Stats

Lifespan: 4-8 yrs
Size: Small
Diet: Herbivore
Activity: Crepuscular
Social: Herd
Biome: Temperate grassland
Range: South America
Movement: Running
Breeding: Live Birth
Defense: Speed
Status: Uncommon

About

A stout, tailless rodent domesticated by Andean peoples thousands of years ago and now kept worldwide as a gentle companion. Despite its name it is neither a pig nor from Guinea, and it greets familiar humans with a high-pitched whistle called wheeking.

Life cycle

1.
newborn pup
A blind, hairless pup nurses in the nest and is unable to regulate its own warmth.
2.
juvenile
A weaned juvenile is fully furred, leaves the nest, and begins foraging on solid food.
3.
adult
Fully grown and self-sufficient.

Learn more

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Taxonomy

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Rodentia
Family: Caviidae
Genus: Cavia
Species: Cavia porcellus