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lionheadbunny21

lionheadbunny21

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May 2, 2010
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Location
Prince Rupert, British Columbia, Canada
So I went to the petstore to get some-more dog food for my puppy and I went to look at the Bunnies. They have had 2 guinea pigs sharing a cage with rabbits the last few times I went there. I think they allow Females and males to go into the same cage as well because one of the older bunnies is the dad to the baby bunnies that are the other cage.

WhenI went in there, they had put a different buck (dad to the baby bunnies) in with the guinea pigs and he was jumping over them, but barely. I told them I was worried about the guinea pigs. The bunny then starts chasing the guinea pigs aroundpinning them down andhumping them. To me, it seems the guinea pigs are getting stressed. The lady just looks at me and says "It's a dominance thing". I don't think they should be in the same cage :(
 
The guinea pigs shouldnt be sharing a cage with an adult rabbit,you can report the pet shop to the SPCA for mistreat to animals.
Ive seen baby rabbits that should still be with there mum up for sale at pet shops, I guess they will do anything for money.
 
I was so upset when I left. I actually wanted another rabbit and was debating one from the petstore here, but I'm definately not going to now. I live in a small town and there's only one petstore here and no Rabbits in the SPCA. I'd rather wait until I can travel to a rescue or shelter then buy from the petstore here.


I'm soo mad.. And I know they deliberately put females and males in together..

I'm going to call SPCA tomorrow and see what they say.

I know this isn't the first anyone's heard of a local petstore mistreating animals and doing things that SHOULD NOT be done.. :(
 
Maybe was different because they were both female. I heard of people doing it in the past, but I am hearing more ofen now that it is NOT AT ALL recommended. I would worry for something startling the rabbit and the guinea pig being kicked. :(
I read about it when I first owned guinea pigs and rabbits. I tried to introduce them but it did not go well. The rabbit got startled and I think if I wasn't holding my guinea pig and moved him right away, the rabbit would have nipped at the guinea pig.. IDK.. maybe not.. didn't want to take the chance.

It doesn't look good for the petstore at all.I try to stay clear of petstores and buying pets from them, but I want to buy a certain type of dogfood.



 
Both the guinea pig and the bunny were young. They did AWESOME together. The guinea pig sat in her igloo most of the time and everytime my bunny would be in site of the igloo hole, the piggy would start purring :p The only thing that made her mad was when my bun would go inside her igloo. That was pretty much the only rule in the piggies cage xD Bun does not go in her igloo, lol. They would clean each other all the time and the pig would pur when she was with my bunny :) They were adorable together♥ The pig would follow my bun everywhere. It was so cute!
 
BabyMei wrote:
Both the guinea pig and the bunny were young. They did AWESOME together. The guinea pig sat in her igloo most of the time and everytime my bunny would be in site of the igloo hole, the piggy would start purring :p The only thing that made her mad was when my bun would go inside her igloo. That was pretty much the only rule in the piggies cage xD Bun does not go in her igloo, lol. They would clean each other all the time and the pig would pur when she was with my bunny :) They were adorable together♥ The pig would follow my bun everywhere. It was so cute!
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I got both of my bunnies from a pet store. I didn't really want to, but I fell in love with them. Lennie was there for a while. He was there so long they were pretty much giving him away for $5. He was sooooo sweet and relaxed when I held him :) He closed his eyes when I was walking around with him in the store. MeiMei, I got her from a new petstore. I knew she was the one I wanted as soon as held her close to me ^^
 
rabbit food is dangerous to guinnea pigs and visa versa (i think its to do with vit c levels - too much vit c in rabbits causes problems and too little in guinnea pigs causes scurvy!!!)

they definately shouldnt be housed together. we were looking into getting a guinea pig but everywhere we looked said it is definately a big no no
 
I also got my first and second one from a petstore (not here, but in my old town). They get some of their animals from the shelter sometimes. I totally supported my old petstore. I still have my second one and she is doing great.

I was just upset when I seen the poor guinea pigs, with no hidey house to hide in or anything, being so stressed out from the male rabbit in their cage. Poor sweeties. And the rabbit didn't know any better, he was just put in their cage when we got there. :(
 
That's b******t. I absolutely hate going into pet stores and the animals are not taken care of like they should be. Most of the time, none of the rabbits or guinea pigs have hay in their cages. Animals need privacy too, so they should be able to go and hide in a hidey house when they want to or feel stressed. A lot of the time, I want to work there just so I can give the animals what they need.
 
