QUESTION

My guinea pig has given birth to 3 babies, how old can they be when you can give them away, when can you tell if they are a boy or a girl? I really need to know, because I don't want them getting hurt in premature mating.

Jean

ANSWER

Dear Jean,
Thank you for your guinea pig question.

Guinea pigs are ready to be weaned from their mother round about the 3 week stage, this is when they will usually stop suckling from mum altogether. Although they should still stay with the mother until they are around 4-5 weeks old to avoid distress at being separated too young. But no later than this, (especially for boars).

They can then be considered for their new homes when they are ideally around 6 weeks old. This gives the babies a breathing space in which to adjust to being without their mother for a short time before leaving for their new homes, rather than being separated from their mum and siblings the same day and having the additional stress of being transported to a new environment all in one go.

You can tell the sex of your guinea pigs by looking at this link and carefully following the step by step instructions. There are plenty of various photos for you to compare with and basically a guinea pig can be sexed shortly after birth.

http://cavyspirit.com/sexing.htm I hope this answers your question.

Best Wishes Elizabeth