Bathing and Brushing
This section covers.
-Shampoo's
-Bathing Techniques
-Best Brushes
-Shampoo's
-Bathing Techniques
-Best Brushes
Guinea pigs are not dirty animals and do not require regular bathing, although regular brushing is a great way to keep your piggies fur in great shape, especially with long hair breeds who require it daily.
When purchasing grooming products for your piggies my most recomended place to start would be Gorgeous Guinea's who do some totally fab products from shampoos to creams for all different types of piggies ! http://gorgeousguineas.com/
Obviously you have your every day Shampoo, this is your average shampoo that can be bought from many pet shops, online or from your vet. This is probably the most effective for smell etc. however it can be quite stressful for guinea pigs as it involves water which most piggies don't particularly like.
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Bathing.
When it comes to bathing, a washing up bowl or sink of water is best, with a tea towel or just a small hand towel on the bottom so that your guinea pigs can grip or else it can be very slippy and scary for them. Another bonus for this towel use means that as they move there feet any dirt on there feet is rubbed of. Obviously for bathing you can use a bath too i just find a sink easiest for me personally alot less bending over etc.
With the water you want it to only be about an inch deep, or i just measure it up on my finger, so just past your nail to the little wrinkle bit before your knuckle, this way your piggies are in a good depth of water to clean there toes without resulting in a very soaked piggy. The water needs to be warm but not hot and not cold either, just if it's pleasant to for you to put your hand in then it should be fine,
Try not to get water on your guinea's face or in there ears, and if they need a face clean, don't use shampoo but water on the tip of your finger in small amounts or with the corner of a flannel, run it along the dirty areas but don't get it really wet.
When looking for a shampoo Gorgeous Guineas are the best and most recommended for piggies. http://gorgeousguineas.com/
Next we come on to Drying, Drying is best done wrapped up in a towel with light rubbing, you can use a hair dryer but at a distance and not too directly as it can get very hot but it also is quite scary and so i just don't bother using it, wrapping them up in a hand towel and rubbing gentle and keeping them in there cat bed or somewhere they can snuggle and then just change to another towel if it gets too wet.
With the water you want it to only be about an inch deep, or i just measure it up on my finger, so just past your nail to the little wrinkle bit before your knuckle, this way your piggies are in a good depth of water to clean there toes without resulting in a very soaked piggy. The water needs to be warm but not hot and not cold either, just if it's pleasant to for you to put your hand in then it should be fine,
Try not to get water on your guinea's face or in there ears, and if they need a face clean, don't use shampoo but water on the tip of your finger in small amounts or with the corner of a flannel, run it along the dirty areas but don't get it really wet.
When looking for a shampoo Gorgeous Guineas are the best and most recommended for piggies. http://gorgeousguineas.com/
Next we come on to Drying, Drying is best done wrapped up in a towel with light rubbing, you can use a hair dryer but at a distance and not too directly as it can get very hot but it also is quite scary and so i just don't bother using it, wrapping them up in a hand towel and rubbing gentle and keeping them in there cat bed or somewhere they can snuggle and then just change to another towel if it gets too wet.
Brushes.
There are many different styles of brushes, from rubber to metal ended and most come down to your preference on uses, i have 3 different brushes that i use, each for different things as they are each different sizes.