How Many Teeth Do Guinea Pigs Have?

[Emily F.]

LoL, How many teeth do guinea pigs have? Wierd question, I know. But my dad and I are wondering.

 

[Josephine]

No one replied? 20: 4 incisors, 4 premolars, and 12 molars.

 

[ILovePiggies]

~lol that is a funny question! I thought they had six , silly me =P~ ~c~

 

[aqh88]

I didn't know guinea pigs had premolars.. I wonder if licorice would mind opening his mouth for me. Do they loose baby teeth at all? I know their teeth continue to get long all their life but so do horses teeth and they loose all their beginning teeth throughout the first 5yrs of their life.

 

[Josephine]

Nope. They continually grow, so they don't have any distinct "sets" of teeth. They don't normally lose them, just grind them down. Loss is only through problems (e.g. trauma). I would think cavies grow through their initial teeth fairly soon--certainly by the six month mark, if I was assuming stuff, but you'd have to ask a veterinary dentist to be sure.

 

[mncavylover]

Here is a quote from https://guinealynx.info/teeth.html:

"Guinea pigs have 20 teeth: a pair of upper and lower incisors, no canines (instead, a gap called the diastema), a pair of upper and lower premolars, and 3 pairs of upper and lower molars. These teeth are "open rooted" and grow continuously. In a healthy guinea pig, the biting, chewing and grinding of food (especially hays, grasses, and abrasive foods) will normally keep the teeth at the proper length -- a length which varies somewhat from one guinea pig to another."

 

[Emily F.]

Thanks everyone!

 

[Treen]

I didn't know guinea pigs had premolars.. I wonder if licorice would mind opening his mouth for me.

I bet he certainly would mind! You can't see these teeth without special equipment (either to separate the jaws and cheeks, or a special camera on a tube called an otoscope) because they're set so far back and are also hidden by their cheeks - the buccal fat pads, which allow them to chew food without ingesting it. Definitely one to leave to the experts!