Guinea pig life expectancy

[mls18]

Hi!
I wanted to know how many people here have had guinea pigs live 6+ years. I currently have a 6 and a half year old guinea pig and I'm always so worried that his end is coming near. He's never been sick before in his life and doesn't have any health problems. I know that each individual guinea pig lives for a different amount of time but I just wanted to know if anyone here had guinea pigs who passed the life expectancy. I've heard of guinea pigs who live up to ten years, has anyone here ever had a guinea pig reach that?

 

[eileen]

ive had guinea pigs live to 8 years of age.i believe quality of life is more important than quantity of life.!

 

[Eriathwen]

One of my first piggies was 11 when we lost him! The others I had at the time all passed between 7 and 9. The oldest I've managed to get my recent ones is 5.5 years but I mainly take on ones with health issues so that's not surprising really, they had been palliative for over 2 years so they still did very well considering.
My oldest 2 currently are just over 5 years now.

 

[mls18]

ive had guinea pigs live to 8 years of age.i believe quality of life is more important than quantity of life.!

Oh wow thats old! And yes i believe that to but its still very sad to think about him dying.

 

[mls18]

One of my first piggies was 11 when we lost him! The others I had at the time all passed between 7 and 9. The oldest I've managed to get my recent ones is 5.5 years but I mainly take on ones with health issues so that's not surprising really, they had been palliative for over 2 years so they still did very well considering.
My oldest 2 currently are just over 5 years now.

Oh wow! Your guinea pigs all lived so long. I hope that my guinea pig is able to live that many years

 

[Grand Guinea Pigs]

Baulder, a Rex boar, is nearly 8.5. He is a very adorable guinea pig It depends on genetics, environment, breed etc.
I've only ever had Abyssinians and Rexs so far. Thor, an Abyssinian, lived to 5.5 or 6. Jupiter, who was rescued along with Thor, was lost to a stroke/heart problems (not sure?) and so was Tyr .

 

[mls18]

Baulder, a Rex boar, is nearly 8.5. He is a very adorable guinea pig It depends on genetics, environment, breed etc.
I've only ever had Abyssinians and Rexs so far. Thor, an Abyssinian, lived to 5.5 or 6. Jupiter, who was rescued along with Thor, was lost to a stroke/heart problems (not sure?) and so was Tyr .

Wow 8.5 thats really old I love rexs their one of my favrite breeds. I hope he lives to be even older!
Oh gosh I'm so sorry for your losses I'm sure they were very happy.

 

[Freela]

The average lifespan is supposed to be 5 to 7 years, but there are certainly lucky pigs who live longer and unlucky pigs who do not reach 5. I've found it's really hard to predict who is going to make it to very old age... so far our pig who lived the longest (a month shy of 7) was the one who had lifelong health issues with her bladder, so who knows? My best advice is just try to enjoy the days, however many there are, and try not to worry. Worrying about their longevity won't make them live any longer and will only tinge happy days with preparatory sadness, know what I mean? I know it's easier said than done, we all do anticipatory grieving, but I try to remind myself that it really is pretty counterproductive.

For what it's worth, so far the pigs I've lost have been Frenzy (18 months), Linney (6 years and 3 months), Sundae (6 years and 11 months), and Hadley (6 years and 8 months.) My current two are Leela (turning 5 this month) and Tomie (about 6 months.) But I do know piggies who have lived longer... my daughter's friend currently has two who are 7+ (one of them even outlived her own daughter.) Best wishes and hope you still have your older piggie for a good long while!

 

[mls18]

The average lifespan is supposed to be 5 to 7 years, but there are certainly lucky pigs who live longer and unlucky pigs who do not reach 5. I've found it's really hard to predict who is going to make it to very old age... so far our pig who lived the longest (a month shy of 7) was the one who had lifelong health issues with her bladder, so who knows? My best advice is just try to enjoy the days, however many there are, and try not to worry. Worrying about their longevity won't make them live any longer and will only tinge happy days with preparatory sadness, know what I mean? I know it's easier said than done, we all do anticipatory grieving, but I try to remind myself that it really is pretty counterproductive.

