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Cuy? Normal?

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crnyng

crnyng

Junior Guinea Pig
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Sheboygan, WI
My moms pig was a normal little guy when she brought him home, happy, tame, enjoyed cuddling and playing, etc. As he's grown he's gotten MASSIVE. I reprimanded her for feeding him too much fruit thinking he's getting fat for that reason but I came across a site about cuy and as I read I started putting two and two together. I'm thinking he is a cuy and since most have abnormalities due to the breeding I actually went over to my moms and checked him over and his genital area is odd. I have never seen this so I was just looking for insight from someone that may know about cuys and if this is normal? Just to educate me some on cuys and such.
The peanut butter is to show size comparison, it is one of those large tubs. He's about almost 4 pounds, maybe just under or over a year old.

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Wow he is enormous! - I have read that cuys are always white and ginger - but if he was part cuy (or mostly cuy) perhaps that would explain his colour - his boy bits do look odd though - am sure one of the more experienced on boys bits and pieces will be on here soon to help.
 
TAN said:
Wow he is enormous! - I have read that cuys are always white and ginger - but if he was part cuy (or mostly cuy) perhaps that would explain his colour - his boy bits do look odd though - am sure one of the more experienced on boys bits and pieces will be on here soon to help.
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Right, he truly is massive. He was all normal sized and one day I went over and he was just this big pig and I was like what are you giving him, something is wrong, I have never seen a pig this huge! But he wanders about as if there is no problem in his life.
 
crnyng said:
He is the sweetest thing ever! I swear one day I'm gonna head over to my moms and steal him. He's not afraid of people AT ALL, he loves to play and be pet and do his best at popcorning considering his size...
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He's no need to be afraid of people when hes the size of a small dog :lol!:

He is beautiful I'd love to hug him :P
 
Beans&Toast said:
He's no need to be afraid of people when hes the size of a small dog :lol!:

He is beautiful I'd love to hug him :P
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Every single time I go to say hi he knows it's me and runs around and stands up and "purs" how they do when they rumblestrut. My mom tells me he likes me more than her. He truly has one of a kind personality.
 
crnyng said:
Every single time I go to say hi he knows it's me and runs around and stands up and "purs" how they do when they rumblestrut. My mom tells me he likes me more than her. He truly has one of a kind personality.
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Awww :love:
I love when piggies get to recognise your voice and they get excited to see you:wub:
 
AmyAnn said:
Not an expert in 'bits and pieces' but by chance I was reading the below thread yesterday - I'm adopting 2 boars next week and have never had boys before!

It looks like he might have 'cauliflower willy'?
Boar Care: Bits, Bums & Baths
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Huh, I wonder if that's what it is? It seems to have more "flowers" to it than what was shown for it so I'm still uncertain and a bit concerned. Was an interesting read though so thank you for that!
 
AmyAnn said:
Not an expert in 'bits and pieces' but by chance I was reading the below thread yesterday - I'm adopting 2 boars next week and have never had boys before!

It looks like he might have 'cauliflower willy'?
Boar Care: Bits, Bums & Baths
Click to expand...
I agree it looks like a "cauliflower willy" one of my old guinea pigs had that and it didn't seem to bother him at all. I just kept it clean.

Gorgeous big piggie he's so handsome.
 
Julie M said:
I agree it looks like a "cauliflower willy" one of my old guinea pigs had that and it didn't seem to bother him at all. I just kept it clean.

Gorgeous big piggie he's so handsome.
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How did you personally keep your pig clean for that? I know the link had some tips but just curious still.
 
I just kept his cage clean and I moved him off of woodshavings. It was 15 years ago before fleece bedding for piggies was out) and onto baby changing disposable mats (before the days of puppy pads, but that's what baby change mats were like) I had to tape them down with masking tape so he wouldn't eat them. Lol. Then I just put hay down as normal. I washed his bits in water.
 
Julie M said:
I just kept his cage clean and I moved him off of woodshavings. It was 15 years ago before fleece bedding for piggies was out) and onto baby changing disposable mats (before the days of puppy pads, but that's what baby change mats were like) I had to tape them down with masking tape so he wouldn't eat them. Lol. Then I just put hay down as normal. I washed his bits in water.
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Would it be horrible to have him on shavings if be was kept up on cleanings? I don't think my mom would be willing to deal with the fleece.
 
I think he will be fine. It was just me as I couldn't handle the thought of shavings stuck in there. Lol.
 
TAN said:
Wow he is enormous! - I have read that cuys are always white and ginger - but if he was part cuy (or mostly cuy) perhaps that would explain his colour - his boy bits do look odd though - am sure one of the more experienced on boys bits and pieces will be on here soon to help.
Click to expand...
I'm sure I've seen other Cuys on You Tube that are different colours.
The cauliflower willy is very interesting, I've never heard of that.
How long is he?
When he was little did his feet appear to be larger than those of most babies?
 
