• Forum/Server Upgrade If you are reading this you have made it to the upgraded forum. Posts made on the old forum after 26th October 2023 have not been transfered. Everything else should be here. If you find any issues please let us know.

buns and piggies together ??

LucyJK

Warren Scout
bunnies and piggies together ?? Im confused some people say yay whilst others say nay ???

2yrs ago I had 2 bunnies, 1 died of myxy and the other pined so badly we nearly lost him and I eneded up syringe feeding him, got 2 rescue bunniies to keep him company, but they died of myxy this week :(

my bunnies are vaccinated every 6mths, but the vet said as we live in such a high risk area the vacccinations arent always effective.

now my question is i dont want to get another bunny and it gets myxy, but Eli just cant seem to cope on his own.

I have been told guinea pigs dont get myxy - is this an option ? some people say yes they fine together whillst some people say no for varying reasons

Im just not sure what too do as he simply will just starve himeslf unless he gets company :(
 
Sorry but no you cant keep rabbits and guinea pigs together! - Rabbits are very terrotorial and could either kick it as they have big strong back legs or try to mount it which could make the guinea pig end up gtting crushed or seriously injured. They are also completely different species so it is not natural for them to live together, they dont communicate in the same way and have different dietary needs guinea pigs need a lot of vitamin C so will require different pellets especially for guinea pigs. I know it used to be seen in petshops but this was usually with baby rabbits so they wouldnt of matured and developed properly to want to mount or show hormonal behaivour! It really wont be fair on the rabbit or guinea pig! I really wouldnt recommend it I would just get another bunny to keep your existing one company but do as much as you can to protect them from myxi put up fly nets over thier hutch, make sure they are fully vaccinated and cleaned out regularly to keep flies at bay... if they are kept outside you may want to consider moving them inside or into a shed so they are more protected.. good luck please think carefully about your decision
 
It is now believed that bunnies and guineas should not be kept together- bunnies are much stronger and could easily hurt a guinea pig, and they require a different diet.

I did however have a rabbit and guinea pig living together as a child, the guinea lived to 5 yrs and the bunny 8 yrs with no problems at all.
 
I would not recommend putting a rabbit in with piggies. Whilst some appear to get on, not all do. I have taken in over the years a number of piggies who have had rear legs amputated following an incident with a rabbit, I have also heard of many piggies who have been bullied to death by rabbits. Equally rabbits can be bullied by piggies.

Rabbits nutritionally require a different diet to pigs, feeding them separately is not really an option. Rabbits require a high fibre diet, whilst piggies require additional vitamin C. Guinea pig food is lower in fibre whilst rabbit food is not suplemented by vitamin C.

Rabbits and pigs carry different infections which can be transmitted to one and other including bordella

Rabbits thump when they get frightened as a warning, guinea pigs often snuggle under rabbits, when a rabbit thumps it will injure anything in its way, this is not intentional just what comes naturally.
 
Also rabbits are carriers of Bordatella, that is fatal to Guinea pigs


ETA: Janice you beat me to it!
 
Even if they do get on... I knew someone when I was a kid who kept them both together. They loved eachother, but the rabbit fell asleep on the guinea pig. It wasn't a huge rabbit, but with the size difference, the guinea pig died from it.
That alone would make me not want to risk it, even if they got on brilliantly.
 
And guineas like to "chat" to each other and rabbits don't speak guinea pig:(

re mxyi..so sorry you have lost 3 rabbits to this awful disease...have you checked your vet is injecting 10% into the skin as this is how it should be administered and will give better protection?

You can also buy insect repellent sprays for bunnies to keep the infected carriers away from your buns..and use fly nets to minimise risk
 
thanks for all the replies, I wasnt sure about keeping them together hence why I posted on here

I really dont want to get another bunny and 'risk its life' as we have been so unlucky in the past :(

Im going to see how Eli copes on his own if he doesn't i have a friend who has some buns that would take him - although I would be distraught to see him go :(
 
thanks for all the replies, I wasnt sure about keeping them together hence why I posted on here

I really dont want to get another bunny and 'risk its life' as we have been so unlucky in the past :(

Im going to see how Eli copes on his own if he doesn't i have a friend who has some buns that would take him - although I would be distraught to see him go :(

Hi, I am sorry you have lost 3 rabbits. Like someone else mentioned, I would question the vet who gave the jabs (was it the same vet for all 3 rabbits?). I live in a high risk area - my neighbour lost 2 rabbits to mixi (they wasn't vac'd) - however when I got my 2 original rabbit vac'd I was told by the vet that although it doesn't stop a rabbit getting mixi it is more likely they can fight the diease and survive. I haven't had any problems with any of my 4 rabbits (and fingers crossed it stays that way) and like I say, I live in a high risk area too.
 
Sorry about your bunnies :(

You will hear plenty about bunnies and piggies living together and being fine but the risk is still there. As illustrated by the bun who fell asleep on top of the piggie :shock:

My housemate puts her single bun in the run with my other housemate's guinea pigs and much as i have hinted that it shouldn't be done and i wouldn't do things that way they still do it and i have seen the bun chase the piggies, bite them and charge at them. The guineas are also unneutered males and have started to mount her and she becomes aggressive (understandably). They don't listen to me though
 
Apparently the RSPCA don't have a problem with it as I have just had a message from the regarding somewhere I reported keeping them together with only 1 type of food (rabbit muesli) and no enrichment at all. Apparently they were exhibiting good practice. As the animals looked ok and had food and water. :evil:

Edit: I had offered advice to the place before hand but they chose to ignore it as they "hadn't had any problems before"
 
Last edited:
Back
Top