Changes

'''Guinea pigs''' are [[rodent]]s commonly kept as pets in a similar manner to [[rabbit]]s. They are ideal for small children as they have a placid temperament and are large enough to be handled without causing distress to the animal (unlike some smaller pets such as [[hamster]]s). Like most rodents, guinea pigs can give birth to large litters of young and thus care should be taken when selecting males and females as pets. As with [[rabbit]]s, they eat [[vegetables]] such as [[carrot]]s and [[lettuce]] and are easy to feed and take care of.

'''Guinea pigs''' are [[rodent]]s commonly kept as pets in a similar manner to [[rabbit]]s. They are ideal for small children as they have a placid temperament and are large enough to be handled without causing distress to the animal (unlike some smaller pets such as [[hamster]]s). Like most rodents, guinea pigs can give birth to large litters of young and thus care should be taken when selecting males and females as pets. As with [[rabbit]]s, they eat [[vegetables]] such as [[carrot]]s and [[lettuce]] and are easy to feed and take care of.

==Other Uses==  

==Animal testing==  

Guinea pigs can be used in [[animal testing]], although [[rat]]s and mice are more common. Outside of the west, guinea pigs are sometimes used as [[meat]] and are a delicacy in some parts of [[Peru]].

Guinea pigs are used for the purposes of testing drugs and cosmetics before trials on [[human]], along with [[rat]]s, mice and other small rodents. Because of this, the term ''to be guinea pigs'' is sometimes used for someone or a group of people to be testing or trialling something for the first time, for example a class of students may say "we we're ''guinea pigs'' for the new course structure".

 

Outside of the west, guinea pigs are sometimes eaten and are even considered somewhat of a delicacy in some parts of [[Peru]].

[[Category:Animals]]

[[Category:Animals]]

[[Category:Mammals]]

[[Category:Mammals]]