Guest Speaker Post | Today on our blog we have the amazing Racheal from Guinea Pig Gardens sharing her knowledge of all things Mini Yaks. Check out Racheals Facebook page for more amazing info: https://www.facebook.com/Guineapigstsv

🐹Sheba Mini Yak Guinea Pigs🐹

A fun fact about this breed of guinea pig is that it originated in Australia. A cross between a Peruvian & an Abyssinian Guinea Pig. 🇦🇺

Sheba Guinea Pigs live to be between 4-8 years old & you can get them in most colours. They are similar to the Abyssinian’s as they have rosettes all over their bodies, the difference is that the Sheba’s hair will grow to be very long. This also means that before you buy a pair, to really make sure you can commit to the care & maintenance these piggy’s require. ☺️

Some Sheba guinea pigs hair can grow up to 1.5cm a month, so to keep the hair nice you’ll need to brush it regularly. In the hotter months I personally cut a lot of their coat off, and I always keep the hair along the stomach & genitals cut short to avoid matting. I also recommend checking the ears for wax every 2 months, the long hair in & around the ear can encourage build up. You can clean this using a cotton bud & some coconut oil to very gently clean the inside of the ear. With males you will need to perform boar cleaning as they’re long hair can get caught in the perineal sac or around the willy. ☺️

All guinea pigs are highly social & this breed is no different. They are gentle & curious but can also be skittish (this comes back to how much you handle them). They can be very playful, affectionate & look absolutely magnificent when they have their full coat & are very well cared for. ☺️

Here is a pair of my Sheba Sow’s Fallon & Squeak 🐹