Can Guinea Pigs Live Alone?

Guinea pigs are small, docile and harmless rodents. Their friendliness and the relative ease of taking care of them endears guinea pigs to humans. They are curious creatures who are fond of exploring their environment.

Just like human beings, guinea pigs are social animals who thrive on interaction with their fellow guinea pigs. Studies have shown that social animals need interaction with other animals in order to live an healthy and long life. Hence, it is not good for guinea pigs to live alone.

Can guinea pigs die of loneliness?

Just imagine a human being living alone all his life without interaction from any other person, can guinea pigs live alone too? Yeah, you guessed right, loneliness and depression would set in. Same thing applies to a guinea pig,

The same way human beings get lonely also guinea pigs get lonely. A guinea pig may refuse to eat and rather spend most of the time sleeping. It may become lethargic and can even begin to exhibit aggressive tendencies. The best thing is to get another one so that your guinea pig is not left alone and becomes a solitary guinea pig.

Also when a male guinea pig finds its female mate, they stay together and do everything together. Being a social animal, guinea pigs need companion. Mating is one of the ways they do this.

Is it okay to have just one guinea pig?

Although, a guinea pig can live alone, it is advisable not to have a single guinea pig as it can adversely affect the guinea pig. In the bushes and jungle, guinea pigs have families which form their social life. Guinea pigs generally move in herds, they are not meant to live alone. Hence, it’s advisable to make sure you have additional one or two guinea pigs around to keep your guinea pig happy.

Guinea pigs are social animals who thrive when they are with other guinea pigs rather than being alone, make sure your guinea pig doesn’t feel or be alone else it can adversely affect it’s health. Getting another guinea pig as cage mate may liven up your guinea pig and make your guinea pig happy.

Should guinea pigs live in pairs?/ benefits of Companionship to a Guinea Pig

It is important for guinea pigs to live in pairs. When guinea pigs are able to socialize and interact with other guinea pigs, it is extremely beneficial to their health, some of these benefits includes:

Pigs’ socialization helps to prevent loneliness

Loneliness is known to cause stress and depression. When guinea pigs socialize with other guinea pigs, they are free from loneliness and would be happy and active.

This is very beneficial to the health of your guinea pigs as stress and depression cause diseases and other infections.

Safety Purposes

Guinea pigs are harmless creatures who are favorite prey for many predators. They are generally docile and don’t exhibit any aggressive behavior. While under attack, they stay still while hoping that they don’t get noticed by the attacker. When this proves futile, instead of retaliating, they rather try to flee. When all these has failed and they are unable to flee would they attempt self defense.

Thus, this is a major reason why guinea pigs move about in herds. Companionship gives them a sense of safety, they feel safer when they are not alone. Because of their small size and their docile nature, being in groups give them a sense of safety against predators.

Adequate Exercise

Guinea pigs require exercise on a daily level in order to keep healthy, this also helps them from being lethargic and boring. When you have like two to three guinea pigs, they will follow and play with each other in their cage, they would feel more at home and be able to express themselves better. When your guinea pig is solitary, it would prefer to sleep most of the time as opposed to when it has a companion.

But before you get guinea pigs together, make sure they get along because guinea pigs need to get along with one another else there may be fights between them which is not good. But, when they get along with one another, the two make good and are able to live together.

How to Properly Take Care of a Solitary Guinea Pig?

Although the best thing is for a guinea pig to not be solitary, it can survive in a solitary environment if you are able to properly take care and pay a lot of attention to it.

Spend a lot of time with the guinea pig

Since it is a single guinea pig, you have to fill in the void, you have to give it a lot of attention. You can interact with your guinea pig even if you don’t understand the sounds it makes.

Hearing your voice would make it recognize your voice, make it more familiar and know you better. You can also sing to your guinea pig, you should visit it’s cage multiple times a day as it needs company since it has no other companion. When it becomes familiar with you, it would light up and be happy to see you.

Take it out of its cage to play

You should allow your guinea pig to come outside of its cage sometimes since it has no other companion to socialize with. Being confined all day with no one to interact with can make it pretty lonely which is not good for your guinea pig. Taking your guinea pig outside its cage particularly to familiar places is good for your guinea pig as it will liven its mood and help it socialize better.

FAQs

Can a guinea pig survive alone after losing its companion?

Yes, it is a difficult moment for guinea pigs, however, with proper care and attention, guinea pigs can survive and get better. Taking adequate care of your guinea pig and paying quality attention would help get rid of the loneliness and depression that comes with its loss.

How guinea pigs behave when they are lonely?

When guinea pigs are lonely, they sleep most of the time. They get lethargic and inactive. They also lose their appetite and would prefer not to eat. This can cause health problems to your guinea pig as a guinea pig is an animal that needs company.

Is it ok to have one guinea pig?

It is okay to have one guinea pig, However for the best interests of the guinea pig, it is advisable to have more than one guinea pig so as to help it socialise. However, if you are able to fill the void of its companion, it is Okay for you to have a single pig.

How to keep a single guinea pig happy?

You have to pay a lot of attention to a single guinea pig in order to keep it happy. Since it has no companion, you should visit it multiple times daily so that it will not get lonely. Guinea pigs need this as guinea pigs are animals that need company.

Conclusion

Guinea pigs are very cute pets who can keep your company, however, they may also require your company when you only have one guinea pig. Guinea pigs are animals who need company in order to thrive, a single guinea pig may find it difficult to get along unlike when a guinea pig live with a cage mate.

You should also attempt to take your guinea pig out of its cage, when it leaves it cage, it is able to get social with you and it is good for your guinea pig. Taking care of your guinea pig would help it live a healthy and happy life.

Author Profile

Gabriel Tackett

Double major in Engineering and Geology at the University of Minnesota. Experienced shooter & hunter for over 15 years. Certified NRA officer for over 10 years working as a writer at Ballachy.com .

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Can guinea pigs live alone?

Table of Contents

Can guinea pigs die of loneliness?

Is it okay to have just one guinea pig?

Should guinea pigs live in pairs?/ benefits of Companionship to a Guinea Pig