Guinea pigs are farmed as a traditional food source in South America and increasingly worldwide, raising welfare questions about the conditions in which these social, sensitive animals are kept.
Farmed guinea pigs face welfare challenges that vary significantly between traditional and commercial systems. Traditional home-based farming, while still ultimately lethal, often allows guinea pigs relatively normal social structures and environmental enrichment. Commercial intensive farming confines them in smaller spaces at higher densities with less environmental complexity. As a farmed species in the international market, guinea pigs receive minimal regulatory welfare protection compared to other livestock. Their high social needs and stress sensitivity make welfare provisions particularly important.