Best guinea pig care guide for beginners
Guinea pigs, or “cavies” as they are often called, are social, docile and cuddly starter pets to have for children and teenagers. They are exotic, charming and appealing, making them fun to be around. And with some accurate information on their care, these South American rodents can easily last for five to seven years, about double the lifespan of hamsters, gerbils and mice.
So, which are the best guinea pig care guides for beginners to consult for everyday care of these furry friends?
In this article, we share some of the best guinea pig care guides and books available in the market. Our selection includes books that are a perfect resource for all types and age groups of guinea pigs and cater to all audience groups – children, teenagers and adults. Some of the options we share are also available in Kindle format as indicated in the list. We will also share some buying advice and additional online resources to check out for taking care of your beloved pet.
Also, if you are looking at some other starter pets, do not forget to check out our article on the best hamster care books and guides to see if a hamster would be a suitable beginner pet for your family.
Note: If you own a Kindle, consider signing up for Kindle Unlimited, which would give you unlimited access to a wide variety of audiobooks, including the best pet care guides. You can also get a one-month, no-obligation free trial to see if the service is suitable for you.
Best guinea pig care guide list
Some of the best guinea pig care guides for beginners available in the market are listed below:| Picture | Product | Editions | Features | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
  | Guinea Pigs (Complete Pet Owner's Manual) | Paperback | - Target Audience: Children, Teenagers and Adults - This best-selling guinea pig care guide for beginners is authored by renowned pet behaviorist Dr. Immanuel Birmelin and part of Barron's Complete Pet Owner's Manual series. - In 60 short pages, the book provides to-the-point information and advice on purchasing, housing, feeding and everyday care of guinea pigs. Also covers tips on social interaction and activities for the cavies. - The book is illustration-rich with colors photographs, making it suitable for all audience groups, including kids. - The current edition was published in July, 2008. | |
  | Guinea Pigs - Animal Planet's Pet Care Library | Kindle Hardcover | - Target Audience: Adults and Teenagers - This comprehensive guinea pig care book is authored by Julie Mancini and published by T.F.H Publications in collaboration with the Animal Planet. - In 110 pages, the book contains useful information and advice on housing, feeding, grooming and health care for cavies. Also covers tips on training and exercising the pet. - The book has over 60 colored photographs accompanied with helpful tips and trick sections. - The current edition was published in September, 2006. | |
  | Guinea Pig Care Secrets: A Kids Guide | Kindle Audiobook | - Target Audience: Children and Teenagers - This colorful guinea pig care book is authored by Holly Lloyd and part of the Kids Pet Care & Guide Book Series. - Available in Kindle and as Audible Audiobook, this book provides easy-to-follow, practical advice on how to choose and take good care of cavies at home. Filled with additional tips and hint sections for quick reference. - The book is illustration-rich with colors photographs and written in a fun-filled manner, making it an interesting read for kids. Short and sweet with 70 odd pages. - The current edition was published in June, 2014. | |
  | The Guinea Pig Handbook | Paperback | - Target Audience: Adults and Teenagers - This book is part of the popular Barron's Pet Handbooks series and is authored by Dr. Sharon Lynn Vanderlip. - In 160 odd pages, the book covers all aspects of guinea pig care - housing, food, behavior and health. The book also covers the history of domestication of cavies and information on all the popular pet breeds. - The book is filled with 100% color photographs and illustrations, making it an interesting read. - The updated second edition was published in December, 2015. | |
  | Guinea Piglopaedia: A Complete Guide | Paperback | - Target Audience: Adults and Teenagers - This comprehensive guinea pig care guide is authored by experienced UK-based pet experts Margaret Elward and Mette Ruelokke. - Published by Ringpress books, this pet care encyclopedia contains detailed information on pet care in 170 odd pages. The information is well supported by photographs and illustrations to make the content easy to follow. - Because of its early publishing in February 2004, some of the information may be slightly outdated. But it is still an essential reference. | |
  | Guinea Pigs: The Essential Guide | Kindle Paperback | - Target Audience: Children and Teenagers - This guinea pig care guide for beginners is authored by Kate H. Pellham. - In 60 short pages, the book covers all aspects of owning and taking care of the cuddly cavies throughout their lifetime, starting from the breed selection, required supplies, basic care requirements and even training. - The book is text-rich and lacks pictures and illustrations that could make it more exciting for children. Still, it is a quite popular beginner resource. - The current edition of the book was published in July, 2015. | |
  | Proper Care of Guinea Pigs | Hardcover Paperback | - Target Audience: Adults - This comprehensive guinea pig care book is authored by Peter Gurney, the most renowned guinea pig expert around the world. - In over 250 pages, the book has detailed information of all aspects of owning guinea pigs as pets ranging from how to select the right breed to how to provide a thriving habitat and everyday care of the pet. - The book is filled with full-color photographs and illustrations to support the text. - The first edition was published in 1993 and the revised edition was published in November, 1999. | |
  | Gordon's Guide to Caring for Your Guinea Pigs | Paperback Library | - Target Audience: Children and Teenagers - This short and sweet, children-friendly guinea pig care book is authored by Isabel Thomas and beautifully illustrated by Rick Peterson. The book is a part of children's pet care books by Heinemann Publishers. - In 32 pages, the book uses a guinea pig named Gordon as the narrator to teach all aspects of guinea pig care and training. - The content is well supported by labeled illustrations and photographs. - The current edition was published in September, 2014. | |
  | Training Your Guinea Pig | Kindle Paperback | - Target Audience: Adults and Teenagers - This guinea pig care guide is authored by Gerry Bucsis and Barbara Somerville and part of Barron's Training Your Pets series. - In 110 odd pages, the book covers useful information and tips on how to take care of guinea pigs and how to train them to be social, docile and cuddly pets. - The book has color photographs and illustrations to support the content. - The current edition was published in November, 2011. |
Top picks for best guinea pig care guides and books
Guinea Pigs (Complete Pet Owner’s Manual)
Whether you are an adult newbie or a parent looking for a beginner, easy-to-follow guinea pig care guide for their teenager or younger kid, you would find the Guinea Pigs (Complete Pet Owner’s Manual) as an excellent starting point.
