Guinea pigs are among the most popular small pets globally but are frequently kept in conditions that fail to meet their social, spatial, and dietary needs, causing preventable welfare compromise.
Guinea pigs kept in small cages without companions and fed pelleted diets without adequate hay experience dental disease, vitamin deficiencies, and psychological distress from isolation and boredom. These are highly preventable welfare problems given well-established husbandry knowledge. The mismatch between common keeping practices and guinea pig welfare needs affects millions of animals kept as starter pets.