My male cavie of 3.5 years of age is 750 g. The vet says that its alright. But after researching I saw that a male piggie is usually around 1000g-1500g. Can someone please confirm if my baby is of proper weight? And if not, what to give him to improve his weight?
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My boar is 750 g
- Thread starter ishita
- Start date
There is no such thing as a proper weight - he shouldn’t weigh between 1000 and 1500g. He will weigh his genetically determined amount.
The average weights of adult piggies is actually somewhere between 600 and 1800g.
His weight tells you about his food intake. It does not tell you whether he is a healthy size for himself.
To tell whether he is a healthy size for himself, you must check his heft and the guide below explains how to do that - basically you put your hands around his ribs and determine what you can feel.
You said on your other thread that he was 800g but normally between 800 and 850g.
If he has lost more than 50g in weight then you do need to step in with syringe feeding as per my replies on your other thread. Losing weight means he is not eating enough hay
The average weights of adult piggies is actually somewhere between 600 and 1800g.
His weight tells you about his food intake. It does not tell you whether he is a healthy size for himself.
To tell whether he is a healthy size for himself, you must check his heft and the guide below explains how to do that - basically you put your hands around his ribs and determine what you can feel.
You said on your other thread that he was 800g but normally between 800 and 850g.
If he has lost more than 50g in weight then you do need to step in with syringe feeding as per my replies on your other thread. Losing weight means he is not eating enough hay
Hi
You have to feel around the ribcage for the BMI as to whether he is a good weight, underweight or overweight. Without knowing in which area his individual normal weight should be, the numbers don't say much. If you can just about feel the ribs, your boy is a perfect weight for his size. If you can feel single ribs or all ribs, then he is underweight and if you cannot feel any ribs at all, he is overweight.
I have had both piggies who were bordering overweight when they cracked the 800g in the peak of their lives and a large boar who was naturally borderline underweight at 1500g - yet both these piggies lived to 8 years and outlived the majority of my 'average' sized piggies. The size of a guinea pig is genetically determined. What you are aiming at is that the piggy is an ideal weight for their personal size. A small guinea pig that you overfeed in order to fit into the supposedly 'healthy' weight category has in fact a much higher risk of a shortened life span as a result because of the amount of yellow fat around their organs.
I have currently two girls who are just bout touching 600g on a good day but they are now 3 years old and - barring a genetic time bomb - have exactly the same chance of living to 5-6 years old as any larger piggies.
Health is not about being in the big huddle in the big 'average' middle; it is about being the perfect weight/size ratio. 'Average' only means that you are part of the half in the middle; it doesn't say anything else. It is the trap in our own (and even in some vets' minds) that equals 'average' with 'normal' and 'healthy' when that connection doesn't exist in reality.
This guide here explains it all:
Thank you for the explanation. I was worried as I recently lost one piggie. I can just about feel Mochi's ribs, and he's eating well enough. The vet also declared him as healthy for his age.Hi
You have to feel around the ribcage for the BMI as to whether he is a good weight, underweight or overweight. Without knowing in which area his individual normal weight should be, the numbers don't say much. If you can just about feel the ribs, your boy is a perfect weight for his size. If you can feel single ribs or all ribs, then he is underweight and if you cannot feel any ribs at all, he is overweight.
I have had both piggies who were bordering overweight when they cracked the 800g in the peak of their lives and a large boar who was naturally borderline underweight at 1500g - yet both these piggies lived to 8 years and outlived the majority of my 'average' sized piggies. The size of a guinea pig is genetically determined. What you are aiming at is that the piggy is an ideal weight for their personal size. A small guinea pig that you overfeed in order to fit into the supposedly 'healthy' weight category has in fact a much higher risk of a shortened life span as a result because of the amount of yellow fat around their organs.
I have currently two girls who are just bout touching 600g on a good day but they are now 3 years old and - barring a genetic time bomb - have exactly the same chance of living to 5-6 years old as any larger piggies.
Health is not about being in the big huddle in the big 'average' middle; it is about being the perfect weight/size ratio. 'Average' only means that you are part of the half in the middle; it doesn't say anything else. It is the trap in our own (and even in some vets' minds) that equals 'average' with 'normal' and 'healthy' when that connection doesn't exist in reality.
This guide here explains it all:
He's also pretty active. So I guess he's of proper weight right now. If there's a sudden increase or decrease, I'll be sure to take him to a vet!
Once again, thanks a ton!