Thursday’s Child has Far to Go.  This is our little runty of the litter; below 3rd centile for head circumference, body weight and length.  For babies it is vital to get the first feed within the first 24 hours to get the colostrum.  Once they get this, they are usually bouncing around by 48 hours, eating grass, grains and anything it can get its mitts on.  Getting the first feed can actually be a problem with multiple pregnancies (which is common amongst the cavies) especially when female piggies only have one set of teats. The smaller, less aggressive babies can get ignored and fall by the wayside.  When we see this happening, we sometimes give them a boost by hand-feeding them with cow’s milk on the first day.  It is important to note that baby guinea pigs do not have a good swallow reflex so you can’t actually syringe feed them; rather, you have to hold a teaspoon in front of them so that they can lick up the milk.

This one has managed with a little bit of help from us.  She was one of four and wasn’t getting enough milk.  See…she’s fit and healthy now…looks like a little white rat with no tail!