As our beloved guinea pigs are living longer lives in captivity—often reaching 5 to 8 years of age—recognising and managing health concerns in their senior years has never been more important. In the recent webinar, "Health Concerns in Geriatric Guinea Pigs," veterinary expert Emma Keeble took a deep dive into the most common issues faced by ageing guinea pigs and offered practical advice for veterinary professionals and owners alike.

Understanding Geriatric Life Stages

Guinea pigs are considered geriatric from around three years old. At this life stage, they are particularly prone to a range of health challenges. Among the most common conditions discussed were:

• Dental disease: Often top of the list, dental problems can present with facial abscesses, excessive salivation, and tear duct involvement.

• Kidney disease: Weight loss, reduced appetite, and changes in urinalysis parameters often signal underlying renal concerns.

• Cystitis and urinary tract infections: Regular urinalysis is crucial for early detection and management.

• Cystic ovarian disease: Especially in older females, often resulting in hormonal imbalances and visible changes such as alopecia and hyperkeratosis.

• Dilated cardiomyopathy: Highlighted as another serious but sometimes overlooked condition.

• Osteoarthritis and degenerative joint disease: Mobility challenges and pain were noted to significantly impact quality of life.

Diagnosing and Managing Conditions

The speaker stressed the importance of thorough clinical examination and diagnostic tools, such as dental charts, ultrasound for renal assessment, and careful urinalysis.

In terms of dietary management, boosting fibre intake and reducing pellet-based feeds were highlighted as simple but effective strategies. Caution was advised regarding the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs) in geriatric patients without first assessing renal function.

Pain and gut stasis were underlined as frequent complications, necessitating careful monitoring and prompt intervention.

Q&A

The audience had excellent questions during the webinar. Here’s a summary of the Q&A session:

• Q: What do you find is the best GA protocol for dentistry?

  • A: For rabbits we are currently pre-medicating with an opioid analgesic (usually buprenorphine SC at 0.03mg/kg) and an IM injection of dexmedetomidine (0.025mg/kg) combined with ketamine (5mg/kg). Following placement of an IV catheter induction is with 0.5-2mg/kg IV alfaxalone (low dose given first and top ups if required for intubation). The alpha-2 can be reversed with atipamezole 0.25mg/kg IV or IM on recovery

• Q: If bloods aren’t an option for the client, then what is your go-to analgesia in piggies if NSAIDs aren’t an option?

  • A: If looking for oral pain relief I would use tramadol at 5mg/kg PO BID, if injectable then buprenorphine SC or IV at 0.03-0.05mg/kg q6-8h

• Q: Of the numerous available papers with varying UPC values, what range does the speaker tend prefer?

  • A: I tend to use the Cernochova, 2020 reference range of 0.8+/-0.1

• Q: Incr water intake by replacing hay with fresh grass etc?

  • A: I would always include hay as a main stay of the diet, but adding in fresh food as well, particularly if wetted will help increase water intake for sure

• Q: No mention of mite infestation which is regularly seen in practice. any information on therapy ?

  • A: Unfortunately there wasn't time to cover this as well! I tend to use ivermectin 200-400 mg/kg SC every 10 days for three doses, or selamectin 15mg/kg topical single dose. All in-contact animals should be treated and the housing thoroughly cleaned, as the mite can survive for some time off the host. Increase vitamin C as well!

• Q: Hi have you any recommendations on the management of macrodontia?

  • A: Yes - sometimes this required burring to realign the occlusal surface into wear, but in some cases these teeth may have to be removed. Here's a recent useful reference: Ignaszak-Dziech, J., Jekl, V., & Piasecki, T. (2025). Ventral transorbital apicoectomy of the maxillary second and third molar teeth in guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus): 26 cases.

• Q: Do you think oral paracetamol works in piggies?

  • A: Anecdotally yes I do - we use a 10mg/kg PO BID dose!

• Q: How much compliance do you get for owner filling in long & detailed form every day...?

  • A: Feedback from our owner's is that they really appreciate the QOL forms - once you get used to the form it’s a very quick process and you are only adding a numerical score, so it is relatively quick and easy!

• Q: Can guinea pigs get cataract due to diabetes mellitus and if so, can the cataract be reversible?

  • A: Yes guinea pigs can get Diabetic cataracts, I haven't seen one for a long time though. I don't think they are reversible however unfortunately.

• Q: For euthanasia, we do not have seveflrane but isoflurone would you still induce in a chamber?

  • A: Yes you can induce with isoflurane in a chamber. It is slightly more irritant to the mucus membranes and more likely to result in breath holding so I would increase the cncentration very gradually and pre-oxygenate first.

