Hair cuts and grooming for guineas?!

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Alex27290

Alex27290

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I have just got two guinea pigs and one of them is long haired. It seems as if before we got them they did not get groomed regularly and this has led to him having lots of matted fur and lumps on his back end.

I was just wondering if anyone has had the same experience and how you remedied it? Do the vets cut and groom severely matted fur on guineas or is there a special grooming parlour?!?!? ?/

We are happy to groom them every day, but his fur is in such a state at the moment that we cannot untangle the knots he already has :(

Thankyou in advance :))
 
If it were me i would try and cut out any tangles/matted fur - trying to untangle the knots will in no doubt cause the piggie pain. Ive got 5 long haired pigs and never attempt to un-tangle any knots, i just cut them out - far better to have a bad hair cut than be in pain!

You could trying cutting out a little each day - i find cutting the hair when they've just had a bath (when the fur is wet) reduces any pulling when trying to cut any knots out...
 
Sodapops said:
If it were me i would try and cut out any tangles/matted fur - trying to untangle the knots will in no doubt cause the piggie pain. Ive got 5 long haired pigs and never attempt to un-tangle any knots, i just cut them out - far better to have a bad hair cut than be in pain!

You could trying cutting out a little each day - i find cutting the hair when they've just had a bath (when the fur is wet) reduces any pulling when trying to cut any knots out...
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Thankyou! Thats really good advice! We tried bathing him last week and the size of him drastically reduced, so his fur must have been full of dirt build up. But even after bathing the knots were still too tough to brush out, and he got quite stressed when we started brushing him, so I decided to stop.

Are the pigs okay with you cutting their fur? And does it grow back quite quickly or not?!

:)
 
my pigs are ok with being trimmed, but that's mainly due to the fact that i do it regularly and so they've kinda become used to it (they are not entirely happy with it but they tolerate it). id recommend two people - one to distract while the other trims hair - having a stash of parsley or some pepper nearby will most definitely help with distraction :0

Ive got 2 peruvians, 1 sheltie, 1 texel and a coronet - all of which get haircuts ever 6-8wks or depending on whether they need a bath - i normally do a bath and hair cut at the same time - it's far easier (and quicker) to trim the hair when it's wet/damp (makes less mess too).

In your situation i would try and trim a little out each day to try and minimize stress - while your piggie may have a bad haircut for a few wks, he'll thank you for it eventually.

Do you know what breed he is? is he the one in your avatar?
 
Yeahh, they are the two in my avatar xx>>>

The one who has the matted fur and knots is the one on the left hand side of the picture. You can kind of see the problem area on his back end where it starts to get bigger in size compared to the rest of his body! He is a Peruvian guinea pig.

My other guinea is a sheltie and although his fur is long, it is thinner and hasnt become matted, so we have no problem brushing him daily (catching him is the only problem!)
 
Alex27290 said:
Yeahh, they are the two in my avatar xx>>>

The one who has the matted fur and knots is the one on the left hand side of the picture. You can kind of see the problem area on his back end where it starts to get bigger in size compared to the rest of his body! He is a Peruvian guinea pig.

My other guinea is a sheltie and although his fur is long, it is thinner and hasnt become matted, so we have no problem brushing him daily (catching him is the only problem!)
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Have you got a closeup picture of him - looking at your avatar i thought the one of the left was a sheltie and the one on the right was a sheltie x (although it's hard to tell from the picture)

Here's a picture of one of my peruvians (on the left) with his sheltie cagemate (this was taken about a week after they'd had a rather bad haircut):

PICT6129.jpg
 
if your not confident then get someone else to hold the pigs whilst you trim, keep the hair short around the bum then it will not get wet with wee.
 
Swarfega is very good as well for any matts/tangles caused by their grease gland. A small amount applied to your fingers then to your piggy and massage in well - you will feel the grease breaking down. A nice bath in their favourite shampoo leaves them all soft and clean :))
I have two mad haired X Coronet boys who's hair grows at an alarming rate rolleyes and have to keep them short as they get knots etc. Feel really bad cutting their beautiful hair but as Sodapops says, better to have a 'funky piggy' than an uncomfortable one :))
Boys eh...;)
 
I use a pair of sharp round ended scissors and cut a piece 1/2 inch wide to about an inch or less long. I start at the back of the neck and work backwards. Prissie is very good, especially if she has something nice to eat. if she starts to jump and complain I put her away for a while (half finished they do look silly though). I have her sat in front of me on the grass or a towel for most of the trim, then the final bottom trimming us done in a rather undignified position.

They really appreciate getting rid of all that hair.

Paula
 
Aww your guineas are sooo cute!

I got told when I got them from the animal foster home that they were a peruvian and a sheltie, but it is possible the woman may have been wrong... and I'm new to all of this so I'm not entirely sure myself!

I havent been able to get too many pictures yet as Ive only had them a week and theyre still settling, and quite shy! But these are the ones I have managed to take....

piglets.png


3-2.png


2-4.png

:)
 
Guinea pig slave said:
Swarfega is very good as well for any matts/tangles caused by their grease gland. A small amount applied to your fingers then to your piggy and massage in well - you will feel the grease breaking down.
Click to expand...

This might help, thankyou! Where can you buy Swarfega from? :)
 
I'm no expert on breeds but looking at your pics they both appear to be shelties x)x)x) you can tell a peruvian as their hair falls forward on to their face (making it difficult to tell front end from back end) whereas a sheltie's fur falls back from the face...

Your boys are stunning drooldrool
 
Hello!

I always trim my two long haired pigs backsides, and any hair near their back legs. This stops any tangels as its usually the back end that ends up tangled and matted. :)
 
Hello!

I always trim my two long haired pigs backsides, and any hair near their back legs. This stops any tangels as its usually the back end that ends up tangled and matted. :)
 
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