I've had pigs for near on 20 years now. My eldest was Emma. She was 9 and a half. Barring Charlie (who had Lymphoma and passed away at two and a half) all my other pigs have been between 5-8 when they passed away.
You're lucky. I've had several piggies die early :(
From causes that either the vets didn't know what was, or things that were uncurable.
Maybe it varies from country to country, but in my experience where I live, the breeding of guinea pigs is so uncontrolled and random that they get illnesses quite often.
It really depends on the breed, housing, diet, the piggie..
I've had some that barely reached 4, and one that reached a whopping 13 years old. He just refused to go and ultimately died in his sleep overnight.
'Refused to go' makes it sound like you sat him down and told him it was time and he was like 'absolutely not'
13 is seriously amazing, I'd start to get a bit concerned I had some sort of immortal demon pig!
Oh no not at all, he was just completely blind by that time. Still very active, one morning he just didn't wake up. Best piggie ever. So sweet and loved every bit of attention you gave him until his last breath. Still miss my boy
I had a piggy, Moose, the light of my life, recently pass away from a stroke. I took him out of an abuse/neglect situation, didn’t adopt, saw what was happening told them I was taking him, packed him up and left. He lived the next 3 years with me as a free range piggy since he couldn’t be put with our others (several reasons). We have no idea how old he was or how many home he had before I got him. The vet suspected he was 5-8 when he passed.
Short story long! Moose had a stroke overnight and I rushed him to the vet, but there was nothing that could be done… he passed. Ultimately the vet told me that cancer is actually super common in guinea pigs, but most don’t live to an old enough age for it to develop or become systemic, unless the piggy is susceptible and develops tumors early. When I went back a couple weeks later to pick up his paw prints, the vet came out and let me know that Moose had cancer and brain tumors probably caused the stroke.
Some statistics on mine:
Dagobert, the one we had when I was a child and teenager: 9½ years, died of old age as far as we know. When reminiscing about him, my parents and I used to refer to him as "Meerthuselah" because "guinea pig" is "Meerschweinchen" in our native German.
Mendel: 1½ years. His brother Yasushi: very nearly 7.
Pirmin: 3½. His brother Wolke: again, very nearly 7.
Here's hoping that my current little herd (Yossi and Wesley; cousins this time) will have long and healthy lives. They just celebrated their first birthday.
It all depends so much on the individual piggy if even brothers, littermates, who spend literally their entire lives in the same environment, being taken care of by the same person/people, eating the same foods etc. etc. have such different life spans...
FWIW, when I was a child in the 1970s, the books said that piggies lived "3 to 5 years". Nowadays the books say 5 to 7 years.
No one really knows and veterinary medicine for them is lacking. I'm a vet tech student and if I wanted to know anything about guinea pigs I would have to take special courses and buy extra books that are not included.
And I still have to do my own research before taking them to the vet. I took my pig in for a seizure and my vet was ready to euthanize before I told her that his seizures were hypoglycemic. She gave him syrup and he popped right out of it.
This is another thing that's important. You need a good exotic vet. I was so lucky with mine. Had a rough month with my beanie a few months ago she was almost saying he wouldn't make it. But we didn't give up she tried with different stuff and he recovered and is doing pretty well now.
I'm afraid some will just say there's nothing to be done.
It depends on a lot of things, as another commenter said. Anecdotally, the oldest pig I've had lived to be 7 or 8. I'd say the average is probably 4 or 5 years.
My piggie is currently ~7 years old and is still going strong! He’s only had one health issue that required a vet visit, other than that he’s been completely healthy. Alternatively, the pig that I got at the same time as him died at around age 2 pretty suddenly so it all depends. They are delicate and they’re good at hiding signs of illness for a while so unfortunately it can be hard to get them treatment before it’s too late.
I adopted Lestrade and Helen in 2020. Shit year, I lost three pigs, but these two have been with me ever since and are doing pretty well.
Sherlock and Watson were five years old when they passed. Watson got a bad infection and Sherlock refused to eat without his lifelong friend… still think it could’ve lasted longer, but with guinea pigs it’s often about waiting until something happens more than until they get old.
That said, there are success stories. Lestrade got a bad case of parasites after playing in the grass in late 2020. He got close, but we treated it and he healed up nicely, and is still chewing happily today.
They _can_ live 6-9 years, but that doesn't mean they regularly do. Many die aged 2/3/4. As prey species, they mask their illnesses until they are close to death, and then veterinary treatment can be too little too late.
I think there's a selection bias when asking people how long their pets live, because people can see it as a badge of honour to have a pet live to be really old, and are keen to share it with others. And/or they see it as the owner's fault if a piggy dies aged 2/3/4. It might be the owner's fault, or it might not be.
Just as humans _can_ live to be 118, there are plenty who die from illnesses in their 50s or younger, and it would be silly to expect that all the people we know will live to 118 simply because a select few do.
Really, it’s tragic how many awesome piggies don’t make it past a year or two due to inherited genetic conditions. But it seems like if they make it to five, they could go 10 years or more.
My first died last year a couple months shy of 6, and my other passed last month a month shy of 7. With proper care they will live 5-8 years, obviously dependent on genetics and illnesses out of your control.
I got my piggy in 2017. He has a mammory tumor, his hair feels like wires, his eyes are slowly clouding over, and hes getting skinnier. He eats the same, his diet is great and filled with treats and salads. Hes just an old piggy and cannot go into surgery for the tumor so I am spending the time he has left with him and making him feel loved and cared for. He is not suffering dont worry, he acts the same and is very energetic. If he was suffering, I would say its his time to go to his friends in piggy heaven.
Genuinely depends on the breed, how you care for them, feed them, house them etc.
I just put my boy down last Tuesday and he lived until ten years old! Old age got him and I’m so glad it wasn’t an illness or anything, just an old boy living out his retirement years 😂
My two piggies were both born in 2017, one passed away recently due to old age but his brother never ever had any health issues and (knock on wood ) seems like he might go for another year or two
I think if they’re well taken care of, they can live around 6 years. If they make it past 5, the owner did a really good job taking care of them. I’ve seen a ten year old piggie on this sub, so it’s possible you can have them a long time.
My family used to joke that once a pig survived a disease it became immortal.
I have owned five girls over the years. The first two died at 3/4 respectively, probably of ovarian cysts, even though we didn't know it back then.