For what it's worth, so far the pigs I've lost have been Frenzy (18 months), Linney (6 years and 3 months), Sundae (6 years and 11 months), and Hadley (6 years and 8 months.) My current two are Leela (turning 5 this month) and Tomie (about 6 months.) But I do know piggies who have lived longer... my daughter's friend currently has two who are 7+ (one of them even outlived her own daughter.) Best wishes and hope you still have your older piggie for a good long while!

Thank you so much for your reply! Thank you, I'm trying to remember that but its hard. I'm sorry for all your losses. For your older guinea pigs did they die of old age or some sort of health problem or sickness? And wow 7+ is old. Thank you so much!

 

[Betsy]

The Ever Beautiful Betsy is 6 at the end of this month and Shy Little Meg is 6 on 5th May. I adopted The Very Lovely Lexi and The One and Only Thea. I believe Lexi is 4 and Thea is 6 sometime soon. Rainbow Piggies Silver Fox Christian and his brother Cutey Pie Dennis were 5 years 7 months (they passed within 3 days of each other), DA BOSS Velvet was 4 years and 7 months. I adopted Pretty Patsy and I believe she was around 7 when she went to the Rainbow Bridge.

 

[Grand Guinea Pigs]

The Ever Beautiful Betsy is 6 at the end of this month and Shy Little Meg is 6 on 5th May. I adopted The Very Lovely Lexi and The One and Only Thea. I believe Lexi is 4 and Thea is 6 sometime soon. Rainbow Piggies Silver Fox Christian and his brother Cutey Pie Dennis were 5 years 7 months (they passed within 3 days of each other), DA BOSS Velvet was 4 years and 7 months. I adopted Pretty Patsy and I believe she was around 7 when she went to the Rainbow Bridge.

@Betsy, do you mean months?, I thought Lexi and Thea were only little babies! They look so young

 

[JosieK]

Sadly, my little Ted only made it to one year old. He was happy and seemed completely healthy but then passed away within 24 hours. I would never have expected this, it's very hard to predict. I am trying to remind myself that he had a great and happy life but still, I wish it could have been a lot longer.

 

[weepweeps]

My little Pippin only had 4 months. But he was cuddled every day he was with me. He had a happy but short life.

 

[Betsy]

@Betsy, do you mean months?, I thought Lexi and Thea were only little babies! They look so young

No I mean years. Here is what the previous owner said. Luna is now Lexi and Tara is now Thea.

Of course, Tara is the brown haired one, she was born Jan 2017. She is very active, loves to eat (of course) and loves strokes.
Luna is the white and grey one, she was born early 2019, unsure of exact date. She is the fastest piggie I have ever witnessed. She loves a stroke but doesn't like to be held as much.

 

[mls18]

The Ever Beautiful Betsy is 6 at the end of this month and Shy Little Meg is 6 on 5th May. I adopted The Very Lovely Lexi and The One and Only Thea. I believe Lexi is 4 and Thea is 6 sometime soon. Rainbow Piggies Silver Fox Christian and his brother Cutey Pie Dennis were 5 years 7 months (they passed within 3 days of each other), DA BOSS Velvet was 4 years and 7 months. I adopted Pretty Patsy and I believe she was around 7 when she went to the Rainbow Bridge.

Thank you for your reply! Wow your guinea pig are all pretty old! I hope that they live for many more years to come. Happy early birthday to betsy!

 

[mls18]

Sadly, my little Ted only made it to one year old. He was happy and seemed completely healthy but then passed away within 24 hours. I would never have expected this, it's very hard to predict. I am trying to remind myself that he had a great and happy life but still, I wish it could have been a lot longer.

I'm so sorry for your loss. I know how you feel, one of my guinea pigs died 4 years ago at barely 2 years I'm sure that ted was very happy with all the time he spent with you.

 

[mls18]

My little Pippin only had 4 months. But he was cuddled every day he was with me. He had a happy but short life.

