Guinea pig not growing!

[Lucyscavies]

I’ve been wondering about this ever since I got my boars but didn’t know whether to ask about it or not in case it’s a stupid question Anyway I’ve had my boys for a year now and I’ve had no health issues so far but I can’t help but wonder why Scrappy is much smaller than his brother Scooby who is huge! I’ve heard smaller pigs can develop heart issues so I’m worried sick about him now. Why is he much smaller when they both eat the same amount well Scrappy eats more I would say yet he’s the small one? Does anyone else have piggie siblings like this?
This a picture of Scrappy (the one near the food bowl)

 

[Wiebke]

I’ve been wondering about this ever since I got my boars but didn’t know whether to ask about it or not in case it’s a stupid question Anyway I’ve had my boys for a year now and I’ve had no health issues so far but I can’t help but wonder why Scrappy is much smaller than his brother Scooby who is huge! I’ve heard smaller pigs can develop heart issues so I’m worried sick about him now. Why is he much smaller when they both eat the same amount well Scrappy eats more I would say yet he’s the small one? Does anyone else have piggie siblings like this?
This a picture of Scrappy (the one near the food bowl)
View attachment 121056

Hi!

What weights are your brothers?

Siblings are often different sizes; the most extreme case were my sisters Nerys and Nia; they were already 150g difference when I adopted them at 10 months old. This extended to 500g at the peak of their lives. 1000g energetic Nia was the leader of a large group of sows right underneat a dominant neutered boar; her much more sedentary sister Nerys who was born with a twisted thigh bone and developed arthritis in her ankles early on grew to an impressive 1500g as she never let a calorie escape she could get hold of. Nia lived to nearly her 6th birthday and Nerys past her her 8th birthday.

100-200g weight difference are very normal as far as I can see from my own twins and triplets. It doesn't have any influence on life expectancy unless one of them carries a genetic defect.
I have a sister pair from a very bad background that always scraped around the normal adult bottom weight (800-900g). Heulwen passed aways in the day around her computed 8th birthday in July while her sister Hedydd from the following litter is only a month away from her own 8th birthday now.
Of my 5 year old triplet sisters (where the weight difference has been 200g between the largest and the smallest), it was actually the largest, Myfina, who died from a blockage over Christmas 2017. The other two sisters are still there. My other two sister pairs are 3 and 2 years respectively with the larger sister usually the more dominant.

If you have worries that the larger and more dominant sibling is eating more (especially the calorific pellets and veg), then please sprinkle feed or feed in separate bowls and only in portions that can be eaten in one go. Please keep in mind that ca. 50g of veg and 1 tablespoon of pellets are more in the way of a daily treat in the hay based diet and not the mainstay of it.

Weight - Monitoring and Management
Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets

 

[Lucyscavies]

Thank you so much. I’ve never actually weighed them as I’ve always assumed they aren’t under or overweight but I will do it this week. How will I know if he hasn’t got a genetic defect? I mean he seems happy and healthy so I’m hoping it is just that’s he is smaller.

 

[Wiebke]

Thank you so much. I’ve never actually weighed them as I’ve always assumed they aren’t under or overweight but I will do it this week. How will I know if he hasn’t got a genetic defect? I mean he seems happy and healthy so I’m hoping it is just that’s he is smaller.

You will usually only when there is a problem; the same as in most humans.

How old are your boys? The initial fast growth phase is over by 4-6 months; from then on in, piggies grow more in spurts, similar to human children.

 

[Lucyscavies]

They are one years old

 

[Wiebke]

They are one years old

Growth stops normally between 12-15 months; so nothing to worry about!

 

[Lucyscavies]

Thank you, it’s just the size difference that was worrying me. But I’m not as worried now

 

[Merab]

The piggies are gorgeous and @Wiebke is right in her reassurance about weight difference.
My Jemimah is a big chunky teddy whose weight is usually around the 1300g mark. Her sister was the same. My other 2 sows are around the 1100g mark.
They all have the same food and no pig is deprived.

Like humans - some are naturally slim and some of us aren’t

 

[VickiA]

My experience is that even piggies from the same litter can vary in size and weight. Some are constitutionally small and others are large. Nothing to worry about unless there are any other issues such as weight loss etc.

 

[PigglePuggle]

It would be good if you start weighing them regularly, but we have 2 cousins who were born in the same hutch to sister mums just 1 week apart- Piggle is now our heaviest adult at 1200g and her cousin Puggle is the smallest at 960g. They've lived together and eaten the same stuff their whole lives, and Puggle is just small- at 11/12 weeks old it was just a 30g difference but at times there has been 300g difference in weights!

 

[Lucyscavies]

Thank you! I’m going to weigh them as soon as I can

 

[Freela]

There are definitely a wide range of normal pigs. I've had some huge ones and some petite ones (right now one of each- Leela is a tiny girl and Hadley is pretty hefty.) I wouldn't worry too much, but it's always a good practice to weigh your pigs regularly. There actual weights relative to one another don't mean that much, but a downward trend is an early indicator of problems that helps you stay on top of things early so it's always a good idea!