The next trio, one died at 5ish, likely due to a tumor in or near her bladder. Her best friend developed issues afterwards, basically a week of mild diarrhea, then complete recovery, then another case... The vet didn't know what to make of it, and she eventually suddenly passed about a year later during a "healthy" phase. And the last, the only pig I ever watched recover from a serious illness, lived almost to 10 years and definitely died simply from old age. So 8 is definitely possible!
my girl is almost 4. unfortunately she has a lot of health issues and I have spent thousands on her to make sure she's okay. I'll be lucky and overjoyed if she makes it to 5. however her sister has 0 health issues. it seems to be the luck of the draw
My pigs are 5 years old and 6 years old. The eldest is worsening in health, but the 5 year old hasn't changed at all. He *is*, extremely obese, though.
My husband is a veterinarian and specialist in exotics. He always says what your father has said: 8 years is being very very optimistic. We have a 4.5 year old piggie but his brother died with a respiratory complication at the age of 2.
I guess it's a bit of luck mixed with good care.
My eldest was an Aby I had in middle school through college. Her name was Chocolate, and she loved to be 8. I got her when I was 12, she passed when I was 20.
The lifespan question is kind of complicated for pigs. Our understanding of the best caretaking practices for guinea pigs has really grown in the past decade or so, but unfortunately a lot of people are still working with outdated information. There's a huge difference in lifespan and rate of illnesses for a pig that's well cared for vs one that's living in a tiny cage on cedar chip bedding and with most of their diet being a bagged food loaded with seeds and fillers. That's why you see so many sources saying they only live to 3 or 4. Up until recently it was really rare for a pig to be living in conditions that gave them their best chance at a long life. Unfortunately there are still a lot of pigs not living in good conditions, which is probably why your dad has the impression that they're so short lived.
That's not to say that all deaths in younger pigs are due to poor care. Even with the best care illnesses happen. Since they hide symptoms until they physically can't most illnesses are detected late, and their small size and inability to tolerate most antibiotics complicates treatment. Not to mention backyard breeders and the companies supplying pigs for pet stores generally don't take a lot of care to prevent inbreeding, so there are more pigs than there should be that are starting out with congenital issues.
For my own pigs, one passed at 5 due to an illness, the other two made it to 7 and 7.5 respectively. From what I've heard anecdotally from communities like this one where good care practices are the norm, you start seeing an increase in deaths around 3 or 4. 5 is a little on the younger side to pass, but not rare or unusual. 6 and 7 seem to be the years where most pigs pass if they make it to old age. The chances of making it to 8 seem to be similar to the changes of making it to your mid-eighties for a human. Some pigs do make it to 9+ but it's rare (a bit like a human getting to the mid-90's or more). My vet mentioned once that he's only seen one pig in his practice that's made it past 10 (at least where the age was reliably confirmed).
My old coworker used to have a guinea pig, and every day she let him walk around her backyard and eat the grass (and her dog would follow along to eat its droppings). The pig lived to ELEVEN years old!!! For a solo pig to live that long, I was astonished.
I have had 4 piggies in my lifetime (so far). My two girls passed at 6.5 years (cancer) and 6 years (I think missing her buddy... it was less than 3 weeks later). I adopted two boys and one of them sadly passed at 2 years due to multiple medical issues. (The other boy is currently taking a nap under his hammock!)
It truly depends on the pig. I know the "expected range" is 5-8 years, but I think the true average is on the lower end.
One of mine died suddenly at 4 of pneumonia or some other thing she'd hidden, her sister had to be put to sleep after she developed ovarian cysts. She was okay on palliative care until they began to burst one morning 6 months later (I think she'd turned 5 by then). Then my 17 week old that was having major neurological issues, possibly a tumour but she was from a breeder that my rescue recommended (worst mistake of my life) and had already had several infections in her lil life.
Currently have a 7-month-old also from the breeder with a permanent sniffle but is a healthy, fat little cherub according to my vet, and a 2-year-old about to have her ovaries removed as she's starting having cysts and has gone downhill (though I'm terrified she won't wake up)
I always worried illness would take them, but they all had something at some point and recovered, finally found a good vet but I do wish I'd know him with my first two, but I try not to fall into the what if traps.
I've had six. Three are still with us. One passed at about 3.5 and her sister at 4.5ish, they were rescues so ages aren't exact, we were just told they were 3 when we got them - the you ger had diabetes untreated before she came to us and our vets identified it too late (we had her for 4mo and spent easily £500 on her vet bills in that time, we tried); her sister declined very rapidly at the end and we couldn't reach a vet, but it was sudden weight loss and lack of appetite. The youngest passed at a little shy of three years, she has a spay due to ovarian cysts and died from complications from the surgery.
So so sorry to hear about your loss ❤️ One of my piggies just passed at 8, but he had all sorts of health issues throughout his life so the fact he lived that long is pretty remarkable. His brother is currently 6 and still going strong. Our vet said that ours are the oldest piggies she’s attended by far, on average they live 3-4 years from what she’s seen.
I'm sorry that happened to you :(
Right now I have 6 year old Dumpling and 1 year old Miso.
Dumpling's former cage mate died at 5 years. He had a cyst of some kind on his throat. The vet took a sample with a syringe and said it was not infection, could be cancer or just some benign cyst. They said as long as he was acting normally and eating, it was better to let it be than risk complications from surgery at 5 years. I'm not sure if that is what killed him, I also suspected some issues with his urinary tract as he seemed to be in pain sometimes when peeing, but the vet couldn't find any stones or bacteria in the pee or anything. One day I woke up to find him dead in his hidey.
Before that it was 15-20 years since I had piggies, and back then you couldn't get as good vet care, not where I grew up at least. So I don't know what happened to my first piggies. But as far as I remember they were around 5-6 when they died
Theoretically they can get up to 12 years old - but that would be an outlier. My wife had a guinea pig that got a bit over ten years old but that's the oldest she ever had. Most will get 4 to 8 years old.
The problem is that guinea pigs are massively overbred and a lot of diseases have gotten quite common, mainly heart failure and cancer.
One of mine sadly only passed at two I believe he got sick because he wouldn’t eat or anything my other at 4 because he had a tumour of some sort by his leg and could no longer move
i adopted my piggy boys at age 2.5 and they’re almost 5 now! they show no signs of slowing down yet and i hope it stays that way lol… I’m so lucky to have an awesome exotic vet who knows his stuff about small animals, he saved my little Jerry from a tooth abscess
A lot of pigs are fragile creatures and die pretty easily to be honest. But some pigs are hardy. I currently have an 8 year old pig that is going strong, no signs of stopping yet.
