You can be thinking about a lot of things and have a lot of questions. So, without further ado, let’s get down to business.
Do guinea pigs have good hearing?
Guinea pigs are classified as prey animals, which means they eat other animals. Guinea pigs eventually acquire their hearing under the stress of being hunted by predators, just as they have developed many other advantages as a result of evolution.
Guinea pigs spend their entire lives listening to the inconsequential sounds that occur in the outdoors. These little sounds are the first indication of danger, which includes the presence of threats or predators in their immediate vicinity.
This is not something that the domestic guinea pig should have to worry about. Your guinea pig, on the other hand, will rely on hearing to detect sounds in the environment and to engage with you as an owner.
The guinea pigs will learn where the owner is in the house and who the owner or a family member is by listening in on the conversation. Your guinea pig can also detect minor risks, such as the presence of other animals in the house or the fall of an object from a table.
Because of the shape of their exterior and internal ears, guinea pigs have a good sense of hearing. It is also owing to the fact that they have highly sensitive sensory organs. In addition to having a great sense of hearing for the environment around them, they also have an extremely wide spectrum of hearing abilities.
Also read: Do guinea pigs like to watch TV?
Guinea pig hearing frequency range
Guinea pigs are capable of hearing noises as low as 54Hz, according to research. Guinea pigs have a hearing range of 54Hz to 50,000Hz, which corresponds to the frequency range of the human voice. Humans have a frequency range of 20Hz to 20,000Hz, according to this perspective.
Compared to humans, guinea pigs are more sensitive to higher frequencies and can hear a wider range of noises.
Guinea pigs are unable to hear all of the sounds clearly because of their limited range of hearing. They can clearly hear noises in the range of 1,000Hz-18,000Hz; anything outside of this range can be heard by them, but not with the clarity that they are used to.
Table of Contents
Can guinea pigs hear better than humans
When compared to human humans, guinea pigs have a greater ability to hear higher frequencies. Guinea pigs, on the other hand, have a wider range of frequencies that they can detect, and they can hear higher frequencies as well as lower frequencies.
The same may be said about guinea pigs, who do not respond to the same types of music that we do. In practice, however, guinea pigs have a superior sense of hearing than humans, at least in some situations.
In addition, the anatomy of the guinea pig’s outer ear offers them an advantage over humans in terms of hearing.
Compared to guinea pigs’ ears, the ears of humans are set, practically flat to their skulls, and their outer shells are relatively small in comparison to their counterparts.
The ear anatomy of a guinea pig is also very critical to its development. The guinea pigs’ ear anatomy enables them to detect more sound waves and direct them to the guinea pig’s eardrum than they would otherwise.
The internal structure of guinea pigs’ ears is more delicate than that of humans, allowing them to hear frequencies that are higher in frequency range than those heard by humans.
Can guinea pigs hear better than dogs
Dogs and guinea pigs have sound ranges that are extremely similar to one another. An average dog can detect frequencies in the range of 67Hz to 45,000Hz. However, there is a difference in the sensitivity of hearing across different breeds of dogs.
The dogs are able to detect sound waves in the lower frequency range, whilst the guinea pigs are able to detect sound waves in the higher frequency range. You will therefore be looking at a guinea pig that can either have weaker or better hearing than dogs, depending on which end of the sound spectrum you are at.
In addition, when compared to dogs, guinea pigs can detect sounds that are hundreds of miles distant. The average dog can perceive sounds from a distance of 14 miles, which is far less than the range of the average guinea pig.
How far can guinea pigs hear?
Guinea pigs are capable of hearing sounds that can be heard up to 2 kilometers away. The radius of the circle can be adjusted depending on the pitch and power of the sound.
When compared to high frequencies, the low frequencies travel a long distance and are therefore more effective. It will therefore be heard more frequently by guinea pigs.
Can guinea pigs hear ultrasonic?
Ultrasonic frequencies are those that are above 20,000Hz, which is within the range of hearing of guinea pigs, which is a generous estimate.
If you are using ultrasonic rodent repellents, you must keep in mind that our guinea pigs can be adversely affected by them as well. The majority of repellent devices produce sounds in the range of 30,000Hz to 62,000Hz.
It is only when the ultrasonic rodent repellent device is placed near the guinea pig’s living area that these devices emit sounds that can be distressing to the guinea pigs.
Chronic exposure to a high-pitched sound can cause pain or even permanent damage to the inner ear if it is heard on a regular basis.
Also read: Why is loud noise bad for our guinea pigs?
Anatomy of guinea pig’s ear
One of the defining features in guinea pigs is their ears. The tall ears of guinea pigs are developed for channeling and catching the sounds towards the internal ear.
