New Guinea pig owner-HELP!

[Kbyrne]

Hi all,
I was just cleaning one of our Guinea Pigs and noticed this little black thing on his underside. I suspected a tick at first but I don’t see legs or anything on it. Is this normal? Kind of freaked out and nervous that there’s something wrong. He’s only 25 days old.

 

[flowerfairy]

Looks like a nipple to me.

 

[Princess_Harriet]

Looks like a nipple to me.

That's definitely a nipple.

 

[Lady Kelly]

Looks like either a nipple or belly button. Nipples are present in males and females and there will be one either side of the abdomen. These are generally matched to skin tone of the surrounding area so can be dark or light and the colour doesn't need to be the same for each nipple. Belly buttons are higher up and more central, these are more commonly seen on young pups

 

[Siikibam]

Could it be where the umbilical cord was? They do a good job of keeping themselves clean so he shouldn’t need cleaning at such a young age. Was he smelling of urine or had a really dirty bum?

 

[Wiebke]

Hi all,
I was just cleaning one of our Guinea Pigs and noticed this little black thing on his underside. I suspected a tick at first but I don’t see legs or anything on it. Is this normal? Kind of freaked out and nervous that there’s something wrong. He’s only 25 days old. View attachment 173187View attachment 173188View attachment 173189View attachment 173190View attachment 173191View attachment 173187View attachment 173188View attachment 173189View attachment 173190View attachment 173191

Hi!

Youngsters have a very visible navel where the embryo's umbilical cord was attached until birth (it breaks of during the birth process) right in the middle of the belly and two nipples a bit more spaced out to the sides a little further on (they are symmetrical and the same shape but may have different colours). Different skin markings can make them look very strange. The belly button gradually becomes less noticeable in later life and may disappear completely.

Nothing to worry about; just one of those things that a new owner is not necessarily aware of and that can - like the presence of two nipples in both male and female piggies can cause concern on occasion.

This guide here lists the most common of those quirks (it includes belly buttons and nipples). You may find it helpful: Guinea pig body quirks - What is normal and what not?

It is part of our comprehensive New Owners guide collection which makes a great resource for all the little questions from settling in and making friends with your piggies, understanding their behaviour, care and diet to learning what is normal and not as well as life-long health monitoring, spotting early signs of illness and guidance on how quickly you need to see a vet and what you can do until you can see a vet with a suddenly very ill piggy.
Well worth bookmarking, browsing, reading and re-reading at need: Getting Started - New Owners' Most Helpful Guides

 

[Freela]

Hard to see the placement, but I would guess either a nipple or an umbilical cord remnant. Both sexes have nipples situated to the side slightly above the back legs. They can be differently coloured from the fur and differently coloured from each other. Pigs also have a belly button in the midline... it's more obvious on younger, baby pigs. Those would be my best guesses based on the pics. Hope this helps!

 

[Kbyrne]

Hi thank you for your reply! He wasn’t smelly or anything but my daughter accidentally spilled milk and I was just cleaning it off of his feet & belly.

 

[Kbyrne]

Thank you so much! I feel so much better now!