Guinea pigs often live in households with other pets and invariably you may wonder how they would all get on together. This will also be an important factor when you are deciding where to place your guinea pig's home. The important thing to remember is that your guinea pig is a prey animal so it will more than likely be more scared of your other pets than they are of your pig !! Though as you can see from the pic below the Wheekies were beside themselves with nosiness to say hello to Jack Rabbit [though they could probably just smell his hay !] !

Having had a variety of animals in the past I have had some experience (not all good - as indicated - though this is just personal experience with the particular animals at the time) of how they get on together. Ultimately if you have several household pets you want them to be able to live harmoniously, each in their own environment, without any of them causing stress or being a danger to each other.

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Guinea Pigs & CATS

Cats are naturally predatory and are likely to instinctively want to 'hunt' down your guinea pig ! In rare cases, especially if a cat has been introduced to a guinea pig whilst it is a kitten (or if it is a very laid back adult) they can get along fine but I would never trust a cat unsupervised with a guinea pig. The guinea pig will more than likely sense a cats presence and this could result in the guinea pig suffering un-necessary stress.

• Ensure the guinea pig's home has an extremely secure lid so a cat cannot get in.
• If at all possible do not let the cat into the same room as the guinea pig's cage.
• If your guinea pigs live in a hutch in the garden or outside on a balcony ensure you have a very good bolt on the door so wandering neighbourhood cats cannot get at them.
• If you let them exercise outside in a run ensure you supervise them and ensure there is a lid on the run - beware that cats may sit on top of the lid and if it is not secure all the way around the cat may very well get in from a corner of the lid dipping down.

Sad warning from experience: When I was very small (about 4 or 5) my parents had a colony of guinea pigs living in our back garden in a huge hutch within a large enclosure. They obviously thought it was secure. However, tragically one day the tom cat who lived next door managed to get in. No more guinea pigs. Although I know it very much depends on the individual cat - personally I would never trust a cat with a guinea pig unsupervised - you can't argue with instinct.

Guinea Pigs & DOGS

Most dogs would love nothing more than to sniff out and chase little furry squeaking rodents as part of their natural instincts. The good thing about a dog is that it can't jump onto tables and cupboards as a cat would so your guinea pig is that little bit safer !!! It is very dependent on the nature of the dog. I know of quite a few people who have dogs that get on beautifully with their guinea pigs and even curl up to sleep with them on the sofa and give the guinea pig the odd lick.

• Never leave your guinea pig and dog together unsupervised !
• Place the guinea pigs cage where a dog cannot reach it.
• If your dog shows an intense interest in your guinea pig - house the guinea pig in a room not frequented by your dog - the stress felt by the guinea pig of the threat of having a dog constantly sniffing, whining and scratching near their cage won't do their state of health a lot of good !
• Same rules apply as for cats with regard to outdoor runs and hutches - don't let the dog out in the garden when the pig is in it's run if it going to sit next to it and bark and scratch.
• Your dog may behave wonderfully if you have your guinea pig on your lap where it is still - but place the same guinea pig on the floor where it suddenly darts off to the other side of the room squeaking and any dog is going to find it hard to resist.

Warning: I have heard of several instances of people's guinea pigs being killed by their pet dogs (or stray dogs). Do your utmost to prevent temptation (guinea pigs) being in your dogs way - your dog is only following it's instincts !

We currently have 2 dogs at my mothers house, miniature wire-haired dachunds, beautiful dogs but natural hunters ! Any whiff of a guinea pig and they turn into dribbling, whining 'possessed' creatures intent on hunting down the guinea pigs when they are staying there whilst I am away. Needless to say the guinea pigs take-over an entire upstairs bedroom so they can have a safe and stress-free holiday !

Guinea Pigs & RABBITS

It is often thought that guinea pigs and rabbits are relatively similar and would make ideal cage-mates. However, they are different animals with different requirements and should therefore be kept with friends of their own type !

