CHAPTER XXXII 



PERUVIAN CAVIES 



IT has been asserted that Guinea Pigs had no title to 

 either of the words forming their original name, as they 

 are said to have come from Brazil, not Guinea, and have 

 no relationship to any kind of pig. 



In the same way I have not been able to obtain proof 

 that any of the above were imported from Peru, or that 

 they are now to be found there, but rather that those first 

 seen in this country came from the Continent of Europe. 



Be this as it may, they have not been called here by 

 any other name than Peruvians, and will probably continue 

 to be called so to the end of the chapter. 



When once the difficulty is got over of learning to 

 distinguish the head from the other end, they are to many 

 fanciers the most interesting of the three varieties of 

 Cavies used for exhibition, and they certainly offer most 

 scope for the display of care and attention, in turning 

 them out in show form, as I should very much doubt if 

 any variety of four-footed stock of the same weight is 

 capable of growing a coat of such length. 



Perhaps the nearest to approach it in this respect is 



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