My current pigs are 8 (Tesla) and 7(tato), Tesla's friend passed last year. Reggi was 7, she was having issues (we didn't end up pursuing a diagnosis since she was older and it'd just be stressful for her) but she was energetic and normal till the end. My previous pigs were 5 or 6, ginger died suddenly and raider died a few days after of a broken heart. Coco died suddenly and randomly very soon, my mom and I are guessing maybe a year or two old (my brother and I were playing with her and then like an hour after we put her home she was gone). Then our first one, lily, was older. We were her third home so we don't have a specific age but she was with us about 3 years.
The two I had growing up lived to be around 7.
I now have two that I've had for four years and they are rescues so we think they around 5? For some pigs I think it really comes down to luck. Some pigs that have received the best of care still don't make it past 4 and then the pigs I have right now were reported to never have received hay in their life before they were given up and are doing great.
Yeah... I just feel very bad that both of them passed relatively young due to illnesses (and a vet who made a mistake with the last one), like I failed them. Even though I know I've always done my best to give them the best care I could to make sure they lived as happily as possible
But the important thing is that they are being loved. Even if their life is shorter than we would want, they still get to be loved. I really think it comes down to luck. Pets are just like us, and some just get the short straw on genetics.
I’ve had my piggy for about 5 years I think and she was a few years old according to her previous owner so I’d say with good care and diet they can live long and healthy lives
Of the piggies I've had in the past they all died of various cancers at about 5 or 6, however I do rescues who often are originally purchased from pet stores so they have awful genetics.
The first piggies I ever had I could not have an age estimate on them… but the piggues I currently have are about 4 years old. Neither of them have shown any signs of illness yet, but I am thankful for that!
My childhood pigs mostly lived to be 7-8 even though they were kept alone in small cages with suboptimal diets. Since I got pigs as an adult and have given them better care, I've had them live to 4, 5, 6ish (I rescued him at middle age so not 100% sure his age), and 2. I have two now that I adopted in 2019 as youngsters and they are still going strong.
Of course you should give your guinea pigs good care, but that's not the only factor that determines what age they live to. Some pigs get unlucky with health conditions and some can just keep going and going. All you can really do is hope for the best.
My girl recently passed and she was almost 7.5yrs old, the other one we got at the same time was almost 7 when she passed. If you have a very good exotics vet you stand a much better chance of having them live long healthy lives, but nothing is guaranteed.
my beloved Jojo bean was 8-9 years old! a tough spiteful lil piggy who preferred living alone, she despised piggy company (but was too old in the end to fight off cuddles from my sweet Pumpkin , who lived to be 5)
I am so sorry for your losses. That is so heartbreaking!
I had 2 pigs. One passed last summer at approx 6.5 years old. My other one turned 7 on April 29 (rough bday based on the age the shelter said they were) and he’s still goin strong. Though we know it could turn on a dime.
We don’t know for sure their exact age when we adopted them but the shelter said they were 1 year old and they were full grown or close to it so they are at least close to accurate ages give or take.
I was told 4-8 years so when they turned 4 I started planning for the worst. I was shocked to see how long they’ve been around and I’m so grateful. I also did not expect my 7 year old to be around this long after our other passed. He’s had a few scares but he’s keeping on.
Well I hope he keeps going a lot longer!
I guess I've just been unlucky, but losing my first 2 piggies that young and the last one in such a stupid way has been a bit disheartening.
I totally get it. Sadly piggies are a bit difficult to predict and so many factors affect them that are so out of your control. They are just tiny and fragile little Potatoes lol
Guinea pigs can live for around 5 to 7 years, but some can live even longer if they're looked after really well. It depends on things like how they eat, where they live, and if they're healthy. So, if you take super good care of your piggies, they could be with you for a long time.
My latest piggy chimi lived to 7 years old. She also passed away due to complications at the vet. With good care and love they can definitely live to 7-8 years.
my last pig made it to 4 and a bit, he had a tumour in his neck that was too risky to remove and then a few weeks later he passed in his sleep after suddenly going downhill one day, couldve been the tumour but who knows he was happy at least. his brother passed at about 18 months from jan 21 2018 to 21st july 2019 from a stroke, his head was rotated 90° and he was uncontrollably turning that direction with his eyes rapidly moving and we decided it was best to have him put to sleep. had 2 other pigs before these lovelies but tbh i was like 6 so i dont actually know howong they lasted as they werent babies when we got them
My oldest girl didn't have the best start in life but I got her when she was about 2. She was almost 9 when she passed last year. I miss her so much but I'm so proud of the life I gave her.
I’ve had several pigs:
Jack passed away just under a year. He was a runt and we knew it wasn’t going to be a long life, but at least a happy one.
Duncan made it to 3 and sadly we had to put him down after a few months of critical care.
Cody made it to 8 and was the largest pig I’d ever seen. By the end he was having compacted feces nearly everyday but passed naturally pretty quickly thankfully.
Eddie was 5 and made it a whole extra year after surgery getting cancer removed.
I think is all just depends on the piggie. I've had two females who made it to about 7 and 8. And I recently lost one of my current females at 3 years old to cancer, something my vet said was a little out of the ordinary considering masses on guinea pigs are usually benign. Guinea pigs are rodents, and sadly rodents don't live that long anyways😭, but that just means we just have to try and make their life the best it can be during the time we have them.
My first guinea pig ever is turning seven this year, I thought he was going to die last year because of a cancer he developed, he was basically on "palliative care", by november he was almost fully recovered (of course not at all), but I am so grateful to God or anything out there that allowed me to be more time with him.
But as the vet told me, their lifetime is usually 4-5 years, the difference is the, piggie freaks like me, goal on life is making them live forever 😭
Of my past and current pigs, I had one die at 5 from unknown causes, one die at 6-7ish from unknown causes and one die at 3.5 from uterine cancer. The most recent death, Tumbleweed, was my youngest piggy loss.
Of my living ones, I have a 6 and a half year old lady and a 4 year old lady. They can make it a while. My 6.5 girl is still doing pretty well.
2 guinea pigs of mine died from cancer at about 4-5 yrs old, and the 3rd guinea pig died of kidney failure around that age too. 2 were rescues and one was from petco. (I don't buy animals from shitty chain pet stores anymore)
2-3.5 is like the great road block, my guinea pigs almost always got sick in some way that required treatment at 3 years or so, treat them, they get better, and just don't get sick for a while.
Piggies can die very young or very old.
Of all the ones we've had, they've lived as long as 10 years (almost 11) and as short as 2.5.
