Pregnancy
- Thread starter nejlika
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Suzygpr
Senior Guinea Pig
The standard pregnancy lasts 70 days, so if you mark your calendar 73 days (10.5 weeks) from the day you got them and there are no babies then you can be sure.
Normally if there are babies you will feel/see movements from around 2 weeks to go. There are movements earlier than this but digestive gurgles can be confused for the early movements if you are inexperienced.
HTH
Suzy x
Normally if there are babies you will feel/see movements from around 2 weeks to go. There are movements earlier than this but digestive gurgles can be confused for the early movements if you are inexperienced.
HTH
Suzy x
Suzygpr
Senior Guinea Pig
Please weigh them weekly - an increase each week is normal for growing piggies but if the amount gained each week increases than this would be more indicative of a pregnancy.
Be careful not to feed more dry food than normal for their age/size as large babies can be difficult to pass, plenty of good quality hay is paramount as well as high vit C vegetables. I would give extra alfalfa (lucerne) hay too (a handful added to their daily hay) to ensure that the girls have enough for the babies and their own growth.
Suzy x
Be careful not to feed more dry food than normal for their age/size as large babies can be difficult to pass, plenty of good quality hay is paramount as well as high vit C vegetables. I would give extra alfalfa (lucerne) hay too (a handful added to their daily hay) to ensure that the girls have enough for the babies and their own growth.
Suzy x
Here in Britain, any sow over 4 weeks old coming into rescue that has potentially been with boars has to go on a 10 weeks pregnancy watch starting from the last day they could have been with a boar. It is a matter of waiting it out.
Depending on the number and size of the pups, you can't tell until the end if you are unlucky. Usually, you will get an idea during the last third of the pregnancy (i.e from about 6-7 weeks onwards), when the bulges on the side of the belly in front of the back feet and the weekly increasing weight gain becomes noticeable. You need to weigh weekly to follow the weight gain.
However, a rescue lady and I were both caught out last autumn when I had a surprise baby from a newly rehomed sow that didn't look in the least pregnant and had passed her 10 week pregnancy watch; no really suspicious weight gain or big bulges at that - it was only one normal sized baby! (Mummy had spent a day on the lawn with one supposedly safe boar who was over 5 weeks post neutering op, so it wasn't really anybody's fault.)
This is a picture of mummy just hours before giving birth (the buff one):
This is a link to a thread with pictures of my first (shop bought) sow during the last three weeks of her pregnancy before she gave birth to two pups; perhaps that can give you a better idea: http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=34000
Here is more information about all aspects of pregnancy: http://wheekers.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=library&action=display&thread=7303
Depending on the number and size of the pups, you can't tell until the end if you are unlucky. Usually, you will get an idea during the last third of the pregnancy (i.e from about 6-7 weeks onwards), when the bulges on the side of the belly in front of the back feet and the weekly increasing weight gain becomes noticeable. You need to weigh weekly to follow the weight gain.
However, a rescue lady and I were both caught out last autumn when I had a surprise baby from a newly rehomed sow that didn't look in the least pregnant and had passed her 10 week pregnancy watch; no really suspicious weight gain or big bulges at that - it was only one normal sized baby! (Mummy had spent a day on the lawn with one supposedly safe boar who was over 5 weeks post neutering op, so it wasn't really anybody's fault.)
This is a picture of mummy just hours before giving birth (the buff one):
This is a link to a thread with pictures of my first (shop bought) sow during the last three weeks of her pregnancy before she gave birth to two pups; perhaps that can give you a better idea: http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=34000
Here is more information about all aspects of pregnancy: http://wheekers.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=library&action=display&thread=7303
Last edited:
Suzygpr
Senior Guinea Pig
PS
If you have further questions please post in the Pregnancy and Labour section as I don't often have time to look through the other sections of the forum and may miss an urgent post from you - I monitor the P&L through the day and evening most days.
Suzy x
If you have further questions please post in the Pregnancy and Labour section as I don't often have time to look through the other sections of the forum and may miss an urgent post from you - I monitor the P&L through the day and evening most days.
Suzy x
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