Domestic varieties of guinea pigs - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

There are many breed
Breed
A breed is a group of domestic animals or plants with a homogeneous appearance, behavior, and other characteristics that distinguish it from other animals or plants of the same species. Despite the centrality of the idea of "breeds" to animal husbandry, there is no scientifically accepted...

s of Guinea pig
Guinea pig
The guinea pig , also called the cavy, is a species of rodent belonging to the family Caviidae and the genus Cavia. Despite their common name, these animals are not in the pig family, nor are they from Guinea...

which have been developed since its domestication

Domestication

Domestication or taming is the process whereby a population of animals or plants, through a process of selection, becomes accustomed to human provision and control. In the Convention on Biological Diversity a domesticated species is defined as a 'species in which the evolutionary process has been...

ca. 5000 BC. Breeds vary widely in appearance and purpose, ranging from show breeds with long, flowing hair to those in use as model organisms by science. From ca. 1200 AD to the Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire

Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire

The Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire was one of the most important campaigns in the Spanish colonization of the Americas. This historic process of military conquest was made by Spanish conquistadores and their native allies....

in 1532, selective breeding by indigenous South American peoples

Indigenous peoples in South America

American indigenous peoples in South America include:*Indigenous peoples in Argentina*Indigenous peoples in Bolivia*Indigenous peoples in Brazil*Indigenous peoples in Chile*Indigenous peoples in Colombia*Indigenous peoples in Ecuador...

resulted in many varieties of domestic guinea pigs, which form the basis for some of the modern domestic breeds. Early Andean breeds were primarily kept as agricultural stock for food, and efforts at improving the Guinea pig as a food source continue to the modern era.

With the export of Guinea pigs to Europe in the 15th century, the goal in breeding shifted to focus on the development of appealing pets. To this end, various competitive breeding

Animal fancy

Animal fancy is a hobby involving the appreciation, promotion, or breeding of pet or domestic animals.Fancy may include ownership, showing, trialling and other competitions, breeding and judging. Hobbyists may simply collect specimens of the animal in appropriate enclosures, such as aquaria and...

organizations were founded by fanciers. The American Cavy Breeders Association

American Cavy Breeders Association

The American Cavy Breeders Association is considered a specialty club under the America Rabbit Breeders Association . Like many other specialty clubs under ARBA, the ACBA maintains a membership, awards sweepstakes points, provides special awards, publishes a newsletter and contributes to...

, an adjunct to the American Rabbit Breeders Association, is the governing body in the United States and Canada. The British Cavy Council

British Cavy Council

The British Cavy Council is the governing body in the United Kingdom for national, regional, and local cavy clubs, and also for the wide range of 'breed clubs' which exist on a national basis to further the interests of particular cavy breeds, and to provide a forum for those with an interest in...

governs cavy clubs in the United Kingdom. Similar organizations exist in Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

(Australian National Cavy Council) and New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

(New Zealand Cavy Club). Each club publishes its own Standard of Perfection and determines which breeds are eligible for showing. New breeds continue to emerge in the 21st century.

Common breeds

Guinea pigs, or cavies, are a rat like creature with a long tail with spikes on the end, wings, and a horn, on average 4 feet long.
Though there are many breeds of Guinea pig, only a few breeds are commonly found off the show table as pets. Most Guinea pigs found as pets were either found undesirable by breeders or were bred to be good companions regardless of how well they meet the breed standard of perfection. The short hair, Abyssinian, Peruvian and Sheltie (aka Silkie) breeds are those most frequently seen as pets, and the former three are the core breeds in the history of the competitive showing of Guinea pigs. In addition to their standard form, nearly all breeds come in a Satin variant. Satins, due to their hollow hair shafts, possess coats of a special gloss and shine. However, there is growing evidence that the genes responsible for the Satin coat also can cause severe bone problems, including Osteodystrophy

Osteodystrophy

Osteodystrophy is a general term for a dystrophic growth of the bone. It is defective bone development that is usually attributable to renal disease or to disturbances in calcium and phosphorus metabolism.One form is renal osteodystrophy....

and Paget's disease

Paget's disease of bone

Paget's disease is a chronic disorder that can result in enlarged and misshapen bones. The excessive breakdown and formation of bone tissue causes affected bone to weaken, resulting in pain, misshapen bones, fractures, and arthritis in the joints near the affected bones...

