1 day old baby ginnys

Question
I witnessed my ginuea pig giving birth this morning at about 2 am. she ended up having 4. There was one 2nd to last who kept falling over last night. he couldnt stand and it seemed that the mother did want to have anything to do with it. why is that?

and also i tried to touch her nipples to see if milk was coming out for the babies and i didnt feel anything. how can i tell if the mother is feeding them and they are eating?

Answer
Hi Leeann,

I'm sorry to say that the one baby may die.  I'm afraid you'll just have to wait and see.  Sometimes a pup (guinea pig babies are called pups) are born "unthrifty," which basicly means that their internal organs may not be completely formed or perhaps the pup suffered from oxygen deprivation during birth.  Many times the pup in question will be fine, others times...  I believe that mother's ignore these unthrifty pups by instinct.  In a natural setting the weak are preyed upon and it can mean the survival for the rest of the herd if the herd tries to protect the weak.  Guinea pigs can walk and run shortly after birth as part of their defense against predators.

The milk does not come in immediately after birth.  The pups should be swarming around the mother and crawling under her at this point.  Guinea pig mothers are seldom unable to care for their young unless an injury occurs during birth, which you would be aware of by now.  From your wording, I think your guinea pig is fine and the pups will nurse when they need to.  If the pups seem to be getting weak, then you may need to supplement with a mixture of 1/2 goat's milk and 1/2 water.  Don't do this unless the pups are losing strength, as supplement feedings reduce the amount of milk the mother will produce.  You should know by the end of the day. If the pups are nestling up to Mom near her back legs they are nursing.  It looks like they are sticking their heads into the crook made by the hind leg.  Guinea pig mothers nurse standing up and the babies form a sort of queue waiting to nurse.  It really does all work out.

If you really feel you need to check to see if she's producing milk you need to be very, very careful not to hurt her when you do it.  The motion necessary is not a simple squeeze, it is more of a downward squeeze and pull motion.  The same kind of motion you'd used to milk a cow, but of course much more gently and with just the fingers instead of the whole hand.

I hope this helps.  Let me know if you need anything else.  Please forgive me if I stated the obvious. I never know just how much someone already knows.

Annie