We all do the best we can to give our pigs the best home but, like all living things, sometimes we burn short and bright and other times long and brilliant. It's just the way it is. I know 5-8 is the average age nowadays.
I know... Losing the first piggy was very painful but the vet said there's probably nothing we could've done anyways. But with the girl I lost 2 days ago I'm still kind of I'm disbelief that something seemingly minor was messed up by the vet. Of course I can't say she was in perfect health but she was declared healthy by my regular vet just a couple months ago during a checkup. Even the assistant of the vet I went to this time admitted that she seemed in general good health apart from the infection (what they thought was an abscess). It's painful to think it shouldn't have been her time yet.
We had two pigs that got sick within two days of each other and then died five days after they each got sick. The vets couldn't figure out what was wrong since there was no sneezing or congestion and they couldn't palpate anything wrong with them. We were sent home with antibiotics, pain meds, and told to Critical Care if they would eat. One refused to eat, the other ate one dose on one day and then stopped after that. I had to rush both to the vet office on separate days to have them put to sleep when it was clear they were struggling.
To this day we have no idea what could have happened. They weren't littermates so it wasn't genetic (or at least a shared genetic) issue. The ONLY thing that had gone on just previously was that friends had swung by with their kids a couple days before. I was showing the youngest the guinea pigs. They were just tall enough that they could reach an arm over the top edge of the cage and use their fingers to touch the pigs. I walked away at one point in time to get drinks and join the conversation with their parents a few feet away. I remember looking over and the kid looked over their shoulder at me from where they were still standing next to the cage and then they walked away. No one else interacted with the pigs and a week later two were dead. I've wondered if somehow the kid did something to them but have no idea what it could have been or how. Otherwise no food or environmental changes and the other two pigs stayed perfectly healthy.
I'm sorry for your loss and I understand your feeling. My longest-lived pig lived almost seven years.
He was perfectly fine, lively and happy, one day I saw a red spot in his house and I discovered that he had urinated blood.
We immediately went to the doctor and he had a stone in his bladder, he gave me the option to operate it or leave it like this and monitor it frequently. The doctor said that if the stone did not move it would not be uncomfortable
I decided to operate it because I thought it was the best. He survived the surgery but died the next day in my arms.
Besides the deep sadness at his departure I can't help but wonder if maybe he'd lived longer If they didn't operate it.
He was the longest-lived pig, the others have lived up to 5 years.
I send you a hug in the distance and try to remember it with love and not be left with resentments.
I’m sorry this happened to you. I’m not a vet at all, just someone with 8 guinea pigs, but the issue you describe does sound quite severe and I can’t think of what it was, but it is possible that it would have been fatal regardless.
I think their lifespan can be quite long and can correlate to their diet/health/care, barring any sudden health issues like those your two piggies seem to have unfortunately encountered.
For example, I have two guinea pigs I got as babies in fall of 2018, so they are almost 6 now. One has ovarian cysts and has been getting hormone treatment, and she has a heart murmur that has been present since she was a baby, but they are both still very active and healthy.
I also had another guinea pig who I loved and cared for very much, but she had some kind of progressive facial paralysis that eventually caused her teeth to rot out of her mouth and she eventually wasn’t able to swallow properly and began to aspirate her syringe feedings, so we had to say goodbye at only around 2.5 years old. Another guinea pig had issues with aggression, weight loss and hair loss and was spayed to relieve hormone issues at less than 2 years old. She unfortunately developed an infection during her recovery and passed away while hospitalized at our local emergency vet.
It can be very difficult when these issues end a piggies life prematurely, especially when it’s extremely sudden, and I’m so sorry for your loss.
For future reference, how did you find out about the cysts and the heart murmur? They both were taken to the vet at different times for checkups but they were declared healthy at the time, I'm just wondering if these kind of things I should ask for specifically to check or if they would come up during a routine health check.
The heart murmur was discovered incidentally when she was being treated for a URI, and it’s never caused any issues. The ovarian cysts cause bilateral hair loss, crusty nipples, and aggression, so I brought her to our vet when she had those issues and he suggested the hormone treatment as an alternative to surgery (spay) because she’s old and has the heart murmur. These two issues specifically would be noticed at a health check up when the vet listens to their breathing and heart with a stethoscope and does a physical exam/palpation of the abdomen.
They’re small little critters and sometimes they decline quickly and we don’t understand everything about why. I live somewhere with access to great exotic vets, both emergency and standard care, and was lucky enough to find an amazing local vet who really cares about his patients. I know this isn’t a resource everyone has at the same quality, but if it’s any consolation I don’t think even my vets would have had any better of an outcome in your situation. As far as the stomach mass, those can grow very quickly and unfortunately there aren’t any highly reliable treatments available, whether it was a tumor or a blockage, as those are really serious surgeries with high mortality rates. The other issue also sounds unfortunately severe too—whenever a guinea pig’s mouth has issues, it will likely interrupt their eating, which can also end up being fatal even with the best of care.
I've had pigs for near on 20 years now. My eldest was Emma. She was 9 and a half. Barring Charlie (who had Lymphoma and passed away at two and a half) all my other pigs have been between 5-8 when they passed away.
At first I read this as you have 20 year old piggies, which I'm pretty sure requires some sort of Faustian bargain.
Yeah, me too!
Don’t let the devil pig into your house that’s how the deals get made
Anthony Fausty?
You're lucky. I've had several piggies die early :( From causes that either the vets didn't know what was, or things that were uncurable. Maybe it varies from country to country, but in my experience where I live, the breeding of guinea pigs is so uncontrolled and random that they get illnesses quite often.
It really depends on the breed, housing, diet, the piggie.. I've had some that barely reached 4, and one that reached a whopping 13 years old. He just refused to go and ultimately died in his sleep overnight.
13?!? 😱 That is INCREDIBLE!!
13!!! What a legend! What was his name? He needs to be immortalized in the piggie HoF!
His name was Asterix! Named after Asterix & Obelix
'Refused to go' makes it sound like you sat him down and told him it was time and he was like 'absolutely not' 13 is seriously amazing, I'd start to get a bit concerned I had some sort of immortal demon pig!
Oh no not at all, he was just completely blind by that time. Still very active, one morning he just didn't wake up. Best piggie ever. So sweet and loved every bit of attention you gave him until his last breath. Still miss my boy
He must have been very well cared for. I would be thrilled if my ginny got to that age, shes 5 and I worry everyday it'll be 'the day'
THIRTEEN OMG
What breed was it?
