The main objetive of this studt was to evaluate a statistical methodology for the characterization of guinea pig farms (Cavia porcellus). The metodology is based on the teory of principal components, wich analyses the structural dependency of sets of multivariate data. In order to properly evaluate the procedure, information for surveys conducted en Cajamarca, Peru in 1987 y 1988, was used. The analyses were carried out with the SPSS/PC package. The results of the study proved that the original nine relevant variables could be sustituted by four principal componets which explained 65% of the total variation as compared to the original variables. The first principal component expresses the livestock prooductivity and farm income derived from the monthly sale of guinea pigs. The second component reflects the behaviour of the head of the family according to age and schooling. The third comp...

Postpartum breeding ia a common practice among guinea pig-producing farmers, even at the commercial level. This is possible because these animals como into heat 2-3 h postpar tum. Available evidence is not conclusive with regard to the advantages and disadvantages of this practice, when com wall with post-weaning mating. This was carried out in order to generate information that would allow for the intention of existing guinea pig production systems, under the hypothesis that breeding postpartum has no effect on litter size and weight both at birth and at weaning. Data on the first two parturitions of 300 females, at La Molina Agricultural Experimental Station, were analyzed. These females were part of a line-breeding selection program carried out at the station, of which 68.3% presented post-partum gestations and 31.7% post-weaning gestations. The four different maternal lines used made...

Instituto Nacional de Investigación Agraria. INIA, Lima-Perú; Centro Internacional de Investigación para el desarrollo. CIID, Canada

Instituto Nacional de Investigación Agraria. INIA, Lima-Perú; Centro Internacional de Investigación para el desarrollo. CIID, Canada