The raising and care of guinea pigs

In Short

Published in 1915 by A. C. Smith, this compact handbook introduces readers to the fundamentals of breeding, housing, feeding, and marketing guinea pigs. Written during an era of expanding medical research and shifting livestock practices, the guide outlines how small-scale raisers can enter a growing market. Smith details everything from wooden hutch construction and green-food diets to disease prevention and financial forecasting. The manual has endured as a charming historical snapshot of early twentieth-century American smallholder ingenuity, home enterprise, and livestock husbandry.

The Story

The book opens by clearing up basic misconceptions about the guinea pig, or cavy. Native to the Andean region of South America and domesticated long ago by indigenous peoples, the cavy is neither a pig nor from Guinea. Smith presents it as a docile, clean, vegetarian cousin to the rabbit family that thrives in small quarters, produces no offensive odor, and remains virtually free from the contagious epidemics that plague poultry or rabbit farms.

From this introduction, the guide moves systematically through the operational choices facing a prospective breeder. Smith categorizes the primary varieties—the smooth-haired English cavy, the rosette-coated Abyssinian, and the long-haired Peruvian aristocrat—and strongly advises commercial raisers to stick with the hardy English breed. He then surveys the three primary markets driving demand: scientific research, pet ownership, and meat production. Medical laboratories and hospitals represent the largest consumer base, consuming thousands of animals annually for serum testing, while the pet market provides higher retail returns for attractive animals.

The narrative shifts to daily management, laying out explicit instructions for feeding and housing. Cavies thrive on a simple diet of sweet hay, lawn clippings, fresh green vegetables, oats, and clean water. Housing strategies split into individual stacked hutches or open floor pens, allowing urban residents and farm owners alike to build suitable quarters out of scrap lumber and wire mesh without heavy capital expenditure.

Breeding protocols form the core of the enterprise's expansion. Smith outlines gestation periods, litter sizes, line-breeding methods for color selection, and weaning schedules, emphasizing that rotational breeding avoids full-sibling pairings while maintaining high stock vitality. For fanciers interested in show animals, he details the structural standards for exhibition classes, ranging from solid-colored Selfs to Dutch-marked patterns.

As the herd matures, the focus turns to commerce and health maintenance. Smith provides clear directions for shipping animals safely by express in ventilated wooden crates without water, recommending dry roots and hay for transit. A comprehensive health chapter addresses common ailments like diarrhea, constipation, colds, and paralysis, framing sanitation and proper feeding as the ultimate preventatives. Finally, the book concludes with a financial prospectus: starting small with six females can rapidly yield an annual output of 120 offspring, turning minimal effort into a dependable profit.

How It Unfolds

The foundations of cavy raising Smith introduces the South American origins of the cavy, clarifying its physical traits, quiet disposition, and natural immunity to sweeping epidemics. He classifies the major varieties, steering commercial breeders toward the hardy English smooth-coated type while reserving Abyssinians and Peruvians for pet fanciers.

Building quarters and setting daily care The author details simple housing arrangements, contrasting stacked wooden hutches with floor-based group pens. He provides precise feeding regimes consisting of daily hay, seasonal lawn clippings, grains, and clean water, showing how city dwellers can collect free green feed from local markets.

Managing reproduction and stock lines Smith explains the 65-to-70-day gestation cycle, recommended breeding ages, and proper weaning schedules for young litters. He outlines line-breeding methods to secure specific coat colors and warns against over-breeding mothers to maintain strong, healthy offspring.

Exhibiting and commercial sales The guide establishes criteria for judging show stock across distinct color categories and details strategies for selling animals to laboratories, pet stores, and private buyers. Practical instructions explain how to construct lightweight shipping boxes and safely transport animals by express.

Disease control and financial returns Smith covers preventative care for minor ailments such as colds, worms, and digestive issues, urging clean hutches over medication. He closes with an encouraging financial breakdown, demonstrating how a modest initial investment in several breeding females generates steady cash returns.

The People

Because this text is a practical instructional manual, its central figures are the key animal breeds, market buyers, and human handlers who participate in the cavy-raising enterprise.

• The English Cavy: The reliable workhorse of the enterprise. It seeks simple food, clean bedding, and protection from drafts. It faces improper feeding or exposure to bitter cold, but given minimal care, it provides steady litters for laboratory supply and commercial sales.
• The Fancier Breeds (Peruvian and Abyssinian): The luxury coats of the cavy world. Featuring long silk locks or standing rosettes, they require meticulous grooming and specialized care from their owners. Their value lies in pet trade novelty and competitive show prizes.
• The Small-Scale Breeder: The individual worker—often a farmer, city resident, woman, or youth—seeking financial self-reliance. Facing limited space or minimal startup capital, the breeder overcomes these constraints by building simple wooden hutches and gathering discarded vegetable greens to build a profitable herd.
• The Institutional Buyer: Represented by medical laboratories, veterinary colleges, and hospitals. Driven by an urgent need for pure, healthy animals to analyze serums and test antitoxins, this figure provides a steady, expanding demand for reliable stock.

In Its Own Voice

"Why they are called Guinea Pigs, no one seems to know, unless their shape suggests a small pig and the name Guinea is a corruption of Guiana, a country in South America."

Smith opens his manual by clarifying the obscure origins and naming of the domesticated cavy.

"There is probably no animal in the world that is easier to handle."

The author highlights the gentle, adaptable temperament that makes the cavy suitable for city attics or farmyards.

"In soups, stews, pies, or roasted, broiled or baked the young Cavy is equal to any other animal."

Smith notes the culinary possibilities of the vegetarian animal, echoing government endorsements of the era.

What It's Really About

Beneath its practical housing dimensions and feeding schedules, the book explores the early twentieth-century drive toward economic thrift and household self-sufficiency. Written in an era when urban backyards and small farms could still function as productive sites, the text argues that small, manageable livestock offer financial security without massive land holdings or heavy machinery.

It also touches on the rapid expansion of modern medical science, positioning the humble cavy as an essential component of laboratory research and public health advancement. Ultimately, the guide asserts that success in husbandry rests not on expensive equipment, but on consistent care, cleanliness, and thoughtful management.

Why Read It Today

The Raising and Care of Guinea Pigs appeals to readers fascinated by agricultural history, retro self-sufficiency guides, and early American pet-keeping culture. Smith’s prose is wonderfully direct, warm, and clear of modern corporate jargon or artificial sales speak. Reading it feels like looking over the shoulder of a practical 1910s handyman building hutches out of scrap packing crates.

Modern readers should keep in mind that the manual reflects period attitudes toward animal husbandry, including the casual framing of cavies as a potential household meat source and early twentieth-century veterinary treatments (such as administering children's worm medicine or sweet spirits of nitre). The historical context around early laboratory sourcing also reflects the scientific practices of the day. For anyone interested in practical homesteading history or vintage livestock manuals, Smith’s guide offers a remarkably complete, nostalgic glimpse into an era when a modest backyard pen could launch a small business.

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