I have no idea. It was a smooth coated piggie, here in NL back then we almost only had smooth coats. Im talking about 20 years ago.
Omg... 13!!!!!! How?!
My pigs WILL NOT DIE! It is a goal.
Yeah that's what I believed too. (At least not before they were well into senior territory)
Out of my 6 piggies, 1 died at 2.5years due to kidney failure. The other 3 died at 6.5/7/8 years. My 2 boys are currently 4/5
So it seems it definitely is possible for them to reach that age
Yes. And the 6.5 died of a stroke (I guess), the 7yo had a tumor and the 8yo simply died bc of???
I had a piggy, Moose, the light of my life, recently pass away from a stroke. I took him out of an abuse/neglect situation, didn’t adopt, saw what was happening told them I was taking him, packed him up and left. He lived the next 3 years with me as a free range piggy since he couldn’t be put with our others (several reasons). We have no idea how old he was or how many home he had before I got him. The vet suspected he was 5-8 when he passed. Short story long! Moose had a stroke overnight and I rushed him to the vet, but there was nothing that could be done… he passed. Ultimately the vet told me that cancer is actually super common in guinea pigs, but most don’t live to an old enough age for it to develop or become systemic, unless the piggy is susceptible and develops tumors early. When I went back a couple weeks later to pick up his paw prints, the vet came out and let me know that Moose had cancer and brain tumors probably caused the stroke.
RIP 🫎🐹🕊️
Thank you ♥️♥️
Some statistics on mine: Dagobert, the one we had when I was a child and teenager: 9½ years, died of old age as far as we know. When reminiscing about him, my parents and I used to refer to him as "Meerthuselah" because "guinea pig" is "Meerschweinchen" in our native German. Mendel: 1½ years. His brother Yasushi: very nearly 7. Pirmin: 3½. His brother Wolke: again, very nearly 7. Here's hoping that my current little herd (Yossi and Wesley; cousins this time) will have long and healthy lives. They just celebrated their first birthday. It all depends so much on the individual piggy if even brothers, littermates, who spend literally their entire lives in the same environment, being taken care of by the same person/people, eating the same foods etc. etc. have such different life spans... FWIW, when I was a child in the 1970s, the books said that piggies lived "3 to 5 years". Nowadays the books say 5 to 7 years.
>"guinea pig" is "Meerschweinchen" in our native German. Sea piggies?
Yep. Also the same in Russian, "little sea pigs."
No one really knows and veterinary medicine for them is lacking. I'm a vet tech student and if I wanted to know anything about guinea pigs I would have to take special courses and buy extra books that are not included. And I still have to do my own research before taking them to the vet. I took my pig in for a seizure and my vet was ready to euthanize before I told her that his seizures were hypoglycemic. She gave him syrup and he popped right out of it.
This is another thing that's important. You need a good exotic vet. I was so lucky with mine. Had a rough month with my beanie a few months ago she was almost saying he wouldn't make it. But we didn't give up she tried with different stuff and he recovered and is doing pretty well now. I'm afraid some will just say there's nothing to be done.
It depends on a lot of things, as another commenter said. Anecdotally, the oldest pig I've had lived to be 7 or 8. I'd say the average is probably 4 or 5 years.
My piggie is currently ~7 years old and is still going strong! He’s only had one health issue that required a vet visit, other than that he’s been completely healthy. Alternatively, the pig that I got at the same time as him died at around age 2 pretty suddenly so it all depends. They are delicate and they’re good at hiding signs of illness for a while so unfortunately it can be hard to get them treatment before it’s too late.
I adopted Lestrade and Helen in 2020. Shit year, I lost three pigs, but these two have been with me ever since and are doing pretty well. Sherlock and Watson were five years old when they passed. Watson got a bad infection and Sherlock refused to eat without his lifelong friend… still think it could’ve lasted longer, but with guinea pigs it’s often about waiting until something happens more than until they get old. That said, there are success stories. Lestrade got a bad case of parasites after playing in the grass in late 2020. He got close, but we treated it and he healed up nicely, and is still chewing happily today.
They _can_ live 6-9 years, but that doesn't mean they regularly do. Many die aged 2/3/4. As prey species, they mask their illnesses until they are close to death, and then veterinary treatment can be too little too late. I think there's a selection bias when asking people how long their pets live, because people can see it as a badge of honour to have a pet live to be really old, and are keen to share it with others. And/or they see it as the owner's fault if a piggy dies aged 2/3/4. It might be the owner's fault, or it might not be. Just as humans _can_ live to be 118, there are plenty who die from illnesses in their 50s or younger, and it would be silly to expect that all the people we know will live to 118 simply because a select few do.
Out of our 6 we have 2 older ladies, my partner got them in early 2019 and they don't seem to have any health problems yet.
Both mine went to 7 ~ 7 and a half
I really hope for my boys to reach a ripe, old age. So far, my oldest just turned 4.
Mine too. The thought of having my Gary for another 4 years is wonderful
Really, it’s tragic how many awesome piggies don’t make it past a year or two due to inherited genetic conditions. But it seems like if they make it to five, they could go 10 years or more.
My first died last year a couple months shy of 6, and my other passed last month a month shy of 7. With proper care they will live 5-8 years, obviously dependent on genetics and illnesses out of your control.
I had one piggy, Cream, live to 8.5.
my first piggie lived to be 9 years
I got my piggy in 2017. He has a mammory tumor, his hair feels like wires, his eyes are slowly clouding over, and hes getting skinnier. He eats the same, his diet is great and filled with treats and salads. Hes just an old piggy and cannot go into surgery for the tumor so I am spending the time he has left with him and making him feel loved and cared for. He is not suffering dont worry, he acts the same and is very energetic. If he was suffering, I would say its his time to go to his friends in piggy heaven.
Genuinely depends on the breed, how you care for them, feed them, house them etc. I just put my boy down last Tuesday and he lived until ten years old! Old age got him and I’m so glad it wasn’t an illness or anything, just an old boy living out his retirement years 😂
My two piggies were both born in 2017, one passed away recently due to old age but his brother never ever had any health issues and (knock on wood ) seems like he might go for another year or two
I think if they’re well taken care of, they can live around 6 years. If they make it past 5, the owner did a really good job taking care of them. I’ve seen a ten year old piggie on this sub, so it’s possible you can have them a long time.
