Guinea Pig Health Checks: Weight, Teeth and Coat
A five-minute weekly check that catches almost everything before it becomes serious.
Guinea pigs are prey animals and hide illness until they cannot any more. A weekly routine is how you find problems while they are still easy to treat.
Weigh every week
Kitchen scales, same day each week, and write it down. A drop of more than 50 g, or 5% of body weight, is the earliest reliable warning sign you will get — usually dental disease.
Check the mouth
Front teeth should meet evenly and be roughly the same length. Drooling, a wet chin, dropping food or eating only soft items points to overgrown back teeth, which need a vet with proper dental equipment.
Run your hands over
- Coat: bald patches, scurf, crusting on the ears or scratching all suggest mites or fungal infection.
- Feet: check for sores on the soles — bumblefoot starts with hard flooring or damp bedding.
- Bottom: should be clean and dry. Older boars often need help clearing the anal sac.
- Eyes and nose: clear, no discharge or crustiness.
Know the red flags
Not eating for 12 hours, laboured breathing, or a guinea pig sitting hunched in a corner all mean a same-day vet visit. Guinea pigs deteriorate fast.