Short haired

The short coated cavy - often called the American or English- has consistently short, glossy hair without a part. This breed of cavy most resembles the Guinea pig's relatives and ancestors in the Cavia
Cavia
Cavia is a genus in the subfamily Caviinae that contains the rodents commonly known as guinea pigs. The best-known species in this genus is the domestic guinea pig, Cavia porcellus, an important meat animal in South America and a common household pet in the West.-Taxonomic controversy:Cavia are...

genus.

In shows, short-haired guinea pigs are shown by their color variety - self, dalmatian, Himalayan, etc. This designation does not have 'American' or 'English' appended to it, but applies only to short-haired animals.

Abyssinian

The Abyssinian breed of Guinea pig is known for its short and long, rough coat that has rosetted

Rosette (zoology)

A rosette is a rose-like marking or formation found on the fur and skin of some animals, particularly cats of the family Felidae. Rosettes are used to camouflage the animal, either as a defense mechanism or as a stalking tool. Predators use their rosettes to simulate the different shifting of...

of hair. The derivation of the breed's name is unknown, but does not connotate an origin in the geographical region of Abyssinia (present day Ethiopia

Ethiopia

Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...

). The ideal Abyssinian has 8 rosettes, one on each shoulder, four across the back, one on each of the animal's hips, and two on the rump. Some judging bodies, such as the ANCC, consider shoulder rosettes optional but desired in show cavies. A harsh-textured coat that stands on end to form ridges is desired.

Himalayan

The Himalayan guinea pig is similar to the Siamese cat in coat. It is solid white for the first few weeks of birth. Then the ears, face, paws, and feet grow darker with age. Similar to Siamese cats, Himalayans' coat darkens depending on the temperature. If a guinea pig lives in a house where the temperature is kept colder it will have darker points. If it is kept in a house where the temperature is warmer the points will be lighter and maybe even a medium brown. If kept outside the points' darkness would depend on the climate of the area. The darkest areas should be the face, paws, and the feet. Himalayans should have dark red eyes. These guinea pigs originate in southeast Asia, similar to the Birman

Birman

The Birman is a domestic cat breed. Also called the "Sacred Cat of Burma", it is not to be confused with the Burmese, which is a separate and dissimilar breed. The Birman has medium-long hair, a pale colored body and darker points with deep blue eyes. Even though the cat is pointed, the paws have...

, Burmese

Burmese (cat)

The Burmese is a breed of domesticated cats split into two subgroups: the American Burmese and the British Burmese . Most modern Burmese are descendants of one female cat called Wong Mau, which was brought from Burma to America in 1930...

, Himalayan

Himalayan

Himalayan can refer to:* The Himalayas mountain range* Himalayan , the type of cat* List of rabbit breeds#Himalayan, the breed of rabbit* The Himalayans, a band...

, and Siamese

Siamese (cat)

The Siamese is one of the first distinctly recognized breeds of Oriental cat. The origins of the breed are unknown, but it is believed to be from Thailand. In Thailand, where they are one of several native breeds, they are called Wichian Mat...

cat breeds.

Peruvian

The Peruvian is the progenitor of all modern long haired breeds, being a Guinea pig with hair that grows long continuously all over its body, sometimes to an excess of 20 inches (approx. 50 centimeters). Accordingly, this ornate feature can make caring for this breed more difficult for both owners and breeders; most show Peruvians have their hair folded up in wraps to protect it and keep it clean. Long haired Guinea pigs have both a top and an undercoat, the latter of which will generally only grow to 6-7 inches (15–17 cm.)Though most Peruvians kept as pets are regularly trimmed for ease of keeping, those in show coat should have hair that fans out to make the animal's front and rear completely indistinguishable. The coat should be of an even length all over, and have a central part on the spine. Peruvians of show standard are required to have two rosettes on either side of the rump, which creates the desired height and density.

Silkie or Sheltie

A Silkie has long hair that flows back over its body and never forward over the face (as in the Peruvian). When viewed from above it forms a teardrop shape and should never have a central part. In contrast to the Peruvian, where the coat is desired to fall in an even curtain all around the body, the Sheltie is generally accepted to have a somewhat longer sweep of hair in the rear.

Rex

A Rex guinea pig has short, fuzzy hair that stands on end all over the body. The hair should be uniform all over, without rosettes and no more than 1⁄2 inch (1 1⁄4 cm) in length, preferably shorter. The Rex breed sometimes looks similar to the Teddy, but the two breeds are genetically distinct—breeding a Rex to a Teddy will not result in Rex or Teddies, but rather American cavies.

