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Pregnancy How can I know if my guinea pig is pregnant? And how far along is she?

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bpatters

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The first reliable sign of pregnancy is the ability to feel the pups move when you put your hands along the sow's flanks and press gently. This is at about week six of the 9-10 week pregnancy.

About a week before delivery, you can hear the pups' teeth gnashing.

About 24-48 hours before delivery, the pelvic bones will separate. You can feel for this separation by leaving the sow on all four feet, putting your index finger between her hind legs, and pressing just above the genitalia. Here's what you're feeling for: https://www.guinealynx.info/forums/viewtopic.php?p=1816328&highlight=pelvic+bones#1816328.

But guinea pups are like all babies -- they come when they come, and may not hit these mileposts exactly.

Weight gain early in the pregnancy is NOT a sign of pregnancy. Most sows are young and are still gaining weight themselves. The pups don't begin to put on significant amounts of weight until weeks 5 and/or 6.

Unless you have some reason to expect problems (a sow older than 9-10 months, for example), there's no reason for an ultrasound or x-rays. Neither can detect the pups in the very early stages of pregnancy. A good ultrasound technician may be able to detect them at about 4 weeks. X-ray can't see them until the bones mineralize, around five weeks or so.

More information on pregnancy and labor can be found at https://www.guinealynx.info/reproduction.html and https://www.guinealynx.info/labor.html.

Please do NOT breed your guinea pig. The mortality rate for sows and pups is very high. Guinea pig pups are huge in size in relation to their moms compared to other animals, which is a major cause of the high mortality rate. Additionally, guinea pigs are susceptible to genetic conditions which cause stillbirth, early death, blindness and deafness, and tooth and intestinal conditions that require lifelong care.
 
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bpatters

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This is a reference thread, and is closed.
 
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