Dogs and Guinea Pigs?--do they get along?

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rokupic

Post   » Wed Oct 17, 2007 10:32 am


My extra-large Golden Retriever seems to be afraid of the pigs. He wants nothing to do with them. He leaves the living room when we bring a piggie out for laptime. He almost never goes into their room without a human escort. The exceptions to this are when someone has left something smelly in the garbage can--like a used dinner napkin--or when the pellet bucket has been left out. He LOVES the pellets. He's a really weird dog. On 2 occasions, he has dragged the pellet bucket upstairs to our bedroom and had a feast.

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Malilla

Post   » Wed Oct 17, 2007 12:33 pm


"I had a senior Springer Spaniel that I trusted absolutely with the pigs. She would clean up their poops and extra veggies every night, delicately making sure to step carefully as they swirled around her feet. Everyone was free ranging in the house and I never had a moment of trouble. It was abundantly clear that she didn't give a hoot about them. It was all about the poops, and they were the generous vendors."

Sounds very familiar.

So does this:

"I have a Cocker Spaniel (Julia)and she has never bothered the cage, actually she doesn't even seem to notice they are there except when I give them veggies and then she tries to get the lettuce out."

And this:

"Funny you should say that: I have a friend with a cocker spaniel who thinks the pigs are her babies - she's very, very gentle with them."

Look at my dog:

Image

He doesn´t bother about the girls unless they poop and he wants their veggies.
Although I´d never leave him alone with the piggies outside their cage.

Cat_67

Post   » Wed Oct 17, 2007 5:18 pm


I have a male springer spaniel who just loves the guinea pig (previously pigs). They squeal like puppies - they must be puppies! He loves to lick Ariel all over, just like a puppy. He's really quite gentle and careful with her, but I don't let them be alone together. He's a much bