Cavy Breeders, Clubs & Shows

Cavy Clubs

Cavy clubs are the bodies in the UK which organise guinea pig shows. You don’t need to belong to a club to enter a show but you will need to contact the show secretary of the club for a schedule in advance.

There are pet classes at all guinea pig shows where the guinea pigs are judged on their health, cleanliness and friendliness, so you don’t need a pure bred guinea pig to get involved.

It is not expensive to join a local cavy club and membership has a number of advantages. The club’s year book will often contain a list of other members and club officers as well as show dates.

The National Cavy Club is the governing body under which the other clubs operate. The British Cavy Council (BCC) has a breed standards list for pedigree guinea pigs. It also has some useful guides to how to show guinea pigs along with a list of clubs and their contact details.

Guinea Pig Shows

Cavy or guinea pig shows are a great way to meet breeders, check out the various guinea pig breeds and learn more about guinea pig care. To find out about guinea pig shows you need to contact your local Cavy Club. You can see a list of clubs on the rhs of this page.

For the larger National Shows, go to the National Cavy Club site. The British Cavy Council has a comprehensive list of standards for pure bred guinea pigs, but there are pet classes at most guinea pig shows where the guinea pigs are judged on tameness and good health.

The Southern Cavy Club is a very large and popular club covering the South of England and Wales. You will find contact details of all the local clubs covered by the Southern Cavy Club on their website.

Cavies Magazine lists all the UK guinea pig shows as well as their results, and includes in-depth articles on breeds of guinea pig and their care.

Cavy Breeders

There are plenty of pedigree cavies in guinea pig rescues up and down the country so if you are looking for a breeder because you like the look of a particular type of guinea pig then please try the cavy rescues first.  Many pure breed guinea pigs end up in rescues through no fault of their own

A good place to find guinea pig breeders is at one of the many guinea pig shows held by various cavy clubs.  Cavy clubs are cheap to join and their yearbook will contain adverts for breeders.

Everyone in the family should handle an adult guinea pig before considering guinea pigs as pets to rule out the possibility or allergy.  If the breeder is local to you they may offer useful services such as bathing, grooming, nail clipping, boarding and advice on the best local vets experienced with guinea pigs.

Caveat Emptor

Loosely translated it means “let the buyer beware!” Always visit the breeder and ask to see how they keep their guinea pigs. If the breeder only shows you the babies they want to sell you, that should ring alarm bells. There are sales pens at guinea pig shows and breeders will arrange for you to collect guinea pigs from them at shows, but you should still do your homework and make sure the breeder you are buying from is reliable.

Anyone can call themselves a cavy breeder so make sure you know about the breed before you buy. Some matings carry the risk of lethal gene mutations, for example roan to roan matings and eyeless white babies. Certain breeds may by predisposed to a higher than normal levels of illness, such as cataracts which are more common in Abyssinian cavies and joint problems common in satin guinea pigs.