Breeding, Birth and Babies

Question
I have 4 female guinea pigs, and one gave birth 3 weeks ago, to 1 male and 1 female who have grown big, strong and healthy.  I have had guinea pigs for a while, but i dont know what to do now.  about and hour ago another of my sows (shorthair) gave birth to 3 healthy babies, but i have been observing them, and she hasnt fed them at all. I have put in another sow, the same one who gave birth 3 weeks ago, but she hasnt tried feeding them either, just cleaned them. i am concerned, as i dont want the newborns to die.  what should i do?

Answer
They will probably start nursing when they are ready.  If for some reason the mother can't care for them (I've never met a guinea pig mother who won't care for her offspring) you can give them a dilution of 50% goat's milk and 50% water with either a plastic eyedropper or infant's dosage syringe.  Feed them every two hours for the first week or two.  Place milk sop (bread soaked in milk) in the cage for both mom and babies to munch on, you can also use dehydrated rice cereal for babies, soaked in milk.  They can be weaned by the time they are 2 weeks old in a pinch.  Always free feed (keep a constant supply of feed in the bowl) pups, and pregnant or nursing sows.  Make sure the pups have water within reach, and that they are supplied with vitamin C (the baby rice cereal contains vitamin C).  

The mom with the 3 week old pups will probably share nursing duties, but she may not have much milk at first.  She should be weaning her own litter by now, and her pups should be eating pellets as much as they nurse.  She will start producing more milk if the new pups nurse from her too, enough to feed the new litter by herself in about a week, if the need arises.  Take the boar pup out within the week or you may end up with unwanted pregnancies.

I hope that answers your question.  If you have any other questions please let me know.  Good luck.

Annie