Hello all, if you are a grieving guinea pig parent, I am firstly so sorry for your loss. If you have a single guinea pig now and are concerned with what to do and are not fully ready to get a second guinea pig and/or you do not want another guinea pig, this post is for you.
So recently I had lost my guinea pig and was now left with one. I had joined this forum out of desperation to seek advice on what to do to help my lone guinea pig through this hard time. I had scoured the internet, read article after article, watched countless videos on YouTube and even TikTok, and all of the information I was finding was telling me I had no choice, I had to get another guinea pig so my single one would be happy. As someone who does not want another guinea pig, it was very stressful to go through thinking that this was my only option.
Of course I love guinea pigs and I used to have a total of 4 piggies, and I love every one of them to bits, but now that I have my last one I’m just not ready to continue on caring for any more. Especially since my last piggy when she passed it was a very traumatic experience and I know that when my last one will have her time it’ll be so devastating, and just thinking about becoming attached to another one and having to continue this piggy cycle is just too much for me to handle.
I tried looking into fostering a guinea pig so at least my girl wouldn’t be lonely and there wouldn’t be any commitment, but of course that still would be hard in itself, and some people had even told me if I’m unwilling to get another guinea pig I should consider giving up my current one to someone who would keep her in a herd, and I understand people were trying to help me but that’s overall devastating to hear and of course I do not want to let go of my piggy.
I felt cornered, I felt helpless, I honestly felt selfish. I’ve read so much online that guinea pigs can go into a deep depression without any cage mate while dealing with grief, they can decline in health and stop eating, drinking and acting like themselves and then ultimately would die of loneliness. Of course I would never ever want that for not just my pig but any piggy out there. That’s terrifying.
But then I decided to call my vet and speak with her about all of my concerns. Always if you have a guinea pig of course go to an exotic veterinary clinic because they specialize in care for guinea pigs and other exotic animals such as ferrets, rabbits, hedgehogs, etc. unlike a regular dog and cat vet. I told her about my concerns and what I was finding on the internet and she told me that it is possible for all of what I read to happen but that it is also possible for a guinea pig after the death of their cage mate to live a happy life alone.
If my guinea pig was a baby, as in a couple of months to only a few years old, it would’ve been a completely different situation and I would’ve been strongly encouraged and advised by my vet to get another piggy, but my guinea pig is 5 years old, and typically guinea pigs live to about 5-7 years old and the vet said it’s a bit more common than I’d think that older piggies after their cage mate dies doesn’t necessarily need another one.
She told me of course it heavily depends on the piggy because every piggy deals with grief differently. If my piggy was obviously in distress, not eating, not pooping or peeing, not drinking water, acting heavily lethargic and disinterested in everything, then of course she’d have encouraged me to get another piggy because mine in that case would need another cage mate. However she told me because my piggy is eating, drinking water, pooping and peeing, playing with her toys, and acting like herself, she said it’s more than likely that my girl will be okay but of course if anything changes to let her know.
That gave me such a wave of relief and it wasn’t just her that I spoke with, I also spoke to another vet technician at her office and she had told me that she owned a single piggy who had a cage mate but had passed away and her piggy is still happy and healthy.
My vet told me that the internet generalizes a lot of the information about guinea pigs because yes they are social creatures and yes they do their best in large herds and yes if you are going to be getting a guinea pig you should purchase/adopt/rescue 2-3 guinea pigs so they aren’t lonely, but in the case of having had guinea pigs and then only being left with one piggy, it really all depends on your specific piggy and how they are behaving and handling their own grief.
It’s been about 6 days now since we lost our piggy and my lone girl is still doing fine. My vet’s advice was to give her extra TLC (tender love and care), hand feed her more, sit by the cage and speak with her, give her more cuddles, let her out more, buy her more toys, just overall do what I can and more to keep her feeling happy and less alone.
Of course, god forbid if anything changes in her behavior I’ll call her right away, but overall I did ask my vet specifically “is it possible after a piggy cage mate passes can the surviving pig live alone” and she said “yes.” Of course it depends on your specific piggy, obviously if they are displaying signs of distress then please consider getting another one, but otherwise yes it is possible.
Always speak to your exotic vet clinic. Talk to your trusted exotic vet doctor. Don’t make hasty decisions on your own. Don’t listen to the internet when information is generalized and they don’t know your specific guinea pig. I’m not a vet or healthcare professional, if you have any questions or concerns about your grieving guinea pig then please call your exotic vet and have an honest conversation about how you feel and your concerns.
I do not encourage people to purchase/adopt/rescue guinea pigs and keep them by themselves when they are babies or only a few years old but when it comes to having an older single guinea pig after their cage mate passes away it really is a case by case basis and getting another piggy really depends on how your specific piggy is doing.
I’m making this post because when my piggy passed away I was in heavy distress trying to find information and help on what I could do. My advice is to stop searching and instead speak to an exotic vet professional who has experience and medical knowledge in handling and caring for guinea pigs, because chances are they’ve been in this situation more often then you.
If you want another piggy after the death of their cage mate then please go a head! Get as many as you and your piggy would like definitely, but if you are a grieving piggy parent and are not ready to get another one and / or you just do not want to continue the piggy cycle, my advice is to take your vet’s advice and keep an eye on your piggy because if they’re doing okay, maybe they really are okay.
