Guinea pigs and dwarf rabbits - they can't be togehter - can they?

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Nishka

Hiya

Just wondered about this... I have always heard through various forums that you shouldnt keep rabbits and guineas together because rabbits can get aggressive with them and they eat different foods.. However I was chatting to someone today who says that it is ok to keep guineas and dwarf rabbits together as they are smaller and can't do so much damage... ??

Got me thinking.

What do you think?

I am still thinking about getting guinea piggies and I am exploring the options!
Thanks

:)
 
No you cant keep them together. There is new legislation in place that states as such. You are right, they eat different foods and cannot communicate with eachother and there is still a risk of injury, even from a dwarf rabbit :)
 
Ahhhh I thought so.. The woman I was talking to owns a pet shop! She lives next to me... When I told her I didn't think they could be together she looked at me like I was crackers! It made me wonder...

The reason being was that she has a baby female guinea pig on its own with 3 dwarf rabbits in a cage (at her home ready to go to pet shop). She knows I was thinking about getting a guinea and she asked if I wanted the baby piggy, (I am not keen on pet shop animals believe me but she got these through a friend who had a litter and had one left over). Anyway I said I really wanted 2 to keep themselves company and she was trying to tell me I can have one of the dwarf rabbits in with it! I didn't think that was right somehow.

So now I feel sorry for the guinea pig on its own! What should I do?
 
I would never recommend buying a solitary pig just because you feel sorry for it. If the pig looks like she is suitable for you, you have room, time, money etc and you can source a 'sister' for her elsewhere, then maybe go ahead. You're making an investment of time, love, money etc for a number of years and your choice of pig is therefore very important. But you probably know that already.

As for the rabbits thing, I have been told many times by people in pet shops that it's ok to keep pigs and rabbits together. I always tell them they are talking rubbish (nicely, of course!). ;)
 
lol

I did the same thing - politely of course! hee hee- but I think she just thought I was mad! I may print out some selected bits of this thread and give it to her!

As for piggy, well I did fall in love with her because she is very sweet but I would definitely want to find a friend for her. Is it easy to introduce another one of about the same age?

I have been researching quite a lot but I didn't bank on having this thrown at me! lol :)
 
It should be straight forward introducing a female piggy to another female. Boars are much trickier. She doesnt have to be a baby though, perhaps you could look at getting one from a rescue?

You will find the legislation about rabbits and guinea pigs being housed together on the internet..try the RSPCA website or email them, then you could show her ;D
 
Thanks for the advice. I will definitely print off the legislation thing and give it to her.. maybe she doesn't realise.

Re the piggy - I can't decide what to do. I am very tempted to give her a home, I know I could give her a better home than she might get if someone decides to home her with the dwarf rabbits - but then I wonder if I am doing it for the right reasons or whether I am being a bit of a soft heart. I mean just because I rescue her, doesn't mean that the woman won't get another piggy from somewhere else and rehome them with rabbits again! However ever since seeing her there I am smitten and I can't stop thinking about the poor little love stuck in there with those buns.

Hmmmm... I can't decide what to do. Think I will mull over it for a while.

I am supposed to be getting ready for my mother in law coming up on the train and all I can do is think about guinea pigs! :D ::)
 
NO!! my cousins rabbit, kicked the guinea to death.. :'( :'( :'( :'( :'( it was soo stressed but they wouldn't listen when we told them not to keep them together. RIP poor little Gerty, you had a hard life. well done for checking it out O0 and PLEASE take our advice. it's a horrible way to go. :'(
 
Nishka said:
As for piggy, well I did fall in love with her because she is very sweet but I would definitely want to find a friend for her. Is it easy to introduce another one of about the same age?
Click to expand...

We have 5 sows, we haven't had a problem introducing any of them, girlies seem fine I think x
 
Thanks for all the replies. I definitely won't be getting the rabbits- I am going to maybe get the girly piggy and try and find a rescue piggy friend for her (obviously another female pig).

:) :)

I can't understand why people don't know that rabbits and guineas can't go together when there are so many horror stories around! I mean you wouldn't put a gerbil and a hamster together so I can't understand why pet shops and such like think it is ok?

How weird.

:(
 
Nishka said:
Thanks for all the replies. I definitely won't be getting the rabbits- I am going to maybe get the girly piggy and try and find a rescue piggy friend for her (obviously another female pig).

:) :)

I can't understand why people don't know that rabbits and guineas can't go together when there are so many horror stories around! I mean you wouldn't put a gerbil and a hamster together so I can't understand why pet shops and such like think it is ok?

How weird.

:(
Click to expand...
i know pet shops should know sooo much better. :tickedoff:
 
Hi, guinea pigs and rabbits should not be housed together for the dietry and aggression reasons you mentioned, also because many rabbits harbour a disease called Bordatella that is fatal to guineas, E Cunicculi is something rabbits seem to get a lot of and it can also be passed to guineas though they may have the same chance of getting that- I don't know, but our rabbit fosterer has had several EC Buns in and I have had no EC Guineas...

The deciding factor for me though is the communication one, seeing a Guinea that has been living with a Bun come into contact with his own kind always gives me a warm fuzzy feeling inside, the kind of reaction that you can't put into words :)

By the way the RSPCA recommend this too and this is likely to be put forward to become law in 2008 to help rescue animals sooner.
 
funny you should be talking about this as the local rspca here has a piggy and rabbit housed together up for adoption ?
 
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