• Q: Great talk! What is the best way to collect free catch urine sample in guinea pig? Also how short to trim incisors in guineas?

  • A: We usually try and express the bladder in the consultation room over a sterile kidney dish. If that doesn't work then owners can place the guinea pig in a plastic carrier for an hour or so and see if they urinate in that. Important to collect the sample quickly so there is no faecal contamination. You can also use an upside down incontinence pad on the floor of the pen to catch the sample. Incisors can be trimmed too short - never expose the pulp cavity else you will get pulp infections. If they are overgrown try and trim back to a normal length and chisel shape, but watch the centre of the occlusal surface of the tooth carefully - nearing the pulp cavity will start to show a small central dot. Stop immediately if you see this!

• Q: Wonderful presentation thank you. Really filling a gap. Mentioned diet may lead to pea eye, I wondered what diet?

  • A: Thank you for you lovely feedback. High fat diets have been associated with this condition, but also obesity, so maing sure guinea pig is not over fed pellets is important!

• Q: What are your experience with low dose ketamine injections, amitriptyline, accupuncture, cartrophen injections and different kinds of supplements (joint support, omega 3&6 oils, CBD oil) for guinea pigs with OA.

  • A: Hi. Great question. I did a literature review recently on this and really the only evidence of anything that works is glucosamine 200mg PO SID (see Keeble, E. (2021). Osteoarthritis in pet guinea pigs: an update on diagnosis, treatment and management. Companion Animal, 26(6), 100-106.)

• Q: For oesteoarthritic cases, you mentioned the use of Physiotherapy what sort of this would this involve - would this be specialised or could general practice RVNs advise on this?

  • A: Hi - we are very lucky and have physios in the hospital I work in who we can refer a case to. They tend to make an individual assessment and come up with a plan for physio exercises in our OA cases. Pulsed low-intensity ultrasound treatment for osteoarthritis has been described for both prevention and treatment of this condition in guinea pigs (Gurkan et al, 2010).

• Q: What physiotherapy would you recommend? Any tips for bonding a grieving pig ?

  • A: We have in house physios we refer each case to, they come up with an individual treatment plan for each animal so it varies! Pulsed low-intensity ultrasound treatment for osteoarthritis has been described for both prevention and treatment of this condition in guinea pigs (Gurkan et al, 2010). Bonding in guinea pigs seems more straightforward than rabbits - I think the most important thing is to do it gradually and in a safe place always with supervision.

• Q: Is it possible to ask Emma for practical tips for blood sampling g pig .vol required .approp tubes and which labs might be more used to handling g .pig blood samples many thanks

  • A:We use Pinmore animal laboratories in the UK. They are amazingly helpful and seem to be able to cope with very small blood volumes. If only a small amount obtained put into a 0.5ml hep tube and do a fesh blood smear as well. As a general guide it's safe to take 0.5-0.7ml per 100g body weight.

• Q: Any recommended books for GP care and medical,surgical conditions?

  • A: Theres a new BSAVA guinea pig Manual due out soon which should be good. I use ferrets, rabbits and rodents by Carpenter and Quesenberry a lot.

• Q: Is there an upper age limit for the removal of Mammary Gland Tumors?

  • A: I think it depends on the individual animal, whether they have other comorbidities, their helath status and the owner's dedication to nursing post-operatively. It needs careful discussion with theowner as to the pros and cons and potential risks involved. I would also do an FNA beforehand in case malignant.

• Q: Hi, thank you for the informative webinar. Have you come across the use of tumeric powder for joint disease in guinea pigs? (Have an owne who sprinkles it on the hay) Guinea pig is also on metacam..

  • A: Yes - but I am not aware of any scientific evidence that this is of benefit. I reviewed suplpements in this paper which might be of interest: Keeble, E. (2021). Osteoarthritis in pet guinea pigs: an update on diagnosis, treatment and management. Companion Animal, 26(6), 100-106. Glucosamine is the only one that shows real evidence of being beneficial

• Q: Are there any at home health checks you would recommend to spot health conditions earlier - particularly kidney, thyroid diseases.

  • A: Yes - I would weigh the animal weekly and keep a record of this - if the body weight is slowly declinig over time, this would be cause for a vet check in case it is due to earl kidney disease and protein loss through the urinary tract. Weight loss is also seen with thyroid disease, so I think thisnis te best thing you can advise owners to do. Great question!

Final Thoughts

This webinar offered an invaluable overview of the complexities involved in caring for geriatric guinea pigs. With longer life expectancies comes a responsibility to recognise and manage age-related health concerns effectively. Early detection, dietary management, and a compassionate approach to care are critical to ensuring these delightful pets enjoy a high quality of life in their golden years.