Teddy

A Teddy guinea pig has a very dense and springy coat, with hairs that stand up. The hair typically grows to a moderate length and generally makes this breed resemble a soft toy more than any other. Another unique feature of the Teddies in the USA is the relatively long hair coating their bellies. In the UK, teddies must have short coats, growing slightly forward to a 'cap' on the forehead. Young Teddies sometimes look similar to the Rex, but the Rex's coat is usually much harsher and bristled. There is sometimes confusion between the US teddy and the so-called Swiss teddy, but in the UK, the Swiss teddy has been renamed simply the Swiss. The Swiss is a longer coated animal with a coat reaching between 6 and 9cm in an adult animal.

Texel

A Texel Guinea pig is like a Silkie, but with curls. Originating from England, it was officially recognized as a breed by the ACBA in 1998. The curls should ideally be tightly wound corkscrew curls and should cover the entire body, including the stomach. Unlike a Sheltie, a central part is allowed.

Alpaca

A curly coated Peruvian. Hair grows over face like a Peruvian. Most are first generation hybrids of Peruvians and other breeds.

Lunkarya

Initially it was described as a dominant rex Peruvian, but later was named Lunkarya through a combination of ‘Lundqvist’ and ‘rya’ meaning ‘wooly/sheep’ in Swedish. It has been said that after a few years interest dropped and the lunkarya breed was almost abandoned. Then luckily an enormous interest restarted the breed and the lunkarya is now one of Sweden’s major breeds.

Crested

The Crested is similar to the American, but has one rosette on the top of the head. According to ACBA standards, the Crest must be white, with no other white hair present on the animal.

The ANCC (Australian National Cavy Council) recognizes two main groups of crested but another group is also present, the White crested. The American Crested and the English Crested.
The American Crested must have a crest colour that is in contrast to the body colour. Usually this is white, but it could be any other colour. These are only recognized in the self colour. English Cresteds have a crest the same colour as the body. These are recognized in every colour and variety, with the exclusion of the "coated" breeds (longhairs and coarse coats). The most popular being breeds such as the English Crested Pink Eyed White and the English Crested Black. The white crested has a white crest on the top of the forehead and a self colour everywhere else. White crested guinea pigs must have a white crest, with any coat that does not have white hairs present. So Dutch, roans, etc. are not included.

Coronet

A Coronet cavy has longer hair, like the Silkie, along with a crest like a Crested. Hair on this specific guinea pig usually grows backwards, towards it's rear end.

English Merino

A curly-coated Coronet with a crest in between the ears on the centre of the head. To keep its fur in tip top shape, one needs to comb an English Merino's fur (preferably) once a day. Sawdust bedding is not a good option for this guinea pig, along with the Texel, Alpacca, or other curly haired breeds, it gets caught in their fur causing it to tangle. A better option would be to have straw bedding.

Hairless breeds

Very few varieties of hairless Guinea pig exist, the most prevalent breed being the Skinny pig

Skinny pig

The Skinny Pig is an almost hairless breed of Guinea pig. Skinny pigs typically have hair on their muzzles, feet and legs, but are hairless over the remainder of their bodies. Some have a thin covering of fuzzy hair on their backs as well. A healthy Skinny has skin that is mostly smooth with some...

. Skinnies were developed from a hairless lab strain crossed with Teddies and other haired breeds. They have curly Teddy hair on their noses, feet and legs. Skinnies are born nearly hairless. Another well-known hairless guinea pig is the Baldwin. The Baldwin was a spontaneous mutation from White Crested cavies belonging to a cavy fancier who was breeding them for show. Baldwins are born with a full coat which falls out until they are bald. The Baldwin is characterized by numerous skin wrinkles and a very small amount of hair just on the feet only. The Skinny and the Baldwin are two separate breeds and the two different hairless genes are not compatible. Hairless breeds require special accommodation, as they need to be kept warm and may require extra food. Currently a few Scandinavian bodies admits hairless breeds on to the show table, and consequently a standard of perfection exist.

Ridgeback

The Ridgeback is a recognised breed in the UK and is show under the guidance of the Rare Varieties cavy club and is also recognised as a Rare Variety in Sweden. It is characteristically smooth-coated, other than a ridge of hair growing along its back.

