Guinea Pig Grooming Cuteness

There's nothing cuter than guinea pigs grooming themselves. Well, except for yawning guinea pigs. Maybe sleeping guinea pigs. And we can't forget about baby guinea pigs. But those are topics for another time.

Fur Styling for Abby-Roo

Being an extraordinary fluffy pig occasionally has its drawbacks. Abby-Roo is lamentably familiar with fur trims, rump inspections, and frequent butt baths.. However, her most recent grooming session brought a new surprise: a braid.

Cleaning Your Guinea Pig's Grease Gland

Quick grease gland checks are a regular part of our piggy grooming routine and a necessary part of cavy care. Out of our six pigs (all girls), Peaches tends to need the most attention here. Since she has a more active grease gland her piggy rump certainly benefits from the occasional extra wash!

Here's what you need to know about your wheeker's grease gland and how to keep it clean.

Poof's Butt Bath

"I get a treat now, right?" -Poof

Poof is one of those guinea pigs who benefits from periodic butt baths. For whatever reason her fur gets soiled more quickly than her cagemates' so the occasional partial wash helps to keep her piggy bottom clean and clump-free.

Peaches: 2 days after bath

"If you try to bathe me again, I will BITE you." -Peaches

Last Sunday an exhausting afternoon was spent on piggy related cleaning. First both cages were changed: bedding was replaced, hay racks were refilled, water bottles were cleaned, and bricks were hosed off. Six grumpy pigs were rinsed, bathed, and reluctantly blow dried against their will before being granted reentry into their cages.

A Dreadful Wheek-end

Last weekend all six cavies were unwilling participants in Spa Day. The treatment began with nail trimming, a reasonably manageable task if enough carrot bribes are close at hand. After all, ill-humored pigs are far less likely to retaliate if they have a mouthful of baby carrot to distract them.

Abby-Roo's first hair trim

Before

When Abby-Roo was adopted earlier this year her shark fin-like butt fur, while extraordinarily fluffy, was still rather short (to compare see her early photos here).

Guinea Pig Spa Weekend: Part II

Furry faces and suspicious eyes

In addition to nail trimming, pig baths are also on the weekend agenda. With six insubordinate, mildly hydrophobic cavies, this task is no mean feat.

Guinea Pig Spa Weekend: Part I

Can you guess what the pigs have to look forward to this weekend?

Belka, squirrel piggy

Our slave managed to capture this picture of Belka grooming herself. With her cheeks puffed out, she almost resembles a squirrel.

Peaches the multitasking piggy

Peaches is an adept multitasker. The amusing pose she managed to contort herself into above is a result of grooming her front paws while simultaneously scratching at an itchy spot on her side.

Our Channel Poo nail trimming interview

"Noooo, not the nail clipper!" -Revy

Today whee piggies here at the Cali Cavy Collective had the privilege of being interviewed about guinea pig nail trimming by the Channel Poo News team (composed of guinea pigs Sherlock, Gandalf and Mr.Tumnus on Twitter). It was great fun and we really enjoyed the interview with anchorpig Sherlock.

For those of you who missed it, here's the transcript of today's news report (11/15/2011). Enjoy!