I'm so sorry for your loss

 

[weepweeps]

I'm so sorry for your loss

Thank you

 

[PigglePuggle]

I think @Wiebke has had many piggies living to their 7th and 8th birthdays, but some sadly pass much younger due to bad genes, terminal or sudden acute illness, or in the case of rescue piggies often their earlier poor care and trauma can cause problems that influence their health and lifespan whatever you do to improve it.
We recently lost a piggy age 5 and a half and although that's a good age... I do wonder if she hadnt spent her first 2 years with clueless people who overfed her to the point of extreme obesity and kept her in a tiny cage... if she might have lasted longer. We currently have 2 other seniors that age who are doing quite well so far, one is arthritic and one is quite frail, but still very much enjoying life... but its always a worry I think after 5 years old when they sometimes do show their age quite a bit!

 

[Freela]

Thank you so much for your reply! Thank you, I'm trying to remember that but its hard. I'm sorry for all your losses. For your older guinea pigs did they die of old age or some sort of health problem or sickness? And wow 7+ is old. Thank you so much!

I honestly have no idea what my older pigs died of... most of my pigs have gone from relatively healthy-seeming to passing away pretty quickly without much warning. Most had generic unwell signs (seeming quiet, not interested in eating) for only a couple of hours before passing away.

I'm pretty sure Sundae (the one who lived the longest) contracted a respiratory illness from a younger cagemate who was being treated but beat the illness no problem. Sundae saw a vet and was on antibiotics but, probably due to age and other comorbidities, she couldn't beat it. She started to have heavy breathing despite having been put on prophylactic antibiotics and passed within a couple hours. Both Linney and Hadley passed pretty abruptly, within a few hours of first seeming unwell. I suspect Linney had some abrupt-onset issues (stroke, bowel obstruction, etc.) as she started drooling in the couple hours before she passed, as if she couldn't swallow anymore. It was a sudden change for the worse. Hadley I really don't know... she was seemingly normal and fine all day, eating and puttering around, and then when I checked on her around midnight on my way to bed she was already lethargic and her body temp was low and she was obviously on her way. We sat up with her and she passed within a few hours. I know this probably isn't really comforting, but again, try to enjoy all the days you get regardless. I do get it, though. Right now I have one pig turning 5 who has a few underlying health issues, as well as an elderly hamster who seems fine but she's over two and hamsters get old very fast, so I know what it's like to be on edge or have anticipatory grieving for pets you know are on the older side. But try to just enjoy the time, and sometimes they just may surprise you!

 

[Bill & Ted]

My very first piggie lived to a grand old age of about 7+ years. I adopted her with her companion, a very large white rabbit from a neighbour over the road when I was 10, he had lost interest in them. None of my other piggies have ever lived as long as her, she was a very healthy girl despite the neglect she had suffered

 

[Tigermoth]

The little piggy in my avatar recently passed, he was 7+. I’m not 100% as he was a rescue (along with his wife) so I always said they were the year around June July and half mid Jan. So Jenny is just about 7.5. As they have got older I have started to hold my breath if they are slow getting up in the morning. Jenny didn’t come out of her tunnel this morning and I gingerly lifted it for her to look up at me large as life. It’s hard watching them age.

 

[Betsy]

But try to just enjoy the time, and sometimes they just may surprise you!

This is very true, Shy Little Meg has been called to the Rainbow Bridge on a couple of occasions but has managed to resist the temptation to cross over. One was in the first Lockdown and I took Meg all the way to Northampton as my vet (usually VERY good with piggies couldn't find out what was wrong with her). Debbie diagnosed the problems within about 15 minutes. Then about a year later Meg had another wobble and she is such a feisty girl with such a strong will to live that she is still here.

 

[Wiebke]

Hi!
I wanted to know how many people here have had guinea pigs live 6+ years. I currently have a 6 and a half year old guinea pig and I'm always so worried that his end is coming near. He's never been sick before in his life and doesn't have any health problems. I know that each individual guinea pig lives for a different amount of time but I just wanted to know if anyone here had guinea pigs who passed the life expectancy. I've heard of guinea pigs who live up to ten years, has anyone here ever had a guinea pig reach that?

Hi!

