Animal-World’s Featured Pet of the Week: The Abyssinian Guinea Pig

Animal-World’s Featured Pet for this week is: The Abyssinian Guinea Pig!

Would you like a small pet but want something a little more out of the ordinary? An Abyssinian Guinea Pig may be just the small pet you are looking for! These guinea pigs have a very interesting patterning to their fur. They are also known as “Rosette” guinea pigs because they have 8-10 whirls in their fur, which are called rosettes. Popular as show guinea pigs, these are a big hit among many people. Many Abyssinian babies however, do not meet the standards to be shown and end up as pets. I owned three of these guinea pigs when I was growing up and I always thought they were the most beautiful. Other people think their fur just looks wild!

Guinea pigs in general can make great small pets. They are clean, friendly, hardy, and easy to care for. If you make sure to acquire a baby guinea pig, your child can bond with him/her early on and have a great companion growing up. Abyssinian Guinea Pigs make wonderful pets for children. In my experience, these guinea pigs are quite energetic and can be a bit more spunky than some other breeds. But this also makes their personalities that much more endearing. Some can learn to do a few tricks and are smart enough to open their own cages and escape!

Domesticated guinea pigs have been around for a very long time. Records indicate their being kept with humans since around 5000 BC, most likely to be eaten as a food source. Specific breeding most likely began around 1200 AD. Initially they were kept as pets only by the wealthy upper class, but eventually became a favored pet of everyone. Different variations of guinea pig breeds became popular and specific traits were bred for. When the American Cavy Breeders Association was founded, one of the very first breeds they recognized was the Abyssinian breed.

Showing guinea pigs is a specialized hobby enjoyed by many. Ideally, Abyssinian Guinea Pigs should have one rosette on each shoulder, one rosette on each hip, four rosettes across the back, and two rosettes on their hind rumps. This gives a total of ten rosettes. As I mentioned before, many Abyssinian guinea pigs don’t quite make the standards for showing and end up as pets only. Your Abyssinian pet may still be eligible to show though, as long as he/she has at least eight rosettes which are symmetrical. Abyssinian’s come in many different colors and most of these can be shown.

Caring for and maintaining a home for your guinea pig should be relatively simple. Provide a cage large enough that he/she can run around in comfortably. Change out the bedding and clean the cage at least weekly. A good commercial guinea pig food should be offered daily, along with some fresh vegetables (i.e. lettuce and carrots). Water bottles work great for providing water. It is a good idea to provide chew sticks to keep their teeth trimmed. Also keep in mind that guinea pigs do get bored and they do need exercise. For this reason try to schedule in time every day where you can take him/her out of the cage to roam around for a bit.

Abyssinian Guinea Pigs are hardy animals and rarely get sick if they are kept in clean environments and out of drafts. If you are concerned your guinea pig is sick, read about Guinea Pig Illnesses. They are readily available. It should not be difficult to find them at pet stores or online. Guinea pigs are very social critters, so you may want to consider purchasing two to ensure they don’t get lonely.

Have you ever shown one of these guinea pigs? What was your experience with it?

Jasmine is a team member at Animal-World and has contributed many articles and write-ups.