The Barron’s Complete Pet Owner’s Manual series is specifically designed for beginner pet owners and this book is no exception. Authored by renowned pet behaviorist and author Dr. Immanuel Birmelin, this book provides excellent to-the-point information and advice on how to take care of cavies. The content is divided into 4 broad sections, with a bonus extra section at the end for additional tips and tricks.
The book starts with an overview of the animal’s trait and domestication history and then quickly moves focus on the things to keep in mind while purchasing such pets, followed by the guidance on housing, feeding and everyday care of these cuddly pets. The book also covers tips on social interaction and activities for these furry pets. Each section ends with an expert tips and tricks section for some bonus advice. All the content is well supported by color photographs, making it an engaging read even for kids and young readers.
The current, second edition of Guinea Pigs (Complete Pet Owner’s Manual) was published in July 2008. The book is available in paperback format.
Guinea Pigs – Animal Planet’s Pet Care Library
If you are looking for a somewhat comprehensive guide for taking care of one or more pet guinea pigs, then this book is another great starting point. The Animal Planet’s Pet Care Library series is a popular collection of pet care guides which present original, hands-on content, and the Guinea Pig care book in the series is no exception.
This detailed cavy care guide is authored by Julie Mancini and published by T.F.H Publications in collaboration with the Animal Planet. Spread across 6 chapters and about 100 pages, the book covers all aspects of guinea pig care. The book starts with presenting some basic information on domestication, breeds and anatomy of these cuddly pets and then quickly jumps into expert advice on housing, feeding, grooming and health care of pet guinea pigs. The book also covers tips on training and handling them as pet owners. The content is well supplemented by informative tips and colorful photographs and illustrations (over 60 of them).
The Guinea Pigs – Animal Planet’s Pet Care Library book is available in both Kindle and paperback formats, so you can pick the one that suits you. The current edition of the book was published in September, 2006. Though a little old, there is very little information in the book that can be considered out-of-date
Guinea Pig Care Secrets: Kids Guide to a Happy Guinea Pig
The Guinea Pig Care Secrets: Kids Guide to a Happy Guinea Pig is a colorful, fun-to-read and useful guinea pig care guide for teenagers and young children.
Authored and illustrated by Holly Lloyd, this book is a part of digital Kids Pet Care & Guide Book series by the author. The book is available in Kindle and as an Audible audio book.
In 70 odd pages, the book provides basic practical advice on how to choose and take good care of guinea pigs as pets. The book is illustration-rich with color photographs and (some newly added pics of cuddly cavies as a bonus) and filled with tips and hint sections for quick reference.
The current edition of the book was published in June, 2014. Alas! It is not available in print edition.
How to pick the best guinea pig care guide?
Picking the best guinea pig care guide is not much different from picking a training guide for other small pets such as hamsters. The best guinea pig care guide is one which is written in an age-specific manner and filled with to-the-point information and easy-to-follow advice on how to pick the best guinea pig and ensure its proper upkeep throughout the lifetime.
Guinea pigs are more social than hamsters and love the company they have! Same is true about their care guides! No single book may be sufficient, and you may need a combination of resources – both online and offline to help you take care of your beloved cavies.
Still, some of the major factors that you should consider before picking the best guinea pig care guide or book are listed below:
- Target audience and format of the book
- Popularity, reviews and ratings
- Publication year of the edition
Target audience and format of the book
Considering that cavies are such popular starter pets for children and adults alike, the target audience and format of the book are probably the most important criteria to consider.
Some of the options that we have listed are written in an illustration-rich, interactive format that caters well to children and teenagers. Such books are typically less than 100 pages long and have a lot of navigational aids and tip-sections to support their content. Guinea Pig Care Secrets: A Kids Guide and Gordon’s Guide to Caring for Your Guinea Pigs are a couple of such books which are designed specifically to appeal to the 7-15 year old’s.