I totally hear you, I felt really bad. I was just sitting there watching :( And asking if she was SURE they are ok. That also is true about the food.
I'm thinking they are maybe trying to get people to think it's cute or something and buy both, because the guinea pigs have been there for awhile. IDK. But I don't like it. Made me sick and I was and still am really bothered by it :(
 
Sometimes they can get along fine, sometimes the rabbit can bully the pig because they are so much bigger and stronger. One swift kick from the rabbit could really harm the pig.

Also they shouldn't be fed together really. Guinea pigs need vitamin C suppliments which is supplied in guinea pig food, whereas rabbits can make it within themselves, like most animals.

Jen
 
Thus why most petshops I wont step foot in. I've only one that I go to near us, and I only go to pick up snake food. I like the guys they're both knowledable, and are careful on the type of animals they carry.
 
Really the buck should have beeen removed from the pen if he was stressing the piggies.

But they can live together quite happily as mine have done for over 40 years.
I wouldn't put a stud buck or breeding doe in with a g-pig, that's just asking for trouble.
But smaller rabbits and g-pigs can co-exist fine. They have slightly different periods of activity and rabbits can quite happily live on g-pig food and g-pigs on rabbit food so long as their water is suplemented with vit C and the rabbit pellets doesn't contain anti-coci meds.

Rabbits love to groom the piggies and the piggies like to rest their front paws on the buns back, kind of sweet.
Yes they don't communicate with each other but they can and do get along, it just requires a bit of common sense!!
 
Guinea pigs are my area of expertise so I'm going to throw my two cents in here. I've been a guinea pig owner for years. The facts of this situation are:

Guinea pigs and rabbits should NEVER co-habitate. As stated above, a rabbit can do a lot of serious damage to a guinea pig. Guinea pigs can also become very stressed, very easily, and can be stressed to the point of heart attack and death. Having a rabbit in the same cage as guineas is a big no-no and I sincerely hope this was reported.

Guinea pig food and rabbit food are very different and each different animal should never eat the other's food. Guinea pigs differ from other rodents in that they do not produce their own vitamin C...it must be provided in their diet. The guinea pig pellets provide this supplement. Putting vitamin drops in the water is actually a very bad idea. Vitamin drops, and vitamin C itself dissolves quickly and therefore there is no way to know how much of the vitamin the guinea pig is getting. The drops also change the taste of the water resulting in the potential for the guinea pig not to drink it. Vitamin C is better provided in the pellets, and in the fresh fruits and vegetables given to the pig. It is also possible to crush a chewable vitamin C tablet and sprinkle a small amount on the vegetables to be certain. Be sure and use just a small sprinkling as the whole tablet is far too much. Watch your ingredients to be sure there is no vitamin A. NEVER give a guinea pig a multi-vitamin. A guinea pig eating rabbit food is not good due to the difference in vitamin balance. There is things in there the guinea pig doesn't need, and there are things not in there that the pig DOES need.

Rabbit food has a very different vitamin balance as it is produced for rabbits specifically. Rabbits don't require extra vitamin C and therefore the extra supplement can be harmful. The same is true for the vitamin drops being in the water...the rabbit might not want to drink due to the change in taste, and it's extra chemicals the rabbit doesn't need.

Rabbits and guineas being friends outside of the cage is possible but must be done carefully. All of my guineas have met Milo and to date, they mostly don't care and neither does Milo. I sit on the floor in immediate proximity and don't take my eyes off. Milo generally sniffs them and moves away. He and Genie are GOOD friends though and will give each other kisses. No humping or anything has occurred. This won't be the case always and so it's always good to be very cautious when introducing. Do it on neutral ground so there's no dominance wars over territory and do it carefully. Any sign of discomfort or bullying from either side, and both should be separated immediately for the safety and comfort of all involved.
 
Thank you so much. I knew it wasn't right but there are so many people that see things differently and I have owned guinea pigs before and I have tried to introduce the two and my guinea pig got scared when my rabbit lunged, so I never attempted again.. i can't imagine the stress the petstore g.pigs were going through :(

Thank for all the input, I've called and no return phone call. WIll call again tomorrow. WIsh me luck.
 
Good luck! If you tried an introduction, and that's how it went, then you are right to not try anymore. Sometimes it will work, and sometimes it won't. And who's to say Milo won't change his mind too right? Something can still happen. I fully support you in making the report. It is what is best for the guineas!
 
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