Where Do Guinea Pigs Come from?

Guinea pigs, also called cavies, are stout little rodents from various regions of South America. The best known of this family is the domesticated guinea pig (Cavia porcellus) that is commonly kept as a pet, and is broken down into approximately 13 breeds.

Do guinea pigs exist in the wild?

Are there still wild guinea pigs, you know, in the WILD? The guinea pig nuzzling in your elbow still has wild cousins in South America, specifically in Argentina, Uruguay, and Brazil. For example, the montane guinea pig (Cavia tschudii) lives in the South American Andes mountains and can grow up to 9.7 inches long.

Where do guinea pigs actually come from?

Originally from South America, particularly the Andes, the modern guinea pig is a descendant of Cavia cutleri. There are many indications that the original human inhabitants of Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia and the Andes began to domesticate these wild animals around 5000 BCE. In Peru, they were kept for food.