So recently I had lost my guinea pig and was now left with one. I had joined this forum out of desperation to seek advice on what to do to help my lone guinea pig through this hard time. I had scoured the internet, read article after article, watched countless videos on YouTube and even TikTok, and all of the information I was finding was telling me I had no choice, I had to get another guinea pig so my single one would be happy. As someone who does not want another guinea pig, it was very stressful to go through thinking that this was my only option.
Of course I love guinea pigs and I used to have a total of 4 piggies, and I love every one of them to bits, but now that I have my last one I’m just not ready to continue on caring for any more. Especially since my last piggy when she passed it was a very traumatic experience and I know that when my last one will have her time it’ll be so devastating, and just thinking about becoming attached to another one and having to continue this piggy cycle is just too much for me to handle.
I tried looking into fostering a guinea pig so at least my girl wouldn’t be lonely and there wouldn’t be any commitment, but of course that still would be hard in itself, and some people had even told me if I’m unwilling to get another guinea pig I should consider giving up my current one to someone who would keep her in a herd, and I understand people were trying to help me but that’s overall devastating to hear and of course I do not want to let go of my piggy.
I felt cornered, I felt helpless, I honestly felt selfish. I’ve read so much online that guinea pigs can go into a deep depression without any cage mate while dealing with grief, they can decline in health and stop eating, drinking and acting like themselves and then ultimately would die of loneliness. Of course I would never ever want that for not just my pig but any piggy out there. That’s terrifying.
But then I decided to call my vet and speak with her about all of my concerns. Always if you have a guinea pig of course go to an exotic veterinary clinic because they specialize in care for guinea pigs and other exotic animals such as ferrets, rabbits, hedgehogs, etc. unlike a regular dog and cat vet. I told her about my concerns and what I was finding on the internet and she told me that it is possible for all of what I read to happen but that it is also possible for a guinea pig after the death of their cage mate to live a happy life alone.
If my guinea pig was a baby, as in a couple of months to only a few years old, it would’ve been a completely different situation and I would’ve been strongly encouraged and advised by my vet to get another piggy, but my guinea pig is 5 years old, and typically guinea pigs live to about 5-7 years old and the vet said it’s a bit more common than I’d think that older piggies after their cage mate dies doesn’t necessarily need another one.
She told me of course it heavily depends on the piggy because every piggy deals with grief differently. If my piggy was obviously in distress, not eating, not pooping or peeing, not drinking water, acting heavily lethargic and disinterested in everything, then of course she’d have encouraged me to get another piggy because mine in that case would need another cage mate. However she told me because my piggy is eating, drinking water, pooping and peeing, playing with her toys, and acting like herself, she said it’s more than likely that my girl will be okay but of course if anything changes to let her know.
That gave me such a wave of relief and it wasn’t just her that I spoke with, I also spoke to another vet technician at her office and she had told me that she owned a single piggy who had a cage mate but had passed away and her piggy is still happy and healthy.
My vet told me that the internet generalizes a lot of the information about guinea pigs because yes they are social creatures and yes they do their best in large herds and yes if you are going to be getting a guinea pig you should purchase/adopt/rescue 2-3 guinea pigs so they aren’t lonely, but in the case of having had guinea pigs and then only being left with one piggy, it really all depends on your specific piggy and how they are behaving and handling their own grief.
It’s been about 6 days now since we lost our piggy and my lone girl is still doing fine. My vet’s advice was to give her extra TLC (tender love and care), hand feed her more, sit by the cage and speak with her, give her more cuddles, let her out more, buy her more toys, just overall do what I can and more to keep her feeling happy and less alone.
Of course, god forbid if anything changes in her behavior I’ll call her right away, but overall I did ask my vet specifically “is it possible after a piggy cage mate passes can the surviving pig live alone” and she said “yes.” Of course it depends on your specific piggy, obviously if they are displaying signs of distress then please consider getting another one, but otherwise yes it is possible.
Always speak to your exotic vet clinic. Talk to your trusted exotic vet doctor. Don’t make hasty decisions on your own. Don’t listen to the internet when information is generalized and they don’t know your specific guinea pig. I’m not a vet or healthcare professional, if you have any questions or concerns about your grieving guinea pig then please call your exotic vet and have an honest conversation about how you feel and your concerns.
I do not encourage people to purchase/adopt/rescue guinea pigs and keep them by themselves when they are babies or only a few years old but when it comes to having an older single guinea pig after their cage mate passes away it really is a case by case basis and getting another piggy really depends on how your specific piggy is doing.
I’m making this post because when my piggy passed away I was in heavy distress trying to find information and help on what I could do. My advice is to stop searching and instead speak to an exotic vet professional who has experience and medical knowledge in handling and caring for guinea pigs, because chances are they’ve been in this situation more often then you.
If you want another piggy after the death of their cage mate then please go a head! Get as many as you and your piggy would like definitely, but if you are a grieving piggy parent and are not ready to get another one and / or you just do not want to continue the piggy cycle, my advice is to take your vet’s advice and keep an eye on your piggy because if they’re doing okay, maybe they really are okay.
It will depend on her age at the time on what final decision I make for her though. If she’s really elderly, I’ll keep her alone as some older sows are set in their ways and choose to prefer their own company or I’ll see if I can foster a guinea pig.
We’re over the moon though. 
x