The first childhood guinea pig in my life lived to nearly 10 years back in the seventies; but a fair number of my (adopted) piggies have lived to 7 and 8 years old and one old lady (who came here aged 7 to live out her life in piggy company) even lived to celebrate her 9th birthday. I know of the odd piggy living to 10 years and very rarely beyond.
The average healthy life span is about 5-7 years, so be proud that you have got your piggy that far, first and foremost!

However, you can never count on for how long your piggies live and what they ultimately die from. It can happen right of the blue and very quickly at any age. There is never a guarantee and fairness doesn't come into it.

The best way to approach your fear of loss is to see your pets as on loan from above on a contract that can be withdrawn anytime without warning. Turn your piggy's life clock back to zero and see every day more as a special blessing which you consciously appreciate. This way you do not waste the remaining time fretting and waiting for the inevatible end but you fill it with lots of love, fun and enrichment so you do not have to deal with lots of regrets on top of the pain of the loss. Guinea pigs don't have a concept for average life expectancy; they measure their lives in happy todays. If you try to do it the piggy way, you still have plenty of time to create precious memories that will warm your heart in dark hours years down the line and that bring a smile to your face when nothing else will. You can put a lifetime's worth of love in just a moment but you can fritter away years with fearing what you ultimately cannot stave off.
Enrichment Ideas for Guinea Pigs

The Rainbow Bridge piggy that always brings a big smile to my face whenever I think of him is my Bryn Oscar (the name deaf) as he simply proceeded to do what he loved and wanted doing (RIP 2013). He was a five years old widowed neutered boar who had found no interestafter being surrendered to rescue, so he came here to live with my lady pensioners in a new group. He was here for only a year but he clearly had the time of his life and enjoyed himself so much (including several cage escapes and taunting the other younger husboars through the bars) that when he died age 6 that one year felt truly like so much longer - and he has left me with so many happy memories. Time is relative; it is not just an exact measure but more importantly what you fill it with.

PS: Please always put your piggy's welfare before your own fears of loss when you come to the sharp end. However much you fear it, you can always be strong for one you love where you can't be for yourself.

 

[mls18]

I think @Wiebke has had many piggies living to their 7th and 8th birthdays, but some sadly pass much younger due to bad genes, terminal or sudden acute illness, or in the case of rescue piggies often their earlier poor care and trauma can cause problems that influence their health and lifespan whatever you do to improve it.
We recently lost a piggy age 5 and a half and although that's a good age... I do wonder if she hadnt spent her first 2 years with clueless people who overfed her to the point of extreme obesity and kept her in a tiny cage... if she might have lasted longer. We currently have 2 other seniors that age who are doing quite well so far, one is arthritic and one is quite frail, but still very much enjoying life... but its always a worry I think after 5 years old when they sometimes do show their age quite a bit!

I'm so sorry for your loss! I hate how people mistreat guinea pigs it makes me so mad I'm sure she lived a very happy life. I hope that your seniors continue to do well!

 

[mls18]

I honestly have no idea what my older pigs died of... most of my pigs have gone from relatively healthy-seeming to passing away pretty quickly without much warning. Most had generic unwell signs (seeming quiet, not interested in eating) for only a couple of hours before passing away.

I'm pretty sure Sundae (the one who lived the longest) contracted a respiratory illness from a younger cagemate who was being treated but beat the illness no problem. Sundae saw a vet and was on antibiotics but, probably due to age and other comorbidities, she couldn't beat it. She started to have heavy breathing despite having been put on prophylactic antibiotics and passed within a couple hours. Both Linney and Hadley passed pretty abruptly, within a few hours of first seeming unwell. I suspect Linney had some abrupt-onset issues (stroke, bowel obstruction, etc.) as she started drooling in the couple hours before she passed, as if she couldn't swallow anymore. It was a sudden change for the worse. Hadley I really don't know... she was seemingly normal and fine all day, eating and puttering around, and then when I checked on her around midnight on my way to bed she was already lethargic and her body temp was low and she was obviously on her way. We sat up with her and she passed within a few hours. I know this probably isn't really comforting, but again, try to enjoy all the days you get regardless. I do get it, though. Right now I have one pig turning 5 who has a few underlying health issues, as well as an elderly hamster who seems fine but she's over two and hamsters get old very fast, so I know what it's like to be on edge or have anticipatory grieving for pets you know are on the older side. But try to just enjoy the time, and sometimes they just may surprise you!

