time; as sows do not often successfully carry through one pregnancy straight after another.

If you have any other questions about any of your piggies, just get in touch :o)

Best wishes,
Jenny.


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Jenny-
Actually, she had started itching and scratching about a week before the babies came. I thought that maybe she was getting uncomfortable and that was the reason and that maybe during the birth she had actually scratched herself raw.

How do  I check for mites? She seems fine today and her skin is looking much better. She does feel warm around her abdomen but I was thinking that was to keep the milk warm and the babies warm.
Please let me know what you think. Thanks

Answer
Hi Julie,

It sounds like she may well have mites! The most common kind of mites that guinea pigs suffer from can be hard to spot. They live on your piggies all the time, but sometimes an infestation breaks out, which is when scratching starts, and treatment will be necessary. You can easily do this at home; but with a nursing mother, herbal products must be used and not chemical insecticides. The mites are tiny and look like dust or dandruff; they are white on dark-coloured piggies, and brown or black on pale-coloured piggies. If you find some, let me know, and I'll recommend a shampoo and advise on how to bath your piggy (it can be quite tricky as they don't like water).

Is she just warm around her abdomen? If so, you're probably right and it's to do with the milk. If she is hot to touch in general, scratches frantically, and you've noticed her having fits, then she could have mange. This needs to be treated immediately at a vets; though as your sow is feeding babies they probably wouldn't be able to give her the full strength stuff.

Let me know!
Jenny.