Question about the right type of breeding.

[VoodooJoint]

Originally Posted by JarBax

I The long hair for which the type is prized is ironically completely and ridiculously impractical!

Good point. Anyone that has had to cut poo and pee encrusted matts off of the butt, sides and legs of a silky or peruvian knows that there is no way an animal like this could not thrive in an uneducated or neglectful home.

And this is a breed that normally doesn't have strain related (internal) health issues.

[angelikness]

Originally Posted by piggly wiggly

Rabbitsncavyluv, if they don't adopt them out what do they do with them? Put them to sleep?.My skinny is not extra work, he eats and poops more, but that's about it. Maybe they are more prone to certain things, but so what, they need love too. Some of these threads make it sound like they need 24 our nursing care, and not worth it. I would have another skinny in a second. Maybe it's just mine (and I doubt it) but I find skinnies very sweet and cuddly. I am always drawn to misfits anyway, my cat is hairless too, and the only extra care she needs is a bath every two weeks.

I've heard this multiple times. I read that some breeders have bred skinnies with certain mixes to repair a mutated gene or something...the cause of their lowered immune system. Maybe this is one of the piggies you have (and hopefully we have).

[crazywiggy]

I have no problem, in principle, with keeping pets, and I have no problem (again in principle only) with breeding animals for pets (as opposed to taking them from the wild which is totally wrong).

However I am only "for" exceptionally good breeders. In my opinion a good breeder...

Breeds for health - this includes keeping detailed records of weights, vet check ups etc as well as doing any tests for certain probelsm, such as x-rays etc. They would only breed from healthy animals. And because female piggies need to be first bred young, they would need records going back a number of generations, so that they can check the parents and grandparents of the piggy they want to breed were also healthy.

They would be only willing to sell to people who are suitable piggie owners (like how rescues assess people). They should carry out an interview and a home check.

They should provide correct, detailed information on piggy care and health and insist that if the piggie develops any health problems after it has been sold that the breeder is informed so they can update their records.

All piggies should be neutered (except obviously the ones they are breeding from).

All of their own piggies should be kept in above minimum conditions (and my minimum I mean the minimums listed on this site, not by breeders or labs). Proper housing, care, food etc.

They should not sell piggies individually unless they are going to live with another piggie (I think far too many piggies live a life of solitude).

They should have a good background knowledge of animal care and welfare, preferably with a relevant qualification.

If a person did all of this I would consider them to be a good breeder. However, I agree with Susan - no matter how good a breeder may be themselves, with the current problem of overpopulation it is irresponsible to breed any more. Only when we have solved this problem, and there are no excess piggies needing homes, would high quality, responsible breeding be acceptable.

[Ledasmom]

Regarding the skinnies - although I do not have extensive personal experience with them, it only makes sense that a hairless pig would be more prone to melanoma than a hairy one, for the same reason that people don't generally get skin cancer on the parts of the body that are covered with clothing. Lack of hair = exposure to ultraviolet, and where there's sunlight there's ultraviolet.
We had a skinny baby born here a few weeks back to a pregnant foster pig, cute little guy we called Peaches (I took him out of the amniotic sac myself), miss him like heck now that he and his sister are back with the foster-mother I was pigsitting for. Do I think anyone should be breeding cute lil' Peaches clones of their own? Heck no! Love the ones that are here, but don't make more of them. Making defective animals on a whim is not responsible behavior. Darn it.

[morganbeth44]

Idk about other counties/states/countries, but I have been apart of a cavy 4-H club since I was 10 and I am now 21. I have also been a co-leader of that organization, but in any event, we teach our members to abide by all of those standards you listed. Most of our children do not however go about spaying/neutering their non-breeding animals, because in our area we have found no vets that are willing to perform the procedures. (I have looked extensively because I wanted specifically to neuter and spay a pair that have long since lived near each other--so that they could live with each other.

I understand the argument for rescuing pigs/rabbits/hamsters/dogs/cats...etc...etc... and I too adopt when i can, but it is actually very rare that there are guinea pigs to be adopted in this area--once in a while shelters will call my mom (the leader of the club) and ask if we know of someone who can house a pig, but it's not as big of an epidemic as it seems to be in other places. Having said that--I have only had one planned litter in the 11 years I have been raising pigs, and they had been pre sold to other 4Hers who didn't want to buy from a pet store, and couldn't find any to be adopted at the time. (I adopted a sow a few years ago who had apparently been bred before she arrived--as she had 2 babies a few weeks after she arrived)

Thats just my 2 cents

Originally Posted by Slave to the Wheek

Sadly, guinea pig breeders are all uneducated and have no idea what they are doing. It's a very sad tale in my view. They do not breed to improve the animal. They breed for color and coat. That is WRONG and VERY bad animal husbandry. It's what is killing many dog breeds today.

I would see this mythological GOOD breeder as one who at minimum:

-neutered/spayed animals they are not personally breeding themselves
-had a high level animal husbandry education
-bred animals based on tameness, longevity, and health
-kept decades long records of animals personal files and health files

One would be lucky to find a single breeder in all of the world who met these these simple critieria -unfortunately. If someone know of a person who does meet them please PLEASE e-mail me. I'd like to talk to them.

There are animals bred for research that are tightly monitored, but I'm afraid tameness and longevity are not on their list of traits. More like lack of hair, so they can test shampoo and skin lotions on them. Or having a certain gene marker etc.

[MCR_Rox]

Even if you breed for genetics ( not look genetics,) you are still supporting the over-population of guinea pigs. We don't absolutely need the breeds, do we? They are more of a luxury that is unneeded, and will support euthanasia. If the over-population drops significantly in a few years where there is no over-population at all, go ahead. But we really don't need anymore guinea pigs right now. Don't forget that each guinea pig in a shelter is taking up a place where a cat or dog is.