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Guinea Pig General Information

Class: Mammal. Warm Blooded and suckle their young.

Order: The guinea pig is technically a rodent as has special front teeth for gnawing.

Lifespan: A guinea pigs average lifespan is between 5-7 years. The worlds oldest known guinea pig is recorded in the Guiness book of records and lived until 14 years of age. This guinea pig was a laboratory specimen. Many factors contribute to the lifespan of an individual guinea pig. If a guinea pig goes through life with minimal to no health or medical conditions and is kept on a good diet in an appropriate environment with low stress then it would be likely the guinea pig could live to 8-10 years of age. Genetics can also play a role in the lifespan of a guinea pig.

Size: 20-25cm in length. Very short body length and no tail.

Normal Temperature: A guinea pigs temperature is between 99-103 degrees fahrenheit.

Heart Rate: Normal heart rate for a guinea pig is 240-350 beats per minute. Respiratory rate is 40-150 breaths per minute.

Temperament: Guinea pigs are friendly and affectionate and rarely bite or scratch. Personality differs between individual guinea pigs just as with other companion animals and with people. Guinea pigs express love, loneliness and many other emotions just as a human would.

Male: Boar
Female: Sow
Baby: Piglet

Weight ( Average )                  SOW                BOAR
Birth of 3-4 in a litter               90 grams             95grams
Birth of a single baby                    up to 150 grams
3 weeks old                               around 240 grams
8 weeks old                               around 400 grams
12 weeks old                         500grams          540 grams
5 months old                         700 grams         750 grams
15 months old                       950grams          1200grams

Guinea pig gestation:
- Average gestation period is 65-73 days
- Heat Cycle is every 14-16 days. A guinea pig will generally stay on heat for up to two days.
- After giving birth a guinea pig can fall pregnant again within only a few hours. It is advisable to separate the male from the female before she litters so that she dosn't run the risk of falling pregnant again. Guinea pigs deserve a well earned break between pregnancies to regain their condition and health if they are going to bred from.

Litter Size: Average is between 3-4 babies but can range between 1-8+ with 8 being rare. The larger the litter generally the smaller the babies and the less they will weigh it would not be unlikely to find weak or stillborn babies in a large litter.

Baby at Birth: A baby guinea pig is born fully furred with eyes wide open. They are able run around and nibble on food within only a few hours of being born.

Weaning: Baby guinea pigs usually wean themselves at 3-4 weeks of age. At this time baby males should be separated from the females. Some males can mate with a female at as young as 5-6 weeks of age.

Sexual Maturity: 5-10 weeks old

Breeding age: Guinea pigs are capable of breeding as young as 5 weeks of age in some cases. The ideal breeding age is between 5-10 months old when the guinea pig is at a mature age and not to young. Guinea pigs that fall pregnant under 5 months of age could have pregnancy related problems occur. It is recommended not to breed a guinea pig for the first time over 12 months of age as the pelvic bones can fuse making it difficult for the sow to litter with birth complications occuring as a result.

Age to sell: Guinea pigs should NEVER be sold under 4 weeks of age. The youngest age a guinea pig should be sold is 4-5 weeks with 6-8 weeks being an appropriate age.