I make 4 pounds as being 1814 grams so larger than usual but not totally unheard of in a normal piggy :)

Weight?
 
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crnyng said:
My moms pig was a normal little guy when she brought him home, happy, tame, enjoyed cuddling and playing, etc. As he's grown he's gotten MASSIVE. I reprimanded her for feeding him too much fruit thinking he's getting fat for that reason but I came across a site about cuy and as I read I started putting two and two together. I'm thinking he is a cuy and since most have abnormalities due to the breeding I actually went over to my moms and checked him over and his genital area is odd. I have never seen this so I was just looking for insight from someone that may know about cuys and if this is normal? Just to educate me some on cuys and such.
The peanut butter is to show size comparison, it is one of those large tubs. He's about almost 4 pounds, maybe just under or over a year old.

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He is huge; adult cuys are generally around 2 kilos or over, unlike normal guinea pigs. Normal piggies can get to about 1800g in rare cases. How old is he?
If cuys have got regular interaction with humans from the start, they can make good pets for adults. The big problem is when they are sold unhandled to unsuspecting families. By the way, cuys can live as companions with normal guinea pigs.

He has what looks like a 'cauliflower willy', one of the bigger ones I have so far seen, but they are not quite rare in normal boars. It may need a check from a vet or more regular care as at this size it is prone to picking up all kinds of mess and could get infected.

You may find these threads here helpful in figuring things out and whether your mum's boy is a cuy or not.
Boar Care: Bits, Bums & Baths
The Importance Of Weighing - Ideal Weight / Overweight / Underweight
 
Critter said:
I'm sure I've seen other Cuys on You Tube that are different colours.
The cauliflower willy is very interesting, I've never heard of that.
How long is he?
When he was little did his feet appear to be larger than those of most babies?
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I don't quite remember. I wasn't living with her any longer when she got him but I THINK his feet and ears were somewhat large? Definitely his ears I recall her playing with his ears often saying they were large. For size seeing as he isn't my pig I can't say for certain but that little tube is a paper towel roll and he's basically as long as that thing is without stretching. For age, he can't be much older or younger than a year. He is either right under a year, a year almost exactly, or just a bit older. I think she's only had him for about 9 months.
 
Wiebke said:
He is huge; adult cuys are generally around 2 kilos or over, unlike normal guinea pigs. Normal piggies can get to about 1800g in rare cases. How old is he?
If cuys have got regular interaction with humans from the start, they can make good pets for adults. The big problem is when they are sold unhandled to unsuspecting families. By the way, cuys can live as companions with normal guinea pigs.

He has what looks like a 'cauliflower willy', one of the bigger ones I have so far seen, but they are not quite rare in normal boars. It may need a check from a vet or more regular care as at this size it is prone to picking up all kinds of mess and could get infected.

You may find these threads here helpful in figuring things out and whether your mum's boy is a cuy or not.
Boar Care: Bits, Bums & Baths
The Importance Of Weighing - Ideal Weight / Overweight / Underweight
Click to expand...
She has only had him about 9 months so I say just under, or over a year about. And from the start as far as I'm aware he has been handle often and seemed to enjoy it a lot. Thank you for the threads I'll send her links so she can learn about it to take care of him appropriately!
 
crnyng said:
She has only had him about 9 months so I say just under, or over a year about. And from the start as far as I'm aware he has been handle often and seemed to enjoy it a lot. Thank you for the threads I'll send her links so she can learn about it to take care of him appropriately!
Click to expand...

She may find our new owners bundle helpful; it has got lots of information on understanding guinea pig behaviour.
" Starter Kit" Of Information Threads For New Owners
 
Wiebke said:
She may find our new owners bundle helpful; it has got lots of information on understanding guinea pig behaviour.
" Starter Kit" Of Information Threads For New Owners
Click to expand...
We've had pigs ever since I can remember so she knows a good amount but I will send her the links so she can learn more. Whenever I head over there I always lecture her about how this is important for pigs or she should be doing this and shouldn't be doing that, as I learn more.
 
Now that is one big piggy! I would love to see him popcorning around:lol!:
 
Well he's gorgeous and it sounds like he's very happy, what ever he is!
I do recall that one of the signs in babies is exceptionally large feet (I can't remember about the ears), but having never seen a cuy baby picture for comparison I can't tell you much more than that.
At one year he may not be fully grown. At least in normal guinea pigs their growth has slowed down by that age but they often carry on for a little longer, so keeping your weight chart going will be interesting!

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:D He is a beautiful big boy, but I don't think he is a Cuy. Cuy's, even as babies, are twice the size of a normal piggie of the same age. They often have extra toes as well. Cuy's are usually very skittish indeed and not used to being handled. There was an article about Cuys in an issue of Guinea Pig Magazine.
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