Trimming a long haired guinea pig's fur with electric clippers
Like 2 Dislike 0 Published on 5 Feb 2014
Long haired guinea pigs need periodic hair cuts for hygienic reasons as the hairs around their back end tend to get dirty due to dragging on the cage floor. I have two sheltie (silkie) guinea pigs, and they LOATHED having their hair cut with scissors. They would jump round, squeal, struggle, and generally act as if you were cutting more than just their hair. Not only was it stressful for them but it was also dangerous as if they turned round or struggled at the wrong moment they could be cut.
I looked into getting electric clippers to clip their fur and wow what a difference. It's faster, neater and safer- the pigs can move their paw right against the blades and it won't hurt them. They also aren't nearly as stressed by it, provided as in the video above they are distracted with food. Occasionally, as at the end of the video, where fur is tangled it gets caught in the plastic comb like guards and they flinch, but generally they are so much calmer.
The clippers I use in this video are Wahl super micro clippers, which I got because they combine power (to help with thick fur) and small size (to help maneuver round their legs and delicate parts underneath). I can't claim that the results I get are neat, but they're far neater than what you can get with scissors usually.
Tips for cutting long guinea pig fur-
1) Bath them before you cut, and make sure they are fully dry before you clip them.
2) Distract them with food!
3) Use the longest blade guard you have for the general trimming, and then switch to the shortest one for their back end, cutting the fur shorter there will keep them cleaner longer. Provided you use guards there is no chance of making a bald spot.
4) Lift up the fur and cut from underneath outwards as shown in the video. I can't guarantee it will look neat but it seems to at least work for some neat-ish feathering!
5) Pause occasionally and make sure the blades are not too hot. I have never found them to be too hot to use but others have had this issue when using clippers for a long clipping session.