housing together

Question
Hi,
I have a neutered male who is 2 years old and a female who is 1 year old, they both came from a rescue centre where we put them together about 4 months ago. I work at a rescue centre for rabbits and she has just had a guinea pig come in, she is 7 years old and has just lost her sister who she had lived with all her life. she doesn't seem very depressed and is eating, is very lively, sweet natured and loves her cuddles but we would like her to have company for her remaining days. Do you think she or my two would mind if we put them together, would my two be very upset if she died a few weeks later? I hope you can help.

Answer
Hello --

I would say it's absolutely fine to put them in the same cage, providing two things: 1) Have the new animal checked by a vet before you put her in.  If she was housed with an animal that died, it's simply a safety precaution. 2) Make sure the cage you're going to house the three of them in has at least 1 1/2 sq. feet per guinea pig -- preferably more.

Incidentally, seven years isn't incredibly old for a guinea pig.  It's at the top of the "average" life span for house pets, but it's certainly not unheard of to have an animal live 9 or more years.  If she seems healthy and the vet says she's healthy, I wouldn't worry too much about her kicking the bucket any time soon.

Hope this answers all your questions, please feel free to write if you have any more or if you need clarification on anything I've said today.  Good luck!

Lorena