introducing male and female for breeding

Question
i have 2 female guinea pigs who are both under 5 months. their names are Lou Lou and Kitty! i want to breed kitty and she is around 2 months, i heard that it is best to wait untill the 4-5 month period. today i went and bought a very handsome and healthy male guinea pig who they told me was 5wks old(very tiny, very cute!!!!) i have him in a cage that i pressed right up to the girls cage and one will sit on her look out corner and will communicate to him, their about an inch apart. is this what i'm suppose to do? when it is time for them to breed i will switch lou lou and elliot(male piggy) so that loulou is in his cage by herself and elli is in with kitty. also, how will i know when she is impregnated, i read that she will swell immediately. once this happens i'm going to remove elliot back to his cage and replace loulou. also, when the babies are born, and the mother fails to remove ones sac how am i suppose to do it? or will loulou be a good auntie and help raise the babies?

thx, melissa

Answer
Hi Melissa-  The main thing on the age is WEIGHT.  You want the female to be atleast 1.5 lbs so she can sustain the pregnancy - a weight usually reached at 4-6 months.  2 months is too early, I wouldn't breed her if she were my pet.  You can leave the cages side by side, maybe separate them a week before you are going to put them together so he has a desire for a female.  The other female will help clean the babies up, including removing the sac.  Its not a guarantee, but usually.  In the unlikely event the mom doesn't get a sac off - simply take a dry rag or just hands if you have nothing available and rip sac off face.  The dry rag makes easier tearing.  Be careful around the umbilical cord and just leave it there unless baby is bleeding - mom will get to that.  Just get off face so baby can breathe.  You will notice weight gain and eventually the babies kicking once she is pregnant.  She will take on the shape of a lightbulb too - if she has several in her.  Gestation is about 70 days, 68-70 on average (2 months).  I hope this helps a bit!  I apologize it took so long to respond, I am sometimes out for the weekend.
Anngela