I cried when our first guinea pig passed away. We still have two more and I asked myself, ”Do guinea pigs cry?” Were they grieving too?
What happened to us may not have happened to you, but we would love to share our story in this article. Do guinea pigs make a crying sound? What are some reasons why a guinea pig would cry?
If you have a moment to spare, kindly check out our story as we answer the question, “Do guinea pigs cry?”
Do Guinea Pigs Cry?
Guinea pigs have tear ducts, but don’t use them out of emotional distress. They cry out vocally for the following 7 reasons:
- attention
- distress
- out of hunger
- a desire to be left alone
- anger
- fear
- pain
You can look closer into why your guinea pig is crying. See if it is out of hunger first. Responding right away to a crying sound that is not out of pain, may encourage your guinea pig to cry out more often anytime they want attention.
Wait a moment when you hear high-pitched moaning sounds. Do not rush right away, but look from afar to see if anything is urgently wrong.
Approach your guinea pig slowly and respond with loving kindness and care for the situation at hand. A visit to the vet is likely if your guinea pig is crying out of pain.
How Do I Tell if My Guinea Pig Is Crying?
First of all, I would like to say that my guinea pigs were not physically crying when we one of their family members passed away. We cried out of our own emotions, but they didn’t.
This doesn’t mean that guinea pigs do not cry however. There are other instances when we hear whining sounds or squeaks that sound like high pitched moans. I have attributed my guinea pigs crying sounds to when they feel bothered or disturbed.
Sometimes one of them is too bossy, such as nudging the other when they are having a nap. I watch them from afar and see if they can handle their own problems. If I react to soon, the guinea pig who is making crying sounds may depend on me too much to take care of her own minor disputes.
Physical tears out of my guinea pigs’ eyes are usually present when they are trying to moisten their eyes and clean out any debris that could be inside. Guinea pigs have tear ducts, but they are not crying physically out of emotional distress. They vocalize it instead.
Why Is My Guinea Pig Crying?
Are you hearing the crying or seeing it? The two are very different from each other. If you are hearing loud noises, screaming, squeaking or high-pitched moans, then your guinea pig might be experiencing the following issues:
- Pain
- Hunger
- Fear
- Distress
What happened to me once was that I noticed one of my guinea pigs tearing up very often. She wasn’t uncomfortable by her surroundings, but I wanted to find out if there was a medical reason why this wqs happening.
Her tears were not emotional. It turns out the vet said to us that she had allergies. We changed her bedding to make sure it was dust free, kiln-dried pine shavings instead of the usual shredded paper that we used.
Her tears stopped. Guinea pigs also may shed physical tears when they have dental problems, nail clipping, illness or infection. Otherwise, they are doing so to clear their eyes to keep them moist.
What Sounds Do Sad Guinea Pigs Make?
Our guinea pigs vocalize their unhappiness at times. They might be uncomfortable with their environment or suffering internally. Let’s find out some of the noises that guinea pigs can make when they are uncomfortable or sad:
- hissing
- growling
- whining
- teeth chattering
- high-pitched moaning
- screaming
In our opinion, based on our interactions and experiences with our little group of guinea pigs, we feel that teeth chattering is the most common noise that exemplifies sadness or discomfort.
We noticed that one guinea pig is bothering, nudging or lightly bullying another. He may have taken away her chew toy or piece of hay right out of her mouth.
Sometimes we intercept, remove or relocate the aggressor and this is how she stops chattering her teeth and calms down. We return them back to each other very soon because they don’t really hold grudges that long. All is well once again.
Do Guinea Pigs Cry for Attention?
Sure they do. The more you respond to a guinea pig crying for attention, the more they will do it. You are only encouraging it if you rush over to your guinea pig and try to find out what’s wrong every time.
A guinea pig is intelligent enough to realize they can cry for your attention to get what they want right away. This is a form of effective communication. The better you know your guinea pig, the more you’ll realize that the crying sounds you are hearing are not a response to any pain or discomfort.
They are crying sometimes for you to come over and simply be there. Sometimes a guinea pig doesn’t want to handle a minor dispute with a cage mate or during play time together in the playpen. Another guinea pig may have stolen her piece of hay or a chew toy.
They cry out for you to come and solve this problem for them. When this happened to me, I used to respond right away and be there for my guinea pigs. I slowly realized that, the less I intervene, the more I promote my guinea pigs to handle their own problems.
Slowly but surely, the crying sounds for merely capturing my attention have subsided. Thank goodness for that!
Is My Guinea Pig Crying Out of Pain?
If your guinea pig is in pain, you will most likely hear some noises from:
- teeth chattering
- hissing
- growling
- screeching
- high pitch moaning
- Make sure that your guinea pig is able to move without discomfort.
- Check to see if the limbs or not hurt, swollen or infected.
- If you find any physical abnormalities on the body of your guinea pig, you now have a urgent reason to visit the vet.
Sometimes guinea pigs cry out of pain due to internal problems such as:
- infections
- bladder stones
- allergies
- dental issues
Before you rush to the vet right away, see if this crying subsides and make sure that your guinea pig is still continuing to interact, eat, urinate and defecate as usual. If not, your guinea pig could be in pain.
Do Guinea Pigs Have Tear Ducts?
I never thought guinea pigs can actually drop tears until I finally got my first one.
- These tear ducts are present and help them to groom themselves.
- Their eyes can get moist as they discharge white milky fluids or transparent fluids.
If a guinea pig has any debris caught in their eyes, the tear ducts can respond by moistening the area to allow for any obstructions to be remove naturally.
There is no scientific evidence to suggest that a guinea pig would actually shed tears physically out of an emotion like sadness or even pain.
Weepy eyes in guinea pigs who are excessively discharging fluids might also need the attention of a veterinarian.
Is My Guinea Pig Crying Out of Hunger?
More often than not, your guinea pig is not crying out of hunger. The noise is your hearing is usually out of distress or a call for attention.
There are possibilities that your guinea pig is crying out because they desire different kinds of food. Maybe you are not providing enough fresh vegetables.
A small cup of fresh vegetables each day might help your guinea pig who is bored of eating a pile of hay everyday. Maintain a constant supply of hay, but also provide various vegetables to help keep their bellies full.
A guinea pig who is not being fed an adequate diet could start screeching, squealing or crying out of hunger.
Can Guinea Pigs Cry Out of Thirst?
Yes. Sometimes you need to check the nozzle in their bottle to see if it’s blocked. They may not be able to get the water through the bottle and this could lead to dehydration as well.
Do Guinea Pigs Cry When They Are Separated From Each Other?
Since our guinea pigs have developed a social bond with each other, removing one causes some distress. This happened when one of our guinea pigs had a condition known as bladder stones. We had to take her to the vet.
One of us stayed home and noticed that the other guinea pigs felt a little disturbed. Normally they don’t cry out loud, but one of them was expressing a high-pitch moan while the other was chattering his teeth.
These guinea pigs were a trio. When we brought back our guinea pig who recovered from bladder stones the three of them were inseparable and happy once again.
Thank you for visiting PocketPetCentral.com for the best information to help you enjoy the life of your pocket pet companion in a fun, safe & healthy way.