Thank you for your reply! Thats what I'm scared of, him dying withought much warning I'm so sorry for all your losses, I'm sure they had a very happy life. Thank you, I'm trying but its hard knowing he could die soon. I hope your guinea pig and hamster live to be much older!

 

[mls18]

My very first piggie lived to a grand old age of about 7+ years. I adopted her with her companion, a very large white rabbit from a neighbour over the road when I was 10, he had lost interest in them. None of my other piggies have ever lived as long as her, she was a very healthy girl despite the neglect she had suffered

I'm glad that she lived a long time! I'm sure she was very happy.

 

[mls18]

The little piggy in my avatar recently passed, he was 7+. I’m not 100% as he was a rescue (along with his wife) so I always said they were the year around June July and half mid Jan. So Jenny is just about 7.5. As they have got older I have started to hold my breath if they are slow getting up in the morning. Jenny didn’t come out of her tunnel this morning and I gingerly lifted it for her to look up at me large as life. It’s hard watching them age.

Oh gosh I'm so sorry that you lost him I'm glad that he lived to such an old age. Yes it really is, ive had so many scares when i thought he was dead. I hope thatJenny lives for many more years

 

[mls18]

Hi!

The first childhood guinea pig in my life lived to nearly 10 years back in the seventies; but a fair number of my (adopted) piggies have lived to 7 and 8 years old and one old lady (who came here aged 7 to live out her life in piggy company) even lived to celebrate her 9th birthday. I know of the odd piggy living to 10 years and very rarely beyond.
The average healthy life span is about 5-7 years, so be proud that you have got your piggy that far, first and foremost!

However, you can never count on for how long your piggies live and what they ultimately die from. It can happen right of the blue and very quickly at any age. There is never a guarantee and fairness doesn't come into it.

The best way to approach your fear of loss is to see your pets as on loan from above on a contract that can be withdrawn anytime without warning. Turn your piggy's life clock back to zero and see every day more as a special blessing which you consciously appreciate. This way you do not waste the remaining time fretting and waiting for the inevatible end but you fill it with lots of love, fun and enrichment so you do not have to deal with lots of regrets on top of the pain of the loss. Guinea pigs don't have a concept for average life expectancy; they measure their lives in happy todays. If you try to do it the piggy way, you still have plenty of time to create precious memories that will warm your heart in dark hours years down the line and that bring a smile to your face when nothing else will. You can put a lifetime's worth of love in just a moment but you can fritter away years with fearing what you cannot stave off.
Enrichment Ideas for Guinea Pigs

The Rainbow Bridge piggy that brings a big smile to my face whenever I think of him is my Bryn Oscar (the name deaf) as he simply proceeded to do what he loved and wanted doing. He was a five years old widowed neutered boar who had found no interest, so he came here to live with my lady pensioners in a new group. He was here for only a year but he clearly had a the time of his life and enjoyed himself so much (including several escapes and taunting the other younger husboars through the bars) that when he died age 6 that one year felt truly like so much longer - and he has left me with so many happy memories. Time is relative; it is not a measure but what you fill it with.

PS: Please always put your piggy's welfare before your own fears of loss when you come to the sharp end. However much you fear it, you can always be strong for one you love where you can't be for yourself.

Wow 10 years, thats amazing. Thank you! That helps a bit Ill try and think of it that way. I'm glad that Bryn Oscar found a very happy home! Thank you so much for your reply, ill make sure to keep this all in mind as he nears his end.

 

[Sue and Smartie]

Most of mine have been rescue pigs, a lot of those we had no idea how old they were when they came here so ageing them was all guesswork.
One of my first pigs was really ill at one point, and the vet said he probably won't make it until Christmas, take him home and make him comfortable. Well, he was one of those who surprised us in a good way and was not only there for Christmas, but the following Christmas also.
On the other hand I have lost pigs too young. It hurts however it happens.
It's normal to dread your pet's death, but your piggy won't be thinking about it at all. All he cares about is if his life is good right now.