When Is A Guinea Pig Mature?

[lady pendle]

This is probably a common question so sorry if it's tedious!
Can you tell me at what age a guinea pig is fully grown? I'm just wondering how big my little Amber will get. She's now 11 weeks and still very much smaller than my other girl (the white one in the pic)

Thanks

 

[Wiebke]

This is probably a common question so sorry if it's tedious!
Can you tell me at what age a guinea pig is fully grown? I'm just wondering how big my little Amber will get. She's now 11 weeks and still very much smaller than my other girl (the white one in the pic)

Thanks

Hi! Guinea pig reach adulthood around 15 months of age.

Please be aware that individual body sizes can vary enormously, so any weight charts are simply not worth the paper they are printed on. As long as both girls are well in themselves, are growing at the age they are currently at and are a good weight for their size (which is the ratio that counts), there is no reason to worry. Weight differences will get rather larger than smaller, but they do not have any influence on health or longevity (apart from overweight being a life shortening rather than a life prolonging issue).

My own sister pairs have very different weights and sizes. The most extreme were the 500g between sisters Nia and Nerys at their peak; yet both sows have lived to a good old age, and it was the smaller sister that ran my big group, not the bigger one!

You measure around the ribcage whether a piggy is a good weight for its size as bum shape is breed dependant and no indication. In a healthy and fit piggy, you can just feel the ribs. If you can feel every rib and especially if they stand out, a piggy is underweight. If you can't feel any ribs at all, a piggy is overweight.

You may find these guides here helpful. Instead of focusing on weight and size, focus on a healthy hay-based diet with not too many mixed veg and a minimum of pellets to promote longevity.
The Importance Of Weighing - Ideal Weight / Overweight / Underweight
Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diet

 

[lady pendle]

Thanks for taking the trouble to reply.

 

[Lady Kelly]

I can only echo Wiebke who has gone to a lot of detail. My fully grown sows have varied from 850g to 1200g at their peak and after losing the dominant sow it was the 850g little terror that ran the group

 

[Freela]

I have found that my pigs were all pretty much done growing by about a year, though some of them did 'bulk up' past that time. There is a really wide range of normal sizes for pigs... right now I have one who is just over three pounds and big-boned and one who is under two pounds and very petite. Both are healthy adult sows. Hope this helps a bit!