Guinea Pig: A Pet or a Meal?

For most American's the guinea pig is a cute little furry pet. Why wouldn't American's think that, after all guinea pigs are sold in every pet store. However, for some the guinea pig is no more then a meal. In fact guinea pig is a popular dish commonly eaten in Peru, Bolivia, and other places in South America. It is estimated that Peruvians consume 65 million guinea pigs a year, according to the information found on guinea pig consumption. That is a lot of guinea pigs.

Guinea pigs were just another rodent in the wild, until the 16th century. That is when European traders decided to import and export this little critters as pets. With this being said, it's safe to think that guinea pigs were a food source, before it became a household pet. Being that the guinea pig is now a pet, which sells between $15.00 - $50.00 each in the United States, why are they still being eaten in other parts of the word? Actually, many Peruvians think American's are crazy for keeping guinea pigs at pets, after all they are rodents, and a food source.

Why do Peruvians eat guinea pigs? Guinea pigs take far less space to raise then other livestock, such as cattle. Guinea pigs also are very inexpensive to feed, being that they are rodents, and will eat almost any discarded food. Plus, guinea pigs are very hearty breeders. On average a female guinea pig will have 3 to 5 litters per year. Each litter contains between 1 to 6 pups. On a good year a female guinea pig can have 30 pups. Between 3 to 5 weeks of age a male guinea pig becomes fertile, and can successfully mate with a female. The female becomes fertile between 4 to 6 weeks of age, in which at that time she can carry and give birth to pups of her on. If you do the math, you'll see that guinea pigs offer an unlimited amount of food to places such as Peru. It's not just the poor who enjoy guinea pig, in Peru you can find several restaurants that prepare guinea pig dishes.

Guinea pig is a white meat, that is actually very healthy to eat. The meat is high in protein, low in cholesterol, and low in fat. Guinea pig meat is very nutritious, and the taste has been compared to lamb. One of the most popular guinea pig dishes is called "Picante de cuy" which means guinea pig with spices. To make this dish the guinea pig is cleaned and then marinated overnight in spices such as cumin, black pepper, paprika, and dried red chillies. Red, and yellow peppers are liquidized. and added to the marinade shortly before cooking. The meat is then barbecued, and served whole as a fillet. Guinea pig is also cooked other ways such as deep fried. No matter how it is cooked it's commonly served with side dishes such as white rice, fried yucca, and boiled sweet potatoes. Guinea pig, though not as commonly, are also eaten in Spain, and in Japan.

Is it wrong to eat Guinea pig? Personally I don't believe so. If you look at it as a food source that a culture is used to, there is nothing wrong with it. After all Americans eat beef, which offends some cultures. If you think about it as eating a rodent, the what about the Americans who eat rabbit, or squirrel? Personally, I more a beef, chicken and pork type of person, but that's my culture, and what I'm used to. Who knows guinea pig might actually be a great dish. But, I prefer my guinea pig in a cage.