What is "cavia porcellus"

Guinea pig \Guin"ea pig`\ [Prob. a mistake for Guiana pig.]

1. (Zo["o]l.) A small Brazilian rodent ( Cavia porcellus or Cavia cobaya), about seven inches in length and usually of a white color, with spots of orange and black. Called also cavy. It is the domesticated form of the wild cavy, often kept as a pet and used commonly as an experimental animal in laboratory research.

2. Hence, [figuratively]: Any animal or person used in an experiment; -- also applied to people who are unwillingly or unknowingly subjected by authorities to policies or procedures which might cause bodily or mental harm.

3. A contemptuous sobriquet. [Obs.]
   --Smollett

1. Redirect Guinea pig

Category:Cavies * Category:Mammals of the Andes Category:Rodents of South America Category:Animals described in 1758 Category:Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Category:Pleistocene rodents Category:Holocene rodents Category:Quaternary mammals of South America Category:Middle Pleistocene