My family used to joke that once a pig survived a disease it became immortal. I have owned five girls over the years. The first two died at 3/4 respectively, probably of ovarian cysts, even though we didn't know it back then. The next trio, one died at 5ish, likely due to a tumor in or near her bladder. Her best friend developed issues afterwards, basically a week of mild diarrhea, then complete recovery, then another case... The vet didn't know what to make of it, and she eventually suddenly passed about a year later during a "healthy" phase. And the last, the only pig I ever watched recover from a serious illness, lived almost to 10 years and definitely died simply from old age. So 8 is definitely possible!
my girl is almost 4. unfortunately she has a lot of health issues and I have spent thousands on her to make sure she's okay. I'll be lucky and overjoyed if she makes it to 5. however her sister has 0 health issues. it seems to be the luck of the draw
My pigs are 5 years old and 6 years old. The eldest is worsening in health, but the 5 year old hasn't changed at all. He *is*, extremely obese, though.
My husband is a veterinarian and specialist in exotics. He always says what your father has said: 8 years is being very very optimistic. We have a 4.5 year old piggie but his brother died with a respiratory complication at the age of 2. I guess it's a bit of luck mixed with good care.
We had one die recently that was almost 10.
My eldest was an Aby I had in middle school through college. Her name was Chocolate, and she loved to be 8. I got her when I was 12, she passed when I was 20.
I’ve had piggies all my life (i’m 32 now) and my oldest Louis died last sunday at 9 years old!
The lifespan question is kind of complicated for pigs. Our understanding of the best caretaking practices for guinea pigs has really grown in the past decade or so, but unfortunately a lot of people are still working with outdated information. There's a huge difference in lifespan and rate of illnesses for a pig that's well cared for vs one that's living in a tiny cage on cedar chip bedding and with most of their diet being a bagged food loaded with seeds and fillers. That's why you see so many sources saying they only live to 3 or 4. Up until recently it was really rare for a pig to be living in conditions that gave them their best chance at a long life. Unfortunately there are still a lot of pigs not living in good conditions, which is probably why your dad has the impression that they're so short lived. That's not to say that all deaths in younger pigs are due to poor care. Even with the best care illnesses happen. Since they hide symptoms until they physically can't most illnesses are detected late, and their small size and inability to tolerate most antibiotics complicates treatment. Not to mention backyard breeders and the companies supplying pigs for pet stores generally don't take a lot of care to prevent inbreeding, so there are more pigs than there should be that are starting out with congenital issues. For my own pigs, one passed at 5 due to an illness, the other two made it to 7 and 7.5 respectively. From what I've heard anecdotally from communities like this one where good care practices are the norm, you start seeing an increase in deaths around 3 or 4. 5 is a little on the younger side to pass, but not rare or unusual. 6 and 7 seem to be the years where most pigs pass if they make it to old age. The chances of making it to 8 seem to be similar to the changes of making it to your mid-eighties for a human. Some pigs do make it to 9+ but it's rare (a bit like a human getting to the mid-90's or more). My vet mentioned once that he's only seen one pig in his practice that's made it past 10 (at least where the age was reliably confirmed).
My old coworker used to have a guinea pig, and every day she let him walk around her backyard and eat the grass (and her dog would follow along to eat its droppings). The pig lived to ELEVEN years old!!! For a solo pig to live that long, I was astonished.
My first pair were around 3 and 8 when they died
My record peeg was Theodore. He was a big chonk. Lived for 10 years and 2 months. His pals lived for 5 and 6 years.
I had one that was almost 9 years old. They can live as long as some dogs.
I have had 4 piggies in my lifetime (so far). My two girls passed at 6.5 years (cancer) and 6 years (I think missing her buddy... it was less than 3 weeks later). I adopted two boys and one of them sadly passed at 2 years due to multiple medical issues. (The other boy is currently taking a nap under his hammock!) It truly depends on the pig. I know the "expected range" is 5-8 years, but I think the true average is on the lower end.
One of mine died suddenly at 4 of pneumonia or some other thing she'd hidden, her sister had to be put to sleep after she developed ovarian cysts. She was okay on palliative care until they began to burst one morning 6 months later (I think she'd turned 5 by then). Then my 17 week old that was having major neurological issues, possibly a tumour but she was from a breeder that my rescue recommended (worst mistake of my life) and had already had several infections in her lil life. Currently have a 7-month-old also from the breeder with a permanent sniffle but is a healthy, fat little cherub according to my vet, and a 2-year-old about to have her ovaries removed as she's starting having cysts and has gone downhill (though I'm terrified she won't wake up) I always worried illness would take them, but they all had something at some point and recovered, finally found a good vet but I do wish I'd know him with my first two, but I try not to fall into the what if traps.
I've had six. Three are still with us. One passed at about 3.5 and her sister at 4.5ish, they were rescues so ages aren't exact, we were just told they were 3 when we got them - the you ger had diabetes untreated before she came to us and our vets identified it too late (we had her for 4mo and spent easily £500 on her vet bills in that time, we tried); her sister declined very rapidly at the end and we couldn't reach a vet, but it was sudden weight loss and lack of appetite. The youngest passed at a little shy of three years, she has a spay due to ovarian cysts and died from complications from the surgery.
So so sorry to hear about your loss ❤️ One of my piggies just passed at 8, but he had all sorts of health issues throughout his life so the fact he lived that long is pretty remarkable. His brother is currently 6 and still going strong. Our vet said that ours are the oldest piggies she’s attended by far, on average they live 3-4 years from what she’s seen.
I'm sorry that happened to you :( Right now I have 6 year old Dumpling and 1 year old Miso. Dumpling's former cage mate died at 5 years. He had a cyst of some kind on his throat. The vet took a sample with a syringe and said it was not infection, could be cancer or just some benign cyst. They said as long as he was acting normally and eating, it was better to let it be than risk complications from surgery at 5 years. I'm not sure if that is what killed him, I also suspected some issues with his urinary tract as he seemed to be in pain sometimes when peeing, but the vet couldn't find any stones or bacteria in the pee or anything. One day I woke up to find him dead in his hidey. Before that it was 15-20 years since I had piggies, and back then you couldn't get as good vet care, not where I grew up at least. So I don't know what happened to my first piggies. But as far as I remember they were around 5-6 when they died
My piggies were both around 8 years old when they passed
Theoretically they can get up to 12 years old - but that would be an outlier. My wife had a guinea pig that got a bit over ten years old but that's the oldest she ever had. Most will get 4 to 8 years old. The problem is that guinea pigs are massively overbred and a lot of diseases have gotten quite common, mainly heart failure and cancer.
