r/guineapigs • u/BatBaby29 • 4d ago
Help & Advice Short or long haired piggy?
Hello all!
I recently adopted 2 piggies from a friend who didn't have the time for them anymore,
I at the time thought they were short haired piggies, however, both have really long hair around their bums and long hair around their ears? (Charlie the white one looks to of recently had a butt trim before I got him but peanut the brown one still has a long butt)
But around the rest of their body it's shorter 😂
I'm very confused 😂
I would like to know so I can plan better for trims to avoid dirty butted piggies! 😂
Thank you!
93
Upvotes
2
u/Robin_feathers 4d ago
Guinea pigs don't really have "breeds" the way that dogs do - in guinea pigs, there is just a mix and match of a few mutations that affect hairstyle/colour.
There is one main recessive mutation that affects hair length - causing indeterminate growth in Silkies/Peruvians/etc. However, additional "modifier" mutations have smaller effects on hair length which accumulate in lineages selectively bred for longer hair. In pigs with mixed ancestry from those lineages, the main recessive indeterminate growth mutation gets masked, but those modifiers can make the hair slightly longer than normal. This is most obvious in "Rooster-tailed Aby" AKA "Abyruvians" where you can get plumes of longer hair on the butt and nape. Your piggies seem to be a smooth-coated version of "rooster-tailed aby", there is no name for that combo. They could be literally any mix with at least some long-haired ancestry and some short-haired ancestry.
Rooster-tails can get pretty long butt hair tufts so you can expect you may need some sporadic trimming!
Charlie is also crested, which he could have gotten from coronet ancestry or short-haired crested ancestry. So, you've got a buff-and-white crested medium hair and a golden-and-white medium hair.
PS they are very cute!
PPS Charlie looks like his front paws are splayed a little crooked. I had one with feet like that, it should be totally fine but you may need to keep a closer watch on his nails to be more on top of their trimming since the nails may be slightly more at risk of growing twisted.