What's The Average Lifespan?

[Rochester Piggy]

My boyfriend took Cali to the vet a week ago for a checkup. Today she was sleeping in a really cute position, and we were both taking photos of her and talking about her. My boyfriend said he'd forgotten to tell me that the vet told him the lifespan of a pig is 3 to 5 years! Every single thing I read says 5 to 8 years. Which one is correct?

 

[Jesse's pigs]

For guinea pigs I say 5 - 7 years though yes they can live longer or of course sadly sometimes shorter. And rabbits I say 7-10 though again they can live longer or sometimes shorter.

 

[MJG]

My old girl lived till 9! Sometimes you get lucky

 

[Guineapigfeet]

It varies as with humans and will partly depend if you end up with one with good or 'poor' genes. I've had four pass so far and the average age of those four was 5. One was 2 and a bit (she had a uterus infection and didn't make it :-( ) next was 4 and a bit, then 8 and some months and 6 and some months.
I'm pretty sure my cousin got one of her boys into double digits but on the flip side she had one that never seemed to grow and died before his first birthday :-(

Try not to worry (easier said than done, I know) about when they might pass and enjoy what time you do have. They are not thinking about their mortality

 

[TAN]

I have lost 3 at around 5 (which seems to be the average age ) - and one at 6 - I currently have a very robust sow of 6 1/2 yrs and an old sow of 7 1/2 yrs who for the last 6 months I have been gingerly looking inside her house every morning to see if she is still with me - she is !

 

[rome_italy]

average life... it is like talking of surviving rates after a cancer diagnosis (I am one of those survivors). It depends on too many factors, also our DNA. Piggies often come to the world after a consanguineous mating and this is not a good start; moreover they hide symptoms therefore their life depends also on the skills of owner and vet. The average life is longer now also because their diet has been changed in these last years; vets have understood that grains and sugars (flours) are not appropriate for them. But there are still a lot of owners who feed pigs in a wrong (and oldfashioned) way, this is what my vet says. This vet's wife has two very old piggies (8 and almost 9!), of course living with a piggie savvy owner is a great luck for these two pigs, but I am sure their long life depends also on their DNA and their (strict!) diet they have been following since the birth. We cannot change their DNA, but we can do a lot. If @TAN's SIX piggies reached that gorgeous and enviable age cannot be only for their good DNA, but also for their breeding, the food and the healhty lifestyle found into that home.

 

[Janice C]

average life... it is like talking of surviving rates after a cancer diagnosis (I am one of those survivors). It depends on too many factors, also our DNA. Piggies often come to the world after a consanguineous mating and this is not a good start; moreover they hide symptoms therefore their life depends also on the skills of owner and vet. The average life is longer now also because their diet has been changed in these last years; vets have understood that grains and sugars (flours) are not appropriate for them. But there are still a lot of owners who feed pigs in a wrong (and oldfashioned) way, this is what my vet says. This vet's wife has two very old piggies (8 and almost 9!), of course living with a piggie savvy owner is a great luck for these two pigs, but I am sure their long life depends also on their DNA and their (strict!) diet they have been following since the birth. We cannot change their DNA, but we can do a lot. If @TAN's SIX piggies reached that gorgeous and enviable age cannot be only for their good DNA, but also for their breeding, the food and the healhty lifestyle found into that home.

So many good points in your Post!
I have found that I've lost so many around 5 and been so upset as I know I do my very best for them all. Your point about changes in their diet in recent years May now mean our piggies have a good chance of a longer life span!
Again, mine are all Rescue piggies so have less chance of having a good start in their lives, but at least being rescued, gives them Hope and Love.
Janice Piggy owner of 8 - 1 new rescue as of yesterday!

 

[Freela]

The 'average' is, from everything I've heard, between 5 and 7 years. Of course, you have to factor in the fact that this mathematically includes both pigs who die very young and also pigs who live to be 8, 9, or 10 years old. I think to a certain extent it's going to be genetic, to a certain extent lifestyle factors, and of course luck factors in as well.
For what it's worth, both of my pigs that lived to old age lived to be between 6 and 7 years old (Linney was about 6 years and 3 months, Sundae was only a couple of months shy of 7.) I also had one who sadly passed away before two, but there were a lot of mitigating factors there (I was a new owner, the vet I had at the time did not have as much guinea pig experience as he said he did, and she might well have survived with better vet care.)