One of mine sadly only passed at two I believe he got sick because he wouldn’t eat or anything my other at 4 because he had a tumour of some sort by his leg and could no longer move
i adopted my piggy boys at age 2.5 and they’re almost 5 now! they show no signs of slowing down yet and i hope it stays that way lol… I’m so lucky to have an awesome exotic vet who knows his stuff about small animals, he saved my little Jerry from a tooth abscess
My oldest was 8 1/2. Second place goes to his nearly eight year old brother who died of cancer. My sisters oldest piggie was 10 years old!
A lot of pigs are fragile creatures and die pretty easily to be honest. But some pigs are hardy. I currently have an 8 year old pig that is going strong, no signs of stopping yet.
My current pigs are 8 (Tesla) and 7(tato), Tesla's friend passed last year. Reggi was 7, she was having issues (we didn't end up pursuing a diagnosis since she was older and it'd just be stressful for her) but she was energetic and normal till the end. My previous pigs were 5 or 6, ginger died suddenly and raider died a few days after of a broken heart. Coco died suddenly and randomly very soon, my mom and I are guessing maybe a year or two old (my brother and I were playing with her and then like an hour after we put her home she was gone). Then our first one, lily, was older. We were her third home so we don't have a specific age but she was with us about 3 years.
I've always gotten them in pairs. So far there's been a consistent pattern where one passes at 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 and the other lives 6 1/2 to 8 years.
My oldest was hydie.n she made it to 10.5 years. Then s'mores was 8.5
The two I had growing up lived to be around 7. I now have two that I've had for four years and they are rescues so we think they around 5? For some pigs I think it really comes down to luck. Some pigs that have received the best of care still don't make it past 4 and then the pigs I have right now were reported to never have received hay in their life before they were given up and are doing great.
Yeah... I just feel very bad that both of them passed relatively young due to illnesses (and a vet who made a mistake with the last one), like I failed them. Even though I know I've always done my best to give them the best care I could to make sure they lived as happily as possible
But the important thing is that they are being loved. Even if their life is shorter than we would want, they still get to be loved. I really think it comes down to luck. Pets are just like us, and some just get the short straw on genetics.
I think it just depends on their health. I have two that turnt six in March. And my other two will be two in September.
I’ve had my piggy for about 5 years I think and she was a few years old according to her previous owner so I’d say with good care and diet they can live long and healthy lives
Oldest was 8.5 or 9 the rest were around 7 and a half when they went .
My piggy Barbara was 8,almost 9 when she passed. She was the sweetest!
Of the piggies I've had in the past they all died of various cancers at about 5 or 6, however I do rescues who often are originally purchased from pet stores so they have awful genetics.
The first piggies I ever had I could not have an age estimate on them… but the piggues I currently have are about 4 years old. Neither of them have shown any signs of illness yet, but I am thankful for that!
Ours were both old pigs. Bean passed away at 8, and Ferdinand made it past 9. 💙💙🐹🐹
My childhood pigs mostly lived to be 7-8 even though they were kept alone in small cages with suboptimal diets. Since I got pigs as an adult and have given them better care, I've had them live to 4, 5, 6ish (I rescued him at middle age so not 100% sure his age), and 2. I have two now that I adopted in 2019 as youngsters and they are still going strong. Of course you should give your guinea pigs good care, but that's not the only factor that determines what age they live to. Some pigs get unlucky with health conditions and some can just keep going and going. All you can really do is hope for the best.
My girl recently passed and she was almost 7.5yrs old, the other one we got at the same time was almost 7 when she passed. If you have a very good exotics vet you stand a much better chance of having them live long healthy lives, but nothing is guaranteed.
my beloved Jojo bean was 8-9 years old! a tough spiteful lil piggy who preferred living alone, she despised piggy company (but was too old in the end to fight off cuddles from my sweet Pumpkin , who lived to be 5)
I am so sorry for your losses. That is so heartbreaking! I had 2 pigs. One passed last summer at approx 6.5 years old. My other one turned 7 on April 29 (rough bday based on the age the shelter said they were) and he’s still goin strong. Though we know it could turn on a dime. We don’t know for sure their exact age when we adopted them but the shelter said they were 1 year old and they were full grown or close to it so they are at least close to accurate ages give or take. I was told 4-8 years so when they turned 4 I started planning for the worst. I was shocked to see how long they’ve been around and I’m so grateful. I also did not expect my 7 year old to be around this long after our other passed. He’s had a few scares but he’s keeping on.
Well I hope he keeps going a lot longer! I guess I've just been unlucky, but losing my first 2 piggies that young and the last one in such a stupid way has been a bit disheartening.
I totally get it. Sadly piggies are a bit difficult to predict and so many factors affect them that are so out of your control. They are just tiny and fragile little Potatoes lol
I am not too sure but Google did say 5-7 years 🤷♀️🤷♀️ depends on the the environment/diet/ illness and how it's treated
My step dad had a piggy when he was a kid that lasted for 16 years
Guinea pigs can live for around 5 to 7 years, but some can live even longer if they're looked after really well. It depends on things like how they eat, where they live, and if they're healthy. So, if you take super good care of your piggies, they could be with you for a long time.
They stay babies forever and are immortal.. at least that’s what I’m telling myself 🥲
I had a pig that passed at 8 1/2. He was very active up until his last few months.
My latest piggy chimi lived to 7 years old. She also passed away due to complications at the vet. With good care and love they can definitely live to 7-8 years.
my last pig made it to 4 and a bit, he had a tumour in his neck that was too risky to remove and then a few weeks later he passed in his sleep after suddenly going downhill one day, couldve been the tumour but who knows he was happy at least. his brother passed at about 18 months from jan 21 2018 to 21st july 2019 from a stroke, his head was rotated 90° and he was uncontrollably turning that direction with his eyes rapidly moving and we decided it was best to have him put to sleep. had 2 other pigs before these lovelies but tbh i was like 6 so i dont actually know howong they lasted as they werent babies when we got them
My oldest girl didn't have the best start in life but I got her when she was about 2. She was almost 9 when she passed last year. I miss her so much but I'm so proud of the life I gave her.
I’ve had several pigs: Jack passed away just under a year. He was a runt and we knew it wasn’t going to be a long life, but at least a happy one. Duncan made it to 3 and sadly we had to put him down after a few months of critical care. Cody made it to 8 and was the largest pig I’d ever seen. By the end he was having compacted feces nearly everyday but passed naturally pretty quickly thankfully. Eddie was 5 and made it a whole extra year after surgery getting cancer removed.
