Why do people do this, its not amusing.

There was a debate about this in the Kitchen once. I don't think it's cruel to dress animals up, but I don't see the point. Piggies and other creatures already have their own coats, so unless they are a hairless breed then I don't see why people should dress them up. It is kind of cute though!

I think it's ridiculous to dress animals up, CavyAddict.

There is an entire thread about this here: https://guineapigcages.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6716

I personally don't see a problem with it. You are not harming your cavy if you dress it up for 3 minutes and take a cute holiday photo. I have tried to make a t-shirt for Lina the skinny pig so when we try to introduce her to the other pigs again *sigh* they can't tug on her skin.


Does this cavy look horribly upset? I don't think so. And if she can wear a t-shirt for 5 minutes, then a normal cavy can too. She can feel the material, they can't. I find it funny that you think it's more humane to dress up an animal that can actually feel the coustume on it's skin (therefor limiting what you can use) then to one that really can't tell as much.

Thing is with piggies, they can only tell you how they are feeling by their noises and body language, not by expressions on their face, so no, I can't tell if this pig is unhappy because I cannot decipher facial expressions of a guinea pig.

Well, she has a broken wheeker, so she really never makes a lot of noise. But using body language will tell you a lot with Lina. She isn't all bunched up and she was sniffing the camera so I don't think she really noticed. She wasn't popcorning, but she wasn't upset. She was neutral.

She tried to rip off her bandages when I put them on her (to keep her from ripping open her back) so this can't have bothered her much or she would have had one leg through the neck hole and her hind feet pullinging at it. She's clever, it would have been half off of her if she didn't want it on her.

I still don't think that animals should wear this kind of clothing etc, they are born either with or without a fur coat, their bodies obviously adjust to the room temps etc, leave animals to be animals I say

If we were ment to have clothing we would be born with it on. The only reason we don not adjust to temps is becuase we clothe ourselves and can change our enviroment. (ie Air Conditioning)

Case in point: My husband can work in 40F and less weather wearing nothing but a t-shirt, shorts (if they let him) and a very thin cotton smock. Why? Becuase he's worked in such temps since he was 16.

We wear clothes becuase of some physological and small physiological need to clothe ourselves. We could walk about naked and some people do in nudist colonies. They survive just fine.

I find that I can tell how my pigs are feeling by the way they look at me.

An alarmed or upset pig usually has more bulging eyes, or when you can see the whites of the eyes they tend to be worried.

A happy and content pig looks 'normal' and as though there simply is no facial expression.

An angry or threatened pig tends to slide their jaw from side to side - teeth chattering.

Just thought I'd add that bit in seeing as how it has been discussed in numerous threads recently!

If you want to walk around naked when it is peeing it down or 6ft deep in snow, then go ahead. Mankind have always worn clothing, guinea pigs haven't

And how did we get such clothes before we invented tools?

I think that clothing has its place, and if the pigs arn't left alone in it, then they are alright. Afterall, most animals can show you in body language if they want it off. They would bite at it, remain in a huddled frozen stance, buck in it, show obvious signs of aggitation.

I have seen photos of pigs in little shirts and sweaters who are suffering from medical conditions. Pigs are natorious for ripping out stiches anywhere on their bodies before they are healed, or if they are raw from mights, it helps with keeping bandages on.

Out of all the things that can happen to a guinea pig, I am sure that being clothed is not one of the worst.

Animal skins etc, think back to the cave man era

Yes in the cave man era humans were scavengers. They ate the marrow out of the bones of animal carcasses. They did not think to clothe temselves. They lived in Africa, the cradle of life, where it is warm. Humans started making tools after they ate the marrow, then went on the killing animals, then made tools to skin them.

We are not born with clothes. Heck toddlers spend a good portion of their time trying to take them off. Clothing yourself is a learned behavior and if it is a learned bahavoir for us it can be for other animals. For humans are but advanced animals are we not?

I doubt putting a costume on your pig for a photo will impact thier lives that much. Lina still runs up to the side of the cage for food and cuddles.

I agree with Cavy & Kids. I don't see anything wrong with dressing your animal (be it dog, cat, piggie) up for a quick picture for the holidays. I wouldn't put anything confining on but a cute little Santa hat for a Christmas card would be cute.

A t-shirt isn't that bad. After you put it on them they don't really notice. The key is that it is comfy and made of light materials.

When all is said and done, guinea pigs are meant to be pets, part of the family and not dressed up, why risk injuring or upsetting them when you can just add the clothes etc using various pc paintshop programmes.

Becaue it's cute and it keeps the other pigs from tugging on Lina's skin.

My pet's are indeed part of my family, that's why they get to share the fun of hallowe'en and other family holidays. Families are inclusive, not exculsive.

How on earth would you injure your cavy in a coustume? You have to be gentle and not force things. Be patient and you can get a t-shirt on you cavy just as easily as you can clip their nails and check their teeth.

Computer editing is never as good as real life.

Edit: Cute how you dropped your thoughts on humans always wearing clothing.

Clothing can be kind for some guineas, like Sabriels Lina, or for those that have other medical conditions, it can make them more comfortable if recovering from mange mites, or get them to leave stitches alone allowing for them to recover.

Any pig that is not happy in the clothes will show signs of obvious annoyance. They will not act like their normal selves. But strangely enough, sick animals that have to wear clothing are fine with it on... Stands to reason then that other guineas that are healthy will be fine with it aswell, as a sick animal is likely to be more easily upset and cranky.

I used to think that dogs should never wear sweaters. They had owners who where just plain silly. I was taught to think like this from my family members. After talking to a few dog owners on why their dogs where in sweaters and boots, I found out salt can irritate their feet, and because of the type of dog they where, their fur coats where not very warm. I had a dalmation for 14 years, her coat would never be warmer then that of a t shirt. Most of the time we owned her, she got alone fine in it, however I am sure that she would have appreciated a little extra warmth and if I owned another one, I would definately purchase a sweater for colder days.

As for guineas and not being able to tell what they are thinking, I don't think this is true. Most owners have a pretty easy time telling what is on their pigs mind by seeing if they are relaxed, hunched up, skittish, or biting! If a pig lays down in its basket or cuddle cup and gives one of those "what are you looking at" glances at you, chances are it is not bothered by its unnessisary attire.

I have not changed my views on how humans wear clothing whatsover, but this discussion did not start about cavemen