We have also listed some have detail-oriented hamster care guides which have a lot of in-depth information on the history and science of keeping guinea pigs as pets. Such books would find more favor with the adult pet owners. A couple of titles, including our favorite – Guinea Pigs (Complete Pet Owner’s Manual) would find favor with beginner pet owners of all ages.
You can utilize the “Look Inside” feature on Amazon website to get a preview of the book or check for excerpts in Google online bookstore to determine if the presentation style is suitable for you.
Furthermore, if you prefer digital editions, then check if the book is available in Kindle format for easy access. Kindle editions are generally cheaper and also available with the Kindle Unlimited service.
Popularity, Reviews and Ratings
The popularity of the author, publisher, and book is often a great indicator of how the book would turn out to be.
Most of the books listed above have been written by authors and edited by publishers (such as Barron’s and Ringpress) with considerable experience in the field of pet care. But as one size does not fit all, you should look at the reviews, especially by other experts and authors in the field. Check out the reviews on Amazon and platforms such as GoodReads by other readers to determine its suitability.
Publication year of the edition
When it comes to guinea pig care, the publication year of the current edition is probably not as important as in the case of other pet training guides. After all, the basic factors and the underlying basic principles of guinea care have not changed over the years.
Still, considering the evolution of new types of habitats and pet gear over the past decade, you can check the publication year of the books and see that none of them are from the previous century, except for timeless classics such as the Proper Care of Guinea Pigs by Peter Gurney or Guinea Piglopaedia: A Complete Guide. These two traditional masterpieces in the subject are perfect for teenagers and adults who want to dig deep into the history and science of raising a healthy, happy guinea pig.
Best Non-fiction books on Guinea Pigs
Just like many other small pets such as hamsters and mice, they are also the protagonists of some of the best non-fiction storybooks for children. These books are excellent, fun-filled options to get for a kid who loves these pets:
- What the Fuzz?!: The Adventures of Fuzzberta and Friends: Enjoy the adventurous ride as Fuzzerberta, the pig, and her “furriends” go on a journey through time and space. Compiled by photographer and graphic designed Monica Wu. Enjoyable for young children and teenagers alike.
- The Guinea Pig Classics Box Set: The timeless classics retold with the guinea pigs as their primary stars. Truly an adorable adaptation of the popular works by Charles Dickens, Jane Austen, even Shakespeare. Enjoyable for children and pre-teen kids. This set contains three most popular books of the series.
- I Love Guinea Pigs: Read and Wonder: This popular book by Dick King-Smith is a popular, funny and illustration rich guide on guinea pigs. An excellent choice for 4-8-year-old kids.
- John Willy and Freddy McGee: Authored and illustrated by Caldecott Honor Artist Holly Meade, this adventure story of two guinea pigs is a popular option for 6-8-year-old kids.
- Stink and the Great Guinea Pig Express: “Fur-eaky” adventures of three guinea pigs. Authored by Megan McDonald and part of the 9-book, Stink book series. Available in paperback, hardcover and as Audiobook.
Additional Resources
In addition to the best guinea pig guides for beginners listed above, there are some other excellent online resources that provide the latest information and tips and tricks for training and taking care of these small pets. Some of our favorites are listed below:
- Erin Ark’s Pet Care Guide & YouTube Channel: One of the best online video resource for guinea pig care, though the publisher no longer shares new videos on YouTube Channel. You can also find some useful information on the Erin Ark’s Pet Care blog.
- Guinea Lynx: The most comprehensive online resource for everyday care and medical advice for guinea pigs. The site also offers a printable pamphlet, guinea pig care guide and even a health record book to keep a track of your pet’s care.
- RSPCA Guinea Pig Care Resources: A UK-based animal welfare-oriented portal with some decent Information sheets and guinea pig care guides for beginners in a printable format.
Also, check out the following beginner video on guinea pig care to get you started:
Final thoughts on the best guinea pig care guide for beginners
Among small animals, guinea pigs, or cavies as they are commonly called, are popular starter pets to have, especially for kids and teenagers. They are more social, docile and active in many cases than other nocturnal pets such as hamsters. And they can live longer, up to 5-7 years with proper care. And the best way to provide them with this proper care is to develop the right understanding and know-how on how to own, teach and take care of these furry pets.
In this article, we shared some of the best guinea pig care guides for beginners available in the market. The books that we listed have been written by prominent experts in the field and filled with accurate and to-the-point information, tips and advice on how to take care of these pets throughout their lifetime. We also listed some additional resources and our top picks, based on the quality of all-round information that these resources provide.
It is worthwhile to mention that just like any other pet training materials, no single book is sufficient, and you may need a combination of resources- websites and training guides for proper upkeep of these furry pets.
We hope that you found this article useful and it would help you in picking the best guinea pig care guide for yourself or your kids. Do let us know your feedback by commenting below. Until next time, happy pet time!!
Image credits:Amazon.com