These ears are essential for the survival of guinea pigs as they are prey animals discovered at the bottom of the food chain.
Outer ear
The pinna (the outer ear), which serves as both a funnel and a net, is included in the large, deep scoop. It captures sound waves and then directs them into the middle ear and inner ear via the ear canal.
Guinea pigs have the ability to rotate their ears around 270 degrees, allowing them to pick up and detect sounds coming from all directions.
Guinea pigs, like chameleons, have the ability to move each of their ears in a different direction independently of the other. As a result, a guinea pig can accurately determine the direction in which a sound is traveling.
Middle & Inner ear
The external auditory canal is responsible for transmitting sound waves caught by the middle ear to the eardrum.
In the eardrum, sound waves are absorbed by the membrane. It is this process that generates vibrations in the eardrum, which are then captured and transferred into the inner ear by delicate bones in the middle and inner ears.
The middle ear is filled with an air cavity, which prevents sound waves from being moistened and missed in the inner ear’s liquid. The middle ear is also filled with air.
The stapes, which is the third bone of the middle ear, is connected to the cochlea of the inner ear and is filled with fluid. The stapes is shaped like a spiral and is the third bone of the middle ear.
Towards the side of the cochlea, the basilar membrane is positioned close by. The basilar membrane vibrates in a variety of locations depending on the frequency of the sound wave; as a result of the vibrations, the small hairs attached to the layer can lead to the end of the nerve, which is where the vibrations originate.
These send the signals to the parts of the brain that are responsible for auditory processing, which then converts the signals into audible sounds.
The middle ear is responsible for capturing the vibrations that are translated by the inner ear from the outer ear, which was responsible for capturing the sound waves. Then these were converted into electrical signals, which were then transmitted to the guinea pig’s brain. That is the process by which guinea pigs learn to hear.
Can guinea pigs hear you?
Guinea pigs are extremely perceptive and can hear everything you say. In terms of hearing ability, they are quite diverse.
The frequency range of a human being’s voice is 85Hz to 265Hz, which is significantly lower than their listening capacity. Studies have also revealed that they are able to comprehend your words and facial expressions.
Is my guinea pig deaf?
If the owners are aware of the signs and symptoms of guinea pig deafness, they can take appropriate action. If you can identify the cause of your guinea pig’s deafness at an early stage, you may be able to prevent it from becoming deaf.
If guinea pigs lose their ability to hear, they will not react to sounds in the same way they did in the previous situation. Guinea pigs’ ears will not be able to twirl in the direction of the sound, and they will not be able to respond when their name is called.
The other guinea pig can imitate the deaf guinea pig in order to respond to the noise if the owner has more than one guinea pig in his or her household.
Depending on how much of their sense of hearing has been lost, your guinea pig will be able to hear only specific frequencies. You can perform some sound tests on your guinea pig by playing short clips of music with different frequencies for him or her to listen to.
Also, your deaf guinea pig may react differently to you than they did previously; they may become aggressive and stressed out as well.
Guinea pigs are one of those creatures that rely on their hearing so heavily that losing their hearing can be a difficult transition in their lives. A guinea pig, on the other hand, can adjust to their new environment even if they are deaf.
Conclusion
Guinea pigs have an exceptional sense of hearing, which is one of their distinguishing characteristics. Guinea pigs have a range of hearing between 54Hz and 50,000Hz, and they can detect sounds from up to 2 miles away, depending on the frequency.
The ear structure of humans and guinea pigs is nearly identical, with the exception of the outer ear portion.
Guinea pigs are prey animals, which means they eat other animals. Wild guinea pigs spend their entire lives listening to these inconsequential background noises. Domestic guinea pigs, on the other hand, will not be able to handle the stress associated with this.
However, they will still rely on their sense of hearing to discover the sounds coming from all directions and to connect with you once they have discovered them.
Guinea pigs can detect sounds as low as 54Hz, which is considered to be extremely low. As humans, we can hear low frequencies because we have a hearing range that ranges from 20Hz-20,000Hz; however, guinea pigs can hear high frequencies because their outer ear structure gives them a distinct advantage.
The sound range of repellent devices is between 30,000Hz and 62,000Hz, which can be distressing to your guinea pig.
Guinea pigs’ tall ears are critical to their survival because they are prey animals, and tall ears are better at detecting the sounds of predators and other threats.
If your guinea pig is deaf, another guinea pig can assist them in discovering the sound by mimicking them, or you can conduct sound tests by playing clips of different frequencies to them to see if they can detect the sound.
It is, however, extremely difficult for deaf guinea pigs, who rely heavily on their hearing for survival. However, they may have that much ability to adjust to their new life even if they do not have hearing.
