Does anybody have some ?,what are they like as pets?.

I have been thinking i would like to have either a rabbit or a guinea pig in the garden but i have been looking on the internet and rabbits seem to need a lot of looking after with injections and tooth care but i cant find much about guinea pigs.

I have seen some with long hair do they need grooming ?

What do they eat ?

I have been a little confused though,my dad used to keep rabbits and guinea pigs together but everything i have read says not to keep them together !?

I think they are both good to keep as pets.

I Have 3 rabbits and a guinea pig.

No it's definately not a good idea to keep Rabbits and Guinea pigs together in the same cage,not because they wouldn't get on it's just when rabbits kick out they can break a guinea pigs back or damage internal organs if they take a full kick from a rabbit.

To be honest I think both rabbits and Guinea pigs need quite alot of looking after and require attention just like all animals.

Although if you opt for 2 rabbits or 2 guinea pigs together this tends to be the best option as when your not around they have company.

I have 2 male rabbits in together which are about 4 months old now..This is probably not the best option as male rabbits tend to fight if they are not from the same litter, orginally I was intending on keeping just another rabbit,however these two brothers were the best of friends and I couldn't bear to break them apart,although this is very costly with injections and having them both neutered.

Rabbits do cost more to begin with as they require injections against diseases common in wild rabbits.(I am sure you know which disease I'm talking about, Just don't want to make a fool of myself spelling it!)

Guinea pigs, however, do not need these injections but would obviously need neutering if you kept different sex pairs.

The long haired Guinea pigs are quite simply a nightmare...They are cute but require a hell of alot of work with grooming and removing droppings which get caught in their long fur, short haired guinea pigs are much easier to keep and if there teeth and nails are kept trim using gnawing toys and nail clippers.

Both rabbits and Guinea pigs eat ready prepared food purchased from pet shops, The best food to go for is nuggets rather than brands such as Russel Rabbit and Gerty guinea pig which have attractive names but don't contain all the nutrients necessary in their diets. Guinea pigs require fresh fruit and vegetables to insure they get the high vitamin C levels they need and Rabbits also require fresh fruit and veg primarily carrots.

It's also a good idea to get a run or make one..So they can have some free space outside the cage and stretch there legs, they also love eating grass and this is also good for there dietary needs.

 All in all they are relatively easy to look after both guinea pigs and rabbits,although a rabbit may be more costly with injections and booster injections which are essential to prevent common diseases particularly if you live in the countryside where wild rabbits roam.

I hope this helps, I have kept rabbits and guinea pigs for years now so if you need any help don't hesistate to ask!

xx
 

I have to be honest,i dont like the idea of having to remove poo from the bottom hairy area

After everything i have read the G. pigs do seem easier to care for so i might look into the short haired ones.

Do they have to be in pairs ?,do they fight with other males if i have a male ?,is a male or female better for compatabillity ?

I do know i dont want them to have babies so i dont want a boy and a girly one...

we thought it would be a good idear to buy all 4 kid a guinea pig each (had rabbits but thay always managed to escape)

so we bought 4 little girl ones about 6 weeks old and unbeknown to us all blinking pregnant, by the end we had about 50 guinea pigs they where at from birth near enough, we gave them to pet shops and seprated them at about 2 weeks,

the last one to die at about 4 years old was one of the first ones we had, snowflake and she lived next to my commi in my work room, she used to peep at me and squek away also had a disabled chipmunk, next to her,

anyway they make great pets ours where very freindly, and knew when food was coming

the set up we had was a largish shed seprated male and females lots of runs up and down they could also go out side in there own seprate runs,

when they drop there babies they don't build nest just do it where they are stood then the babies eyes are open and they can run around great to watch

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Molzic,did you keep them indoors ?,can they live outside ?

I think i will buy boys,i have read that females can be pregnant when bought....not for me i'm afraid.

a few yrs ago had 60 french lop rabbits and 25 g-pigs..

me and a freind used to breed between ourselves .

i can say..i am quite positive here...unless you take a rabbit from the wild...you dont need to get jabs.

unless before you bought the rabbit it had a illness from the previous owner !!

 Short haired of any kind of animal is better to have..unless your at home all day and have time to groom it.

 As long as you keep hutch clean,change food,and hold regularly etc..

no cost but housing should arise.you can keep these in or outdoors!! indoors you will have to change bedding more tho !

TIP--if you have foxes around you..Buy a rubber sheet to put over hutch.they dont like the smell !!

yes you can keep them indoors but we had a special shed and they also had inner hutches they could go in full of hay and shredded newspaper it was insulated

they don't really like the cold

when we realised they where preggers, we fetched them in thinking they neede special care but they just dropped them and carried on

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I asked at our local pet shop about guinea pigs and they never sell them singly.

This is because guinea pigs are social creatures and humans arent a suitable alternative to having another guinea pig for company.

I bought an RSPCA book about them while I was there and the info in there verified the buying of more than one guinea pig was the way to go.

The book also said that guinea pigs dont need to be kept outside - so long as the place you keep them is quiet and clean - they will be happy.

BTW - apparantly, you can tell that a guinea pig is happy because it jumps up and down to show this!!!

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just remembered gave a neighbour two boys same litter, and one was bullied, he was'nt allowed to eat or drink the other woun'nt let him, he died in the end even though she took him out to feed him.

i don't think they had enough space they had one of these plastic cages which was kept in a bedroom

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Hi,

I have kept rabbits and guinea pigs for decades.  The reason that the books say not to keep them together is because a rabbit that is feeling threatened or cross will thump it's back legs (hence Thumper).  Their back legs are very strong and in a confined space a guinea pig can easily be killed.  Adult rabbits do not always appreciate being introduced to guinea pigs which may be due to their differences in housekeeping.  However, a young rabbit introduced to guinea pigs is usually fine provided that they have lots of space.  In my experience it is best to provide a sectioned sleeping area so that, if they choose to, the animals can separate.

Guinea pigs are social animals and have a 'language' of approx. 9 sounds.  They use these sounds to communicate and to argue.  As a result they rarely fight with each other, although it does happen if you get a wrong'un.

Here's the bit where I differ from many people.  I don't believe in caging animals except for security.  Both rabbits and guinea pigs, despite their short legs, can run fast and will make the most of space available to them although they do need places to shelter, hide and be secure at night to protect them from foxes and the like.  My preference was to allow the animals to run the complete, fully enclosed garden with lots of hiding areas.  Before dusk, I round them up and lock them away until morning. 

Average life expectancy for a guinea pig in captivity is 4-6 years although mine average about 7 over the years.

Just one more thing....  despite what the books say, guinea pigs DO climb and DO jump.  I have a lovely shrub in my garden that stands about 3-4 feet tall with branches from as low down as a few inches from the ground.  One of my guinea pigs loved the new shoots and would pull himself up through the branches to get them.

Thanks everyone for the great advice.

I will re-read all this info and make a decision soon.

I must be honest,i feel a bit guilty leaving them outside through the winter and i'm not sure if i want them indoors.