Guinea pig Alpaca

Everyone knows a Peruvian pig with a very aristocratic appearance, reminiscent of a wig, when viewed from above?! So the alpaca is in no way inferior to her! It’s just a curly wig! And some exhibition visitors take such a pig for a Maltese. But of course, everyone wants to touch her, and then cuddle. And the pig at the same time will not mind, and maybe even talk to you quietly nodding.

To date, there is no single generally accepted opinion about the origin of this breed of guinea pigs. Some experts believe that they mutated from crossing two breeds – an English Peruvian and a Rex. This is very similar to the truth, because the alpaca pig really has the features of both the Peruvian pig and the Rex in its appearance. It is also impossible not to note the similarity (especially with regard to wool) with the breeds of texel, merino and coronet.

So, the main feature of the alpaca guinea pig is curly long hair with small curls. The main difference between the pigs of this breed from the merino and coronet breeds is that the alpaca (just like the Peruvians) have two adjacent rosettes on the sacrum, so the wool grows towards their head. On the forehead there is an irregular rosette that forms a bang. On the muzzle, the hair grows forward, forming sideburns. When the coat reaches sufficient length, it curls into spiral curls. To the touch, the wool resembles sheep, and on the muzzle it is more rigid.

Pigs of this breed are distinguished by very beautiful and expressive eyes.

Alpaca babies look like funny angry hedgehogs. While the short coat is still growing, it seems, in all directions, and sideburns are already starting to grow on the muzzle – hence the important angry look. But two rosettes on the hips are immediately visible.

One more interesting feature of this breed, which only experienced breeders know about, can be noted: the hair on the paws grows from the claws up, and not down, like in texels, shelties and other breeds.

Alpaca guinea pigs are also very affectionate creatures that love human company as well as the company of other guinea pigs.

Caring for any long-haired pig always requires a little more time, because beauty and pride – a chic pet coat – requires regular combing, so an Alpaca guinea pig is not the best option as a first guinea pig.

According to breeders, alpacas are one of the most difficult breeds to care for, requiring regular grooming efforts. If you plan to participate in exhibitions with an Alpaca pig, then long hair will require additional care – twisting papillots. If not, the pig’s coat can be trimmed to floor length or slightly longer. In this form, you only need to brush once a week to select sawdust or blades of wool from wool. In addition, curly hair gets dirty less than straight hair.

If you do not plan to participate in exhibitions, then for your own comfort and ease of caring for your pet, you can safely trim the alpaca fur every two to three weeks to avoid contamination.

Like other rather rare breeds of guinea pigs, the alpaca is a breed that can only be found in specialist breeders. These pigs are very rare to find in pet stores.

As for nutrition and education, alpacas are the same as pigs of any other breed. They are absolute vegetarians. And for complete happiness, just a bunch of ordinary green grass will be enough for them.

In addition, do not forget to trim the claws every few months, just like with other breeds of guinea pigs.

Read more about caring for guinea pigs in the Contents section.

The coat color of alpaca pigs can be very different. These are agouti of different shades, and gold, and black, and two or three colors, and even the Himalayan color.

Often there are gray, white, brown, alpaca pigs, but in most cases they are multicolored.

Breeding alpaca pigs is a rather complicated business. As a rule, alpacas are show guinea pigs, they are bred with the aim of achieving the most successful individuals in terms of show standards. Because of this, inbreeding (crossing of related individuals) is possible within the same nursery, which can lead to many genetic problems for the entire species.

Newborn alpaca babies need to be weaned from their mother’s milk very early. If they are weaned only about a month after birth, this can damage the quality of the coat on the head and cause the coat to become denser.

Thus, the alpaca guinea pig is a very unusual and beautiful pet that requires regular and competent care, so you should not trust the maintenance of such a pig to children.