pregnant

[HeatherMiller]

I got 2 guinea pigs (female) from the pet shop last week about 8 weeks old but one is tiny and the other is big, she also has a very large stomach and shes getting very aggressive with the other.
I had read that guineas become agressive when pregnant and with her being so big i am concerned that she is pregnant.

I picked her up before to have a feel of her stomach but she was very skittish when i finally got her and calmed her down i touched her stomach and all i could feel was i presume her heart beat.

Any help would be great

 

[Lolaa]

If you take her weight every day you will get a rough idea if she is pregnant, she will gain weight every day and will end up huge if pregnant.

Gently feel the back end of her body, cup your hands around her and you can feel tiny little kicks, you really can't mistake them

Here's ruby at around 4 weeks pregnant..

And again at 6 weeks pregnant..

This is also rosie pregant she must have only been 2/3 weeks pregnant at the time..

These were free ad guinea pigs, no mention of pregnancy and infact no mention of a male guinea pig until I got there

The 3 girls have all gave birth and 4 turned into 14 within the space of 9 weeks!

Good luck if your girl is pregnant x

 

[HeatherMiller]

If you take her weight every day you will get a rough idea if she is pregnant, she will gain weight every day and will end up huge if pregnant.

Gently feel the back end of her body, cup your hands around her and you can feel tiny little kicks, you really can't mistake them

Here's ruby at around 4 weeks pregnant..

And again at 6 weeks pregnant..

This is also rosie pregant she must have only been 2/3 weeks pregnant at the time..

These were free ad guinea pigs, no mention of pregnancy and infact no mention of a male guinea pig until I got there

The 3 girls have all gave birth and 4 turned into 14 within the space of 9 weeks!

Good luck if your girl is pregnant x

when i touched her stomach it kind of feels like her heart beat or could that be kicking? i will try having a look at her tomorrow aswell

 

[aleuka]

Hi, depending how long term she is could be kicking. If your feeling towards the lower abdomen and feel jolts of movement would say they are bubs. You can squeeze gently to see if you can feel anything moving, Hope all goes well and your girl will be alright.

Just a few tips which may be useful.
Pregnant sows need lots of Protein and Vitamin C, so try and feed her lots of grass as they love it and is very good for the mum when she starts to make milk and also help bubs thrive as they grow.

Also pregnant sows when closer to birthing they tend to be more relaxed and will laze around alot, and if you use your index finger you can feel her pelvic bones and if you can fit your finger between them babies may be hours/days away.

 

[Wiebke]

If you suspect your piggy to be pregnant, please give her double the amount of vitamin C, best in form of vitamin C rich veg like peppers of any colour, broccoli or parsley (although some people recommend staying off it because it contains compounds that could trigger early labour). Make sure that she is drinking from the bottle and that you change the water daily.

In the later stages, she will also need extra calcium, like calcium rich alfalfa hay for the pups' bones. Please do not feed lots extra; you do not want to cause your tiny mummy problems with big babies at births. Make sure that hay is still the mainstay of her diet - up to 80% of her daily food intake.

However, I would not expect that there is yet that much to see in an 8 weeks old first time mum - at that age, she shouldn't be more than 4 weeks into a 9-10 weeks pregnancy and at the stage she will be just about starting to put extra weight on! You can't usually feel hard balls and babies moving until the second half of the pregnancy.

Please weigh your girls weekly - an increasing weight gain is a good indicator for pregnancy (weekly weighing is also a good habit to help spotting health problems early on). At some point, her nipple will swell and elongate.

Here is more information about pregnancy from the best medical website for guinea pigs: http://www.guinealynx.info/reproduction.html, also see links labour and faq