Kiss to your Guinea Pigs

Do Guinea Pigs Understand Kisses?

Guinea pigs are gentle pets that small children and adults alike love to hold and cuddle. The pets are cuddly too and small enough to snuggle up against your neck for some good old bonding session.

Guinea pigs are friendly and if they are not playing, they will be busy eating or trying to draw your attention especially if you seem not to be giving them any.

It’s generally advised to keep two guinea pigs because they are social animals who thrive when living together. They will chat endlessly, chase each other around, eat together, and even snuggle together to sleep.

Being the affectionate animals that they are and with all the love that you shower them with through kisses every day, you may wonder if they even know what you are doing.

Do they get the meaning of kisses? Let’s find out.

Do guinea pigs understand kisses?

Guinea pigs can understand kisses. They know when you are trying to show them affection and some may respond by licking you, rubbing their noses on you, or by gently nibbling you. Some guinea pigs though, will not be so affectionate and they will either run off to hide or bite you when you try to kiss them. You can kiss your pet on the top of their head, the bridge of their nose, or behind their ears.

Kissing them can be unsafe because vets advise that you should not put your face close to them to avoid transmission of diseases.

Where to kiss your guinea pig

Guinea pigs, just like other pets, will know when you show them love. A kiss can be a good way of doing this.

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You should know where to do it so as to do it right. Places to kiss your guinea pig that they will enjoy are;

  • On the bridge of their noses.
  • At the top of their heads.
  • Behind their ears.

Do guinea pigs love kisses?

Most guinea pigs will love kisses. As long as they are already used to you, and have learned to trust you, then they will gladly appreciate a peck every now and then.

To know if your pet loves your kisses, watch their reactions and if they will respond.

If your pet doesn’t like kisses they will wiggle out of your arms if you are holding them or run away to hide if they are free.

Some may nip you with their sharp teeth when you get closer to them. So it’s wise to be sure that your pet appreciates being kissed first before getting your lips close to them.

If your pet loves being kissed, they will show it. They may even make a happy sound when you kiss them behind their ears for instance.

Can guinea pigs kiss you back?

Guinea pigs can kiss you back if they are a more social type. It’s however debatable whether their kiss is their licking gesture or their soft nibbling.

But if you kiss your pet, they are more likely to lick you. This is a grooming gesture they use to show affection. They will sometimes groom each other if they are friendly towards one another.

Sometimes they will lick you to taste the salt on your skin.

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They may also nibble on you softly or touch you with their noses as a sign of their love for you.

Is it safe to kiss guinea pigs?

It’s not entirely safe to kiss guinea pigs and vets advise against putting your face too close to them to avoid contracting bacteria and viruses. Guinea pigs have diseases that are acquired through their food, water, and other pets.

Most of them are brought about by dirty environments. You can contract them by coming into contact with their contaminated food, faeces, saliva, or scratches.

Cautionary measures to take with guinea pigs

Guinea pigs are great animals to keep and they don’t mean to make you sick. But sometimes they could be sick and not show any signs so you would not even know.

To stay safe at all times when with your pet, you should take the following precautionary actions:

Wash hands thoroughly

It’s a general rule that you should always wash your hands with water and soap after handling your pet. Whether you were petting them, feeding them, cleaning their cage, or holding them, you should always wash your hands thoroughly afterward.

This will prevent the transmission of bacteria and viruses from your pet to you.

Do not put your face too close

This may be hard to follow if you love rubbing your face through your pet’s fur and giving them endless kisses. Children are also guilty of doing this.

Guinea pig’s fur may have bacteria that may transfer to you.

Do not take care of your pet while pregnant

Guinea pigs have protozoans called toxoplasmosis, which pose a danger to unborn babies mostly in the first and second trimesters with the first trimester being riskier.

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Toxoplasmosis leads to miscarriages, birth defects to the eyes and brain, and sometimes stillbirths. To avoid this, you should stay away from your guinea pig while pregnant.

Have someone else take care of your pet for you. If that’s not possible, put on latex gloves before handling anything concerning them.

Keep their cages clean

Clean your pet’s cage regularly to avoid the buildup of disease-causing bacteria.

Diseases brought about by living in dirty environments include Salmonella and LCM(Lymphocytic Choriomeningitis). They can cause fever, headaches, stomach upsets, diarrhoea, and other more serious effects.

Do not force your pet to do something they don’t want

Sometimes, you may pick up, cuddle, or try to play with your pet by force when they don’t want to. This can result in them scratching you out of fear or frustration.

You can then contract staphylococcus aureus which brings about redness, swelling, infections, and pneumonia.

Conclusion

Guinea pigs can understand kisses and they will even respond by licking, softly nibbling, or rubbing you with their nose.

Others may instead run away or bite you. Kissing guinea pigs may not always be safe as you may contract diseases like salmonella or protozoans like toxoplasmosis that are harmful to humans.

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