How To Tell A Guinea Pig’s Age? 3 Awesome Ways To Know!
Do you have any idea of how to tell a guinea pig’s age? Several factors will then help you figure out the age of your cavy (but not the exact age, of course).
You can have a rough estimation about how long your cavy has been living by looking at its nails, teeth, and body.
With proper care and guidance, a guinea pig can live from five to seven years, and I think that is quite long enough.
This article will discuss and elaborate on the factors that we are talking about and let you learn more about cavies.
Without any more delays, let us delve right into it!
Factors To Help In Figuring Out A Guinea Pig’s Age
As a pet owner, you can be considered as an expert if, in one look, you can immediately estimate the age of a guinea pig.
So, how to tell a guinea pig’s age?
The following are the factors that you can also learn so that you can figure out the age of an adorable cavy:
#1. Nails
Pointy and short nails are the typical structure present on a young guinea pig.
You can tell that a cavy is still at a young age since it is translucent and light-pigmented.
Once your pet has reached one year old, its nails will become thicker and more round in diameter.
The translucent characteristic will then be changed into an opaque and yellowish color, indicating that it grows older.
This factor is very significant and will surely help you estimate a guinea pig’s in no time.(please read here how to cut Guinea pig Nails)
#2. Teeth
A cavy will be born with white and small developed teeth. This set of teeth will grow continuously as it grows and throughout its lifetime. (please read here how many teeth do Guinea pig have)
You have to be aware that as your cavy lives a matter of years, its teeth will become yellow and develop ridges.
Since I am also a pet owner, I noticed that as Ginger (my pet) grows, his teeth break little by little.
I always give him a variety of fresh grasses to trim and wear out her teeth. please read here
This action will help her avoid her teeth’ overgrowth since the only thing that will let a cavy trim it is by gnawing and chewing its food.
#3. Body
Depending on the breed of a guinea pig, you will be able to tell its age by its size alone.
A healthy cavy of about three months old can weigh eighteen ounces and grow more significant as it reaches a year.
The margin will increase to about 24 to 42 ounces, which is quite a good number.
As a female guinea pig ages, it tends to spread its hind ends, and as for males, the testicles are even more visible by six weeks of age.
Life Stages Of Guinea Pigs
There will be tons of indicators that will help you in determining the right age of your cavy. (please read here how old do Guinea pig live)
In this part of the article, we will be learning about a guinea pig’s stage and how it differs through time.
Young guinea pigs
Cavies are cute and tailless rodents, which will surely brighten up your day. They are considered young by the time that it is born up to six months of age.
If you are a beginner in owning a guinea pig, you should not be surprised since these animals increase as you might think them to be.
While they are growing, you have to supply these cavies with enough vitamins and minerals so that you can cope up with its needs.
As you bind with your beloved pet, be sure that you have enough time to run and play with it.
Furthermore, do not forget to serve your pet only fresh fruits and veggies for robust growth.( When are Guinea full grown)
Adult guinea pigs
An adult cavy will have an age of 6 months up to 5 years old.
Keep in mind that even though your pet has reached adulthood and stops growing, you need to provide them with macro-nutrients to help them stay healthy throughout the years.
Timothy hay is the staple food for guinea pigs, so you must never forget to make it a majority portion of its diet meal.
Besides, it would be best to encourage your pet to exercise because that is something your cavy should have while aging.
The encouragement and good lifestyle you are introducing your cavy will help improve its quality of life.
Senior guinea pigs
Once your guinea pigs breached the mark of 5 years old, then they are considered adults.
Like us humans, senior cavies would need special attention, which will vary from one cavy to another.
You need to set up check-ups with your trusted veterinarian to ensure that your pet is not suffering from any illness.
Why is that so?
It is because this age of a guinea pig is more susceptible to diseases. (please read here why did my Guinea pig Die)
Moreover, its immune system is not as strong as it was still at a younger age.
Is It Possible For Guinea Pigs To Reach 8 Years Old?
As we have discussed earlier, guinea pigs have a life expectancy of 5 to 7 years old.
If you happen to have a cavy that reached more than that mark, then it is considered a rare case.
As a guinea pig age, you can give it healthy foods and make more effort to grow and extend its life longer than expected.
The key for a longer life is the owner because you need to take good care of your pet for all its life.
How Old Is A Guinea Pig In Human Years?
Try to imagine that one guinea pig year is equivalent to 18 years in human age.
It only means that in 7 actual years of a guinea pig, it is about 126 years old when calculated in human years (that is very old for us!)
Since a pet owner needs to know better, a senior guinea pig’s unique needs must be provided to reach the peak age.
The golden years are the most critical, so you have to bond well with your cavy until the last minute.
Conclusion
You can tell a guinea pig’s age by many factors, including nails, teeth, and body.
The more they age, the changes in its body become visible, making it easy for you to tell how long it lived from the day it was born.
The signs of aging will be noticeable for senior cavies like losing muscles and weight.
As a pet owner, you have to take full responsibility in making sure that from the day you brought home a cavy and up to its last day, you have excellently taken care of it.
I hope that you now have a clearer vision of how to tell a guinea pig’s age, and thank you for reading!
