How Long Can Guinea Pigs Live? (Average Lifespan Of Guinea Pigs) - Precisely Pets (2024)

Guinea pigs are widely known for being one of the largest and longest-lived small pets. Before bringing one of these furry potatoes home, you may be wondering how long their expected lifespan will be.

The good news is that piggies live much longer than most rodents kept as pets. Guinea pigs live an average of 4-8 years, with some even living 10+ years! This makes them a longer-term commitment than many other small animals.

Some guinea pigs even make it to a ripe old age where they rival the lifespans of dogs!

Some of this comes down to luck, but there are a few factors that can influence your guinea pig’s age and possibly even extend their life past the average.

In captivity, pet guinea pigs live an average of 4-8 years. Most guinea pigs fall right in the middle of this, living between 5-7 years. Guinea pigs that live 8 years or longer are at the upper end.

Although guinea pigs have a shorter life expectancy than dogs or cats, they are one of the longest-lived rodents.

They live slightly shorter than rabbits on average but much longer than other common small pets. Rats, mice, hamsters, and gerbils only live around 2-3 years in comparison.

This makes guinea pigs a great pet for people who want a longer-lived small animal.

4 years old is when guinea pigs are considered senior. At this age, they may require more care and attention to detail.

Senior guinea pigs may require more frequent visits to the vet. It’s important to keep an eye on their health and weigh them regularly. Losing weight, eating less, having a puffy coat, or related symptoms can be signs of an underlying health problem.

Older guinea pigs often need higher than average amounts of Vitamin C, so be sure you’re providing plenty of veggies that are high in Vitamin C.

Some guinea pigs pass away around 4-5 years old. This is on the earlier end of the spectrum, but it is within the average lifespan.

Wild guinea pigs typically reach a maximum of 4 years old. As guinea pigs get older, they sadly become easy prey in the wild. Many wild guinea pigs will not even live that long.

Outdoors, guinea pigs are exposed to the elements, food scarcity, and predators such as large birds, coyotes, and snakes.

Pet guinea pigs in captivity are much safer and better cared for, so they can live much longer than their wild ancestors.

You can provide enough Vitamin C by feeding vegetables daily that are high in Vitamin C, such as bell peppers, parsley, tomatoes, dill, and kale.

You can also provide a good source of this essential nutrient by feeding ahigh-quality guinea pig pellet food. Supplementing withOxbow’s edible Vitamin C cookiesis another option to add more Vitamin C.

Avoid buying Vitamin C drops to add to your guinea pig’s drinking water. The Vitamin C in these drops disintegrates quickly when exposed to light through the water bottle.

In addition, they also change the flavor of the water, often turning guinea pigs off drinking from their bottle.

Vegetables are a crucial part of your guinea pig’s diet. They provide nutrients from a natural source and are also chock full of antioxidants.

Antioxidants work to reduce oxidative stress in the body by targeting and neutralizing free radicals. Unhealthy build-ups of free radicals in the body contribute to all kinds of chronic conditions, including cancer, diabetes, heart disease, and more.

Thus, regularly eating fruits and vegetables can reduce the chances of illness and give your guinea pig’s body the nutrients it needs to fight off disease and bounce back quicker.

Guinea pigs should have up to 1 cup of vegetables and fruit per day. Be sure to mix things up and feed a variety of different types so they receive a variety of nutrients.

Grass hay is the most important part of your guinea pig’s diet. In fact, hay should consist of 80% of your guinea pig’s diet! Hay should be freely accessible and provided in large piles in your guinea pig’s cage.Orchard grass hayandtimothy hayare the 2 best types of hay for guinea pigs.

Hay is essential for guinea pigs to keep their teeth ground down and keep their digestive system in check. Guinea pigs can get gut stasis if they’re not eating consistently throughout the day, which can be a very serious medical problem.

Overgrown teeth can also occur if guinea pigs are not eating enough hay. Guinea pig teeth are ever-growing and require long strands of hay to reach the back molars and keep them at the correct length.

Providing a large cage can give them more space to move around. It’s recommended to have 8 square feet for 1 or 2 guinea pigs and 2.5 square feet for each additional guinea pig.

Place their food all over the cage to encourage them to run around. You can also hide treats all over the cage to encourage more movement.

Also, make sure you place their hideys and beds in a way that they still have space to run around the cage if they want.

Some guinea pigs like to run “piggy laps” around the cage, so providing them with an open “track” around the walls of the cage gives them that opportunity.

You can also exercise your guinea pig byteaching them tricks! This is a fun way to exercise and bond with your guinea pig while doing something interactive.

You can even build alittle agility courseand teach your guinea pigs to navigate the obstacles.

Treat balls can also be a lot of fun for guinea pigs. Rather than feeding your guinea pig in a bowl, put their pellets in atreat ballfor them to roll around in their cage. You can also dice up veggies to put in treat balls.

Guinea pigs can develop health problems such as respiratory issues or bumblefoot if their cage is not cleaned regularly.

Guinea pigs often pee and poop where they sleep. This can cause problems, as they’re constantly exposed to the dirtiest parts of their cage.

For this reason, it’s important to do a full cage clean at least a couple of times a week. However, spot cleaning should be done daily, especially in sleeping areas.

Some people putchenille bath matsor absorbent blankets under their guinea pigs’ sleeping areas. This makes cleaning very fast because you just simply shake the rug off into the garbage, put it in the laundry, and replace it with a clean one.

Guinea pigs are prone to developing bladder stones if they have too much calcium in their diet.

To avoid this, limit feeding vegetables that are very high in calcium. For every high-calcium veggie you feed, add 2-3 lower-calcium vegetables into their diet.

Avoid feeding alfalfa hay, as this type of hay is very high in calcium.

Also, watch out for dried white powdery pee stains left around your guinea pig’s cage. If you see this, it’s a warning sign that your guinea pig has too much calcium in their diet and you should temporarily cut back on the high-calcium foods.

Guinea pigs can be quite prone to weather conditions and temperature fluctuations. They can also be easily stressed, and this can take a toll on their health.

Loud noises from wind and thunderstorms can startle them easily and cause a lot of stress. There’s even a chance of predators breaking into the enclosure or simply harassing and stressing your guinea pigs from outside of the pen.

For all these reasons, guinea pigs are much safer and possibly even longer lived when kept indoors. Supervised time outside is great, as long as your guinea pigs are in a secure pen and kept safe from birds and other animals.

There are many factors that influence a pet guinea pig’s lifespan. Some of these factors are within our control, but sometimes it’s simply down to luck and genetics.

Guinea pigs are one of the longest-lived rodents regardless, so it’s important that you are committed to their care for the long term when you bring home some new guinea pig companions. Guinea pigs can be amazing pets, but it’s crucial to be prepared for the long haul.

For more information on guinea pig care, check out this article on how much guinea pigs cost on average monthly and yearly.