Guinea Pig Farming Methods and Key Points of Daily Management Techniques

Many people have heard of the guinea pig (Dutch pig), but fewer may know it as the cavy (tianzhu shu); in fact, they refer to the same animal. Because of its cute appearance, delicious meat, and social nature, the number of breeders keeps rising, and its economic value is very good. So how should we carry out large-scale artificial breeding? Qinong Web introduces it for everyone.

1. Site Selection

Because guinea pigs have strict temperature requirements, the chosen site must be dry, and then dry grass should be spread on the ground; the lowest enclosure is best kept sealed, with the temperature controlled at around 20°C to prevent frostbite or overheating. They like to be active when the morning and evening temperatures are suitable, so it is best if sunlight can reach them in the morning and evening. Some hiding objects with holes can be placed in the site, which will make them run around on their own, benefit their health, and produce better breeding results. Site sanitation must be cleaned frequently, and a density of 10 per layer is ideal.

2. Feeding Matters

Guinea pigs can be fed a wide range of foods. Because their food intake is small, the feed needed for large-scale breeding is actually economical and affordable, generally based on coarse-fiber items such as corn and sorghum. To improve meat quality, some vegetable-type items such as cabbage and carrots also need to be fed daily, ensuring a balance between dry feed and wet feed. Fresh water must be replaced frequently; at each feeding, put in a small portion first, then add more after they finish eating, and the food should be cut into small pieces to make it easy for them to eat. Generally, feed once in the morning and once in the evening each day.

3. Disease Prevention

Guinea pigs themselves are relatively fragile, and the following ailments easily occur when raised in groups. When you notice swelling in some areas on the bodies of some guinea pigs, then these are certainly due to a lack of vitamins, and they need to be fed more wet vegetable-type feed. When you find that some guinea pigs have patchy baldness on the head, first isolate them, then apply ointment to them. When this situation occurs, it is very likely caused by excessive humidity; another possibility is insufficient feed feeding and too much dry feed.

Because guinea pigs are inherently weak and small, their breeding requirements are quite high, so everyone must be patient when carrying out large-scale breeding. As much effort as you put in, so much return you get. I hope the above information has been helpful to everyone. If you want to learn about other aspects of guinea pigs, you can search more on Qinong Web.