Guinea pig breeds

Abyssinian

The Abyssinian breed of Guinea pig is known for its short and long, rough coat that has cowlicked rosettes of hair. The derivation of the breed's name is unknown, but does not connotate an origin in the geographical region of Abyssinia (present day Ethiopia). The ideal Abyssinian has 10 rosettes, one on each shoulder, four across the back, one on each of the animal's hips, and two on the rump. Some judging bodies, such as the ANCC, consider shoulder rosettes optional but desired in show cavies. A harsh-textured coat that stands on end to form ridges is desired.

Peruvian

The Peruvian is the progenitor of all modern long haired breeds, being a Guinea pig with hair that grows long continuously all over its body, sometimes to an excess of 20 inches (approx. 50 centimeters). Accordingly, this ornate feature can make caring for this breed more difficult for both owners and breeders; most show Peruvians have their hair folded up in wraps to protect it and keep it clean. Long haired Guinea pigs have both a top and an undercoat, the latter of which will generally only grow to 6-7 inches (15–17 cm.)Though most Peruvians kept as pets are regularly trimmed for ease of keeping, those in show coat should have hair that fans out to make the animal's front and rear completely indistinguishable. The coat should be of an even length all over, and have a central part on the spine. Peruvians of show standard are required to have two rosettes on either side of the rump, which creates the desired height and density.

Silkie or Sheltie

A Silkie has long hair that flows back over its body and never forward over the face (as in the Peruvian). When viewed from above it forms a teardrop shape and should never have a central part. In contrast to the Peruvian, where the coat is desired to fall in an even curtain all around the body, the Sheltie is generally accepted to have a somewhat longer sweep of hair in the rear.

                              
Short haired

The short coated cavy - often called the American or English- has consistently short, glossy hair without a part. This breed of cavy most resembles the Guinea pig's relatives and ancestors in the Cavia genus.

In shows, short-haired guinea pigs are shown by their color variety - self, dalmatian, Himalayan, etc. This designation does not have 'American' or 'English' appended to it, but applies only to short-haired animals.

Rex

A Rex guinea pig has short, fuzzy hair that stands on end all over the body. The hair should be uniform all over, without rosettes and no more than 1⁄2 inch (1 1⁄4 cm) in length, preferably shorter. The Rex breed sometimes looks similar to the Teddy, but the two breeds are genetically distinct—breeding a Rex to a Teddy will not result in Rex or Teddies, but rather American cavies.

Himalayan

The Himalayan guinea pig is similar to the Siamese cat in coat. It is solid white for the first few weeks of birth. Then the ears, face, paws, and feet grow darker with age. Similar to Siamese cats, Himalayans' coat darkens depending on the temperature. If a guinea pig lives in a house where the temperature is kept colder it will have darker points. If it is kept in a house where the temperature is warmer the points will be lighter and maybe even a medium brown. If kept outside the points' darkness would depend on the climate of the area. The darkest areas should be the face, paws, and the feet. Himalayans should have dark red eyes. These guinea pigs originate in southeast Asia, similar to the Birman, Burmese, Himalayan, and Siamese cat breeds.

Texel

A Texel Guinea pig is like a Silkie, but with curls. Originating from England, it was officially recognized as a breed by the ACBA in 1998.^[6] The curls should ideally be tightly wound corkscrew curls and should cover the entire body, including the stomach. Unlike a Sheltie, a central part is allowed.

Crested

The Crested is similar to the American, but has one rosette on the top of the head. According to ACBA standards, the Crest must be white, with no other white hair present on the animal.

The ANCC (Australian National Cavy Council) recognizes two main groups of crested but another group is also present, the White crested. The American Crested and the English Crested. The American Crested must have a crest colour that is in contrast to the body colour. Usually this is white, but it could be any other colour. These are only recognized in the self colour. English Cresteds have a crest the same colour as the body. These are recognized in every colour and variety, with the exclusion of the "coated" breeds (longhairs and coarse coats). The most popular being breeds such as the English Crested Pink Eyed White and the English Crested Black. The white crested has a white crest on the top of the forehead and a self colour everywhere else. White crested guinea pigs must have a white crest, with any coat that does not have white hairs present. So Dutch, roans, etc. are not included.
wikipedia.org