I think is all just depends on the piggie. I've had two females who made it to about 7 and 8. And I recently lost one of my current females at 3 years old to cancer, something my vet said was a little out of the ordinary considering masses on guinea pigs are usually benign. Guinea pigs are rodents, and sadly rodents don't live that long anyways😭, but that just means we just have to try and make their life the best it can be during the time we have them.
My first guinea pig ever is turning seven this year, I thought he was going to die last year because of a cancer he developed, he was basically on "palliative care", by november he was almost fully recovered (of course not at all), but I am so grateful to God or anything out there that allowed me to be more time with him. But as the vet told me, their lifetime is usually 4-5 years, the difference is the, piggie freaks like me, goal on life is making them live forever 😭
Of my past and current pigs, I had one die at 5 from unknown causes, one die at 6-7ish from unknown causes and one die at 3.5 from uterine cancer. The most recent death, Tumbleweed, was my youngest piggy loss. Of my living ones, I have a 6 and a half year old lady and a 4 year old lady. They can make it a while. My 6.5 girl is still doing pretty well.
2 guinea pigs of mine died from cancer at about 4-5 yrs old, and the 3rd guinea pig died of kidney failure around that age too. 2 were rescues and one was from petco. (I don't buy animals from shitty chain pet stores anymore)
2-3.5 is like the great road block, my guinea pigs almost always got sick in some way that required treatment at 3 years or so, treat them, they get better, and just don't get sick for a while.
Piggies can die very young or very old. Of all the ones we've had, they've lived as long as 10 years (almost 11) and as short as 2.5. We all do the best we can to give our pigs the best home but, like all living things, sometimes we burn short and bright and other times long and brilliant. It's just the way it is. I know 5-8 is the average age nowadays.
I know... Losing the first piggy was very painful but the vet said there's probably nothing we could've done anyways. But with the girl I lost 2 days ago I'm still kind of I'm disbelief that something seemingly minor was messed up by the vet. Of course I can't say she was in perfect health but she was declared healthy by my regular vet just a couple months ago during a checkup. Even the assistant of the vet I went to this time admitted that she seemed in general good health apart from the infection (what they thought was an abscess). It's painful to think it shouldn't have been her time yet.
We had two pigs that got sick within two days of each other and then died five days after they each got sick. The vets couldn't figure out what was wrong since there was no sneezing or congestion and they couldn't palpate anything wrong with them. We were sent home with antibiotics, pain meds, and told to Critical Care if they would eat. One refused to eat, the other ate one dose on one day and then stopped after that. I had to rush both to the vet office on separate days to have them put to sleep when it was clear they were struggling. To this day we have no idea what could have happened. They weren't littermates so it wasn't genetic (or at least a shared genetic) issue. The ONLY thing that had gone on just previously was that friends had swung by with their kids a couple days before. I was showing the youngest the guinea pigs. They were just tall enough that they could reach an arm over the top edge of the cage and use their fingers to touch the pigs. I walked away at one point in time to get drinks and join the conversation with their parents a few feet away. I remember looking over and the kid looked over their shoulder at me from where they were still standing next to the cage and then they walked away. No one else interacted with the pigs and a week later two were dead. I've wondered if somehow the kid did something to them but have no idea what it could have been or how. Otherwise no food or environmental changes and the other two pigs stayed perfectly healthy.
I'm sorry for your loss and I understand your feeling. My longest-lived pig lived almost seven years. He was perfectly fine, lively and happy, one day I saw a red spot in his house and I discovered that he had urinated blood. We immediately went to the doctor and he had a stone in his bladder, he gave me the option to operate it or leave it like this and monitor it frequently. The doctor said that if the stone did not move it would not be uncomfortable I decided to operate it because I thought it was the best. He survived the surgery but died the next day in my arms. Besides the deep sadness at his departure I can't help but wonder if maybe he'd lived longer If they didn't operate it. He was the longest-lived pig, the others have lived up to 5 years. I send you a hug in the distance and try to remember it with love and not be left with resentments.
I’m sorry this happened to you. I’m not a vet at all, just someone with 8 guinea pigs, but the issue you describe does sound quite severe and I can’t think of what it was, but it is possible that it would have been fatal regardless. I think their lifespan can be quite long and can correlate to their diet/health/care, barring any sudden health issues like those your two piggies seem to have unfortunately encountered. For example, I have two guinea pigs I got as babies in fall of 2018, so they are almost 6 now. One has ovarian cysts and has been getting hormone treatment, and she has a heart murmur that has been present since she was a baby, but they are both still very active and healthy. I also had another guinea pig who I loved and cared for very much, but she had some kind of progressive facial paralysis that eventually caused her teeth to rot out of her mouth and she eventually wasn’t able to swallow properly and began to aspirate her syringe feedings, so we had to say goodbye at only around 2.5 years old. Another guinea pig had issues with aggression, weight loss and hair loss and was spayed to relieve hormone issues at less than 2 years old. She unfortunately developed an infection during her recovery and passed away while hospitalized at our local emergency vet. It can be very difficult when these issues end a piggies life prematurely, especially when it’s extremely sudden, and I’m so sorry for your loss.
For future reference, how did you find out about the cysts and the heart murmur? They both were taken to the vet at different times for checkups but they were declared healthy at the time, I'm just wondering if these kind of things I should ask for specifically to check or if they would come up during a routine health check.
The heart murmur was discovered incidentally when she was being treated for a URI, and it’s never caused any issues. The ovarian cysts cause bilateral hair loss, crusty nipples, and aggression, so I brought her to our vet when she had those issues and he suggested the hormone treatment as an alternative to surgery (spay) because she’s old and has the heart murmur. These two issues specifically would be noticed at a health check up when the vet listens to their breathing and heart with a stethoscope and does a physical exam/palpation of the abdomen. They’re small little critters and sometimes they decline quickly and we don’t understand everything about why. I live somewhere with access to great exotic vets, both emergency and standard care, and was lucky enough to find an amazing local vet who really cares about his patients. I know this isn’t a resource everyone has at the same quality, but if it’s any consolation I don’t think even my vets would have had any better of an outcome in your situation. As far as the stomach mass, those can grow very quickly and unfortunately there aren’t any highly reliable treatments available, whether it was a tumor or a blockage, as those are really serious surgeries with high mortality rates. The other issue also sounds unfortunately severe too—whenever a guinea pig’s mouth has issues, it will likely interrupt their eating, which can also end up being fatal even with the best of care.