Wild Fact / 天竺鼠小知識 - 天竺鼠

原文：http://www.wild-facts.com/wild-fact-605-the-pet-pig-guinea-pig/

翻譯：PetFun 寵樂粉絲團 http://ppt.cc/;l6m (轉載請註明出處)

We ended last week with a domesticated animal and it just so happens that we
are starting this week with another common house pet. Or are we? Did you
know that there is actually a wild Guinea Pig? In fact the domesticated
house pets are thought to be a subspecies of these wild rodents. As a
result, you probably aren’t going to find too many of these Guinea Pigs
running around all day in a little wheel. So grab your field gear since we
are heading to the mountains of South America to explore the crazy world of
the Guinea Pig. Yes, it would be easier just to walk to the pet store but it
will be a lot more exciting if we are able to find a wild Guinea Pig.

你們知道嗎？其實是有野生的天竺鼠喔！實際上，我們這些在家裡面養的天竺鼠被認為是
這些野生齧齒動物的分支。你可能沒辦法找到太多這種野生天竺鼠在輪子上跑來跑去。所
以跟著我們到南美去探索天竺鼠的瘋狂世界吧！是的，直接走去寵物店找找幾隻會比較容
易，但是如果我們能夠找到野生的天竺鼠會更令人興奮的！

Oddly enough the Guinea Pig is not even close to being related to the any of
the pig family members. Even more unusual is the fact that they are not from
New Guinea. Nope, these little piggies are found in the Andes Mountains,
which is of course in South America. This little herbivore is a main food
source for the locals living in this area and probably why these little
critters were domesticated in the first place. I just don’t know if I could
bring myself to eating a pet Guinea Pig.

奇怪的是，天竺鼠（幾內亞豬）跟各種種類的豬都不像；更奇怪的是，它們也不是從新幾
內亞來的。對，就是這樣，它們其實是在南美的安地斯山脈被找到的。這些草食性動物其
實是當地人主要的食物來源之一。這可能也是為什麼這些小動物開始被人們飼養的原因。
不過我懷疑我自己能接受吃天竺鼠就是了。

If you want to make your pet Guinea Pig really happy then you need to make
sure they have some company. Believe it or not, they are very sociable
animals. In the wild they form groups which consist of several females, one
male and their young. This group will move together feeding on grasses and
other vegetation as they go. They will typically be on the move during the
dusk and dawn hours of the day as this makes it more difficult for predators
to spot the scurrying rodents. I have never had a pet Guinea Pig but I am
guessing they too are also more active during these times of the day.

如果你真的想讓你的天竺鼠寶貝開心的話，記得一定要幫他們找一些夥伴！你相信嗎？它
們其實是非常群體的動物。在野外，它們會組成一個由多隻雌鼠、一隻雄鼠還有它們的小
天竺鼠們的隊伍，這個隊伍會一起行動、吃草等等。它們通常會在黃昏的時候行動，來避
免被掠食者發現它們這些只會小碎步慢跑的小動物。筆者沒有在家裡養過天竺鼠，但是我
想這些家鼠應該在每天的這個時候，也是比較活躍的吧？

Guinea Pig Fast Fact – The sight of a Guinea Pig is not quite as good as a
human but they have a much larger range of view. Incredibly their range is
about 340 degrees – that is impressive! To compliment this unique sight
they also have a well-developed sense of hearing, smell and touch. I guess
you can say that Guinea Pigs are sensitive animals.

天竺鼠小知識－天竺鼠的視力雖然比人類稍差，但是它們卻有比較寬廣的視野。難以置信
的是，他們的視角達到了３４０度！非常驚人。除了這個獨特的視野之外，它們也有非常
好的聽覺、嗅覺、和感覺。我想我們可以確定的是，天竺鼠是非常敏感的生物喔！

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