All About Abyssinian Guinea Pigs

The Abyssinian guinea pig is one of the most popular and recognizeable breeds of guinea pig in the world. They can be any color in the guinea pig rainbow and breed readily with other breeds of guinea pigs. The only difference between an Abyssinian and other breeds of guinea pigs is the coat texture and growth pattern.

Rows Of Rosettes

The main characteristic of the Abyssinian's coat pattern is that it growth in whorls officially called "rosettes". They come in varying stages of recognizeability. Most Abyssininans look like they have moustaches, a cap and a tutu on.

Show Abyssinians have to have a minimum of eight clearly defineable rosettes about the body. The edges of the rosettes should be "crisp" or look like an easily defined line. The rosettes should be symetrically placed along the body (ideally, if you are looking to show Abysinian guinea pigs).

The coat texture is usually described as "rough" and "harsh", but it still is a lot softer than sandpaper, which is usually what I think of as the definition of "rough". Abyssinians are very pettable and, with gentle training, very affectionate. Some even develop as "lap pigs".

The Abyssinian Personality

Or "pig-inality", in this case. Although no guinea pig has read any of the books about how they normally behave, Abyssinians have a tendency to be friendlier and cheekier and a bit more mischievious than other breeds. There is no scientific proof of this -- it just seems to happen.

For example, my late Abyssinian Cocaine (she had a thin white line going up her nose) was a comical character. She learned to sit up, learned to jump into her cage on command, came when called (when she felt like it, not necessarily when I felt like it), played her water bottle like a musical instrument (wasting a lot of water) and "popcorned" even late in life.

It is only fitting that the breed of guinea pig with a highly overactive imagination that starred in a series of children's books should be an Abyssinian. Olga da Polga was based on a real Abyssinian guinea pig that belonged to author Micheal Bond's daughter. Later on, when more guinea pigs were added to the Bond family, there was always an Olga, who was always a multi colored Abyssinian. They all lived up to their infamous name.

Where'd The Name Come From?

The real mystery surrounding Abyssinian guinea pigs is just why they are called Abyssininan guinea pigs. They are not and never were from Abyssinina (which is the old name for Ethiopia). They also share no resemblance to an Abyssinian cat.

All domesticated guinea pigs are from South America, spefically Peru and Patagonia. The first guinea pigs to reach Europe were in the sixteenth century and cost a fortune (perhaps a guinea?) Perhaps anything exotic was given a foreign name of a foreign country fashionable in England at the time -- Abyssinia. Then again, all guinea pigs are neither from Guinea nor are they pigs (they are rodents).

Perhaps the Abyssinans themselves thought they were from Africa and whispered there stories in the ears of humans as they slept. Well, I think that's how Olga explained it.

However they got the name, it has stuck. I used to have a book on guinea pigs written in the early 1900's, and the breed Abyssinian was prominately mentioned.

Abyssinian Care

Abyssinians aren't known to be any more prone to illness than other guinea pig breeds. They are easy to groom with a soft cat or bunny brush, or even an old toothbrush. They like to keep themselves clean. Bathing is only necessary in emergencies, or if the piggy has trouble keeping their hind ends clean when they get older.

Abyssinian guinea pigs are considered great pets for those who have never kept guinea pigs before. For many of us (myself included), an Abyssinnian guinea pig was our first pets.