• Rabbits can present a hazard to a guinea pig - they have big powerful back legs that like to kick and if a guinea pig just happens to be in the way it may get a very nasty injury or worse.
• Guinea Pigs and Rabbits eat different dry food mixes - the guinea pig's mix has added vitamin C, the rabbit's mix may contain additives that are harmful to a guinea pig.
• Guinea Pigs require more 'fresh' foods: vegetables & fruit - if they are housed together the rabbit will have access to too much and may get the scours - if you don't put enough in for the guinea pig it may end up with a vitamin C deficiency.
• You may find however, that you can give your guinea pig and rabbit supervised play time together in a large run and they should get on ok - especially if you have a small breed of rabbit. Make sure you keep a close watch on your rabbits back legs though and watch out for biting rabbits ! The Wheekies love it when their bunny-in-law Jack comes to stay but I never let them alone unsupervised.

Careful Supervision and Introductions are required when meeting Other Pets

Warning from experience: When I was a young teenager we didn't know any better and had a rabbit and a guinea pig living together in the same outdoor enclosure (as advised by the pet store...). The rabbit had a big hutch and the guinea pig lived in a smaller hutch underneath (I'm sure the guinea pig was scared to death when it heard the rabbit 'thumping' his big noisy feet on the 'ceiling'). They shared the exercise area which they both had free access to. One day I caught the rabbit scratching the guinea pigs rump with it's 2 front paws. That was the end of that living arrangement - from then on they had separate runs - unfortunately we learnt from experience.

Guinea Pigs & HAMSTERS

As well as the guinea pigs I have also had a couple of hamsters over time. Each hamster had it's own cage and I would never dream of introducing them to the guinea pigs. When the hamster was out for a run it did sometimes stop to look in the window of the guinea pig pen but I wouldn't let it get any nearer.

• Don't let your hamster share the guinea pigs living quarters - they have very different requirements.
• Hamsters (syrian ones) are solitary animals - they will attack another hamster if they came across one - a guinea pig being a prey animal would undoubtably come off worst if it came to them having a fight.
• Do NOT let them mix at 'floor-time'.

The hamster, I am sure, is more likely to attack, the guinea pig is more likely to run away ! In a usual household arrangement with separate caging etc hamsters and guinea pigs do not really present a problem. It is easy to house both types of animal with ease in the OWN quarters !

Guinea Pigs & BIRDS

I also have budgies. The budgies do their own thing in their own cage and the guinea pigs do their own thing in theirs. So basic housing of them does not cause a problem.

• Budgies do have a very loud squawk at times which could be stressful to the guinea pigs more delicate hearing. You may want to keep them in separate rooms.
• If birds are able to fly over your guinea pig's pen your guinea pig may instinctively feel that the bird is flying over it in a predatory manner and become scared.
• Ensure your birds do not 'soil' areas where your guinea pigs can get to, they may pass on harmful bacteria to your guinea pig. Do not house your guinea pigs in the bottom of an aviary with birds flying above. Do not house your guinea pig in an old bird cage - it is way too small !
• Large birds such as parrots may actually attack your guinea pigs and can inflict an extremely nasty bite (as well as having an incredibly loud squawk)

In a usual household arrangement with separate caging etc birds and guinea pigs do not really present a problem. It is easy to house both types of animal with relative ease.

Guinea Pigs & FISH, REPTILES, HORSES ETC......

Now it may not be as daft as it sounds to include things like these.....

• Most reptilian types of creatures and also fish [I used to have fish] live in aquariums - aquariums need electric cables to provide heating and lighting etc - guinea pigs love to nibble wiring ! So, whilst it may not be the creature that is the worry make sure you don't let your guinea pigs have access to nibble the wires !
• Some reptiles also carry bugs like salmonella so don't let your guinea pigs near anywhere they have soiled.
• If you have tortoises [my mother does] living in your garden ensure your guinea pig doesn't graze from areas that have been soiled by them.
• If you have a horse [again, my mother does], obviously you won't let them mix with each other but you'll have a great source of cheap hay and readigrass and bedding !

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Page Last Updated:16/03/06