The Sheba or Sheba Mini Yak

The Sheba is a longhaired, rosetted cavy, characterised by mutton chop whiskers, with frontal, presented to one side of the face, and in a naturally tousled appearance.
This unique cavy breed, has been recognised as a cavy breed in Australia.
Their breed standard was developed by Mrs Wynne Eecan (considered by Australians, as the Breeds Founder)in the 1970,s, and was published along with other cavy breeds being shown in Australia at that time, in her book 'Pigs isnt Pigs', published in 1974, by Kangaroo Trading Pty. Ltd for Favoretta Publications of Sydney.

They are recognised as a pure breed and shown as such in Australia, and hopefully, sooner rather than later by the rest of the world wide cavy fancy in the future.

Australian breeders and exhibitors have continued improving this unique breed, and on 22nd January 2011, founded the specialist breed club The Australian Sheba Association.

Genetically, these animals are similar to Abyssinians, Peruvians, Shelties & Ridgebacks. They are a longhaired rosetted cavy. They are also known as the "Bad Hair Day" Cavy and but they are adored by many because of their lively and cheerful attitude. They are a very friendly breed.

Colors

Cavies come in many colors, but only three different colors can appear on each cavy, one from the black series, one from the red series, and/or white. The black series includes black, chocolate, lilac, and beige. The red series includes red, orange, buff, cream, and white.

Agouti colored cavies have a hair tip and root that are different colors, much like someone whose roots are showing from dyeing their hair. The root contains whatever color from the black series the pig has, and the tip has whichever color from the red series the pig has. Agouti guinea pigs have bellies the same color as the tips of their hair.
- Golden Agouti has a red tip and black root.
- Silver Agouti has a white tip and black (or grayish) root.
- There are also many dilute agouti variations with different combinations of the black series and red series.
"Solid" colored cavies are much like Agoutis, but the belly is ticked as well. Solid and Agouti cavies can have patches of solid red series, but all black series hairs wind up ticked.
"Self" cavies have just one color of hair—black, white, cream, etc.
Broken color cavies have two or three colors of hair in any combination not otherwise recognized.
Tortoiseshell cavies have patches of red and black. For show breeders, the ideal is to have an evenly checkered animal with clear, straight dividing lines between the two colors.
- Tortoiseshell and white cavies have even patches of red, black, and white.
Brindle cavies have black series and red series hairs evenly mixed throughout their coats. However, these hairs are not ticked.
- Magpie is a particular form of brindle with black for the black series and white for the red series. Magpie can be easily confused with roan, although in magpie the white hairs can appear anywhere, while roan cavies rarely have any white on their head or rear.
Dutch cavies have bands of color, generally on the cheek area and the rear, with bands of white in-between. The pattern is essentially the same as the Dutch pattern in rabbits.
Roan and Dalmatian cavies are genetically the same, but look somewhat different. Roans have white hairs evenly mixed throughout their other hairs on back and sides, while Dalmatians have spots of color on a white back and sides. Many are intermediate between the two patterns, with some spots and some mixed-in hairs. The white hairs caused by roan and dalmatian patterns are genetically different from normal white, or the white in the red series, or the white of the Himalayan pattern. Therefore, an animal could have white roan hairs mixed in with white hairs from ordinary white spotting, covering up the telltale roan markings. This is a problem because two guinea pigs who are both roan and/or dalmatian could produce deformed offspring. Hence, no guinea pig with an unknown genetic background and any white hair should be bred.
Himalayan cavies are acromelanic, just like the Siamese cat
Siamese (cat)
The Siamese is one of the first distinctly recognized breeds of Oriental cat. The origins of the breed are unknown, but it is believed to be from Thailand. In Thailand, where they are one of several native breeds, they are called Wichian Mat...

. Their noses, ears, and feet are a black series color. If a cavy with Himalayan genes has a genotype that would give them red series, or white, on their nose, ears, or feet, those hairs will be white. This could result in an entirely white animal, or one that is white with black ears, or a half-black nose. Himalayan guinea pigs are always born pure white from the heat of the mother's body, and any colored hairs develop slowly.

Breeding two roan colored guinea pigs may result in a 'lethal' gene being passed onto the offspring. A 'lethal' gene can cause many deformaties including; deafness, blindness, crooked teeth, loss of smell and many more.

External links

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