Microlivestock Little-Known Small Animals with a Promising Economic Future (1991) / Chapter Skim
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20 Guinea Pig
20 Guinea Pig
Pages 241-250
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From page 241... ...
An FAO study at Ibarra, Ecuador, showed that on small mountain farms the guinea pig provided more profit than either pigs or dairy cows, partly because its meat fetched high prices. Although domesticated guinea pigs are mainly a food resource of Latin America, their use has also spread to parts of Africa and Asia.
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From page 242... ...
MICROLIVESTOCK The guinea pig is a common household livestock in Peru. They spend their lives around people and become so tame that they can be cradled or carried around.
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From page 243... ...
and have no tail. In domesticated forms, the potage may be smooth or coarse, short or long, and in some types the hairs form rosettes.4 Domesticated types come in colors ranging from white to dark brown, as well as piebald.S 4 In the Andes, animals with curly hair are preferred as meat producers; their bodies are stockier and they are quieter than animals with smooth hair.
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From page 244... ...
Andean peasants mainly feed them potato peels, scraps of cabbage, lettuce, carrot, wild grasses, corn stalks, and the foliage of miscellaneous wild plants. Some barley and alfalfa is grown specifically for guinea pigs; it is cut green and sold in small bundles in the markets.
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From page 245... ...
Domestic breeds average 2-3 young per litter, although larger litters sometimes occur. The gestation period is 65-70 days with an average of 67.
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From page 246... ...
Researchers from La Molina [rational Agrarian University traveled throughout Peru gathering many kinds of guinea pig~short haired, long haired, black white, yellow, brown, and even purple. Practically all the guinea pigs eaten in Peru are home grown, and researchers observed that the bigger ones were generally winding up in the stew, leaving the smaller ones for breeding.
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From page 247... ...
The starting animals averaged little more than 0.5 kg the resulting ones averaged almost 2 kg. Peru's "super guinea pigs" are now getting international recognition.
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From page 248... ...
LIMITATIONS A major constraint is consumer reluctance. Even in Latin America, attempts to promote guinea pig consumption outside the Indian communities have failed.
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From page 249... ...
Animal geneticists in Latin American countries should establish "elite" populations that can provide superior stock throughout the world. It can be anticipated that applying modern breeding methods to existing improved strains will result in great advances in a relatively short period and at little cost (see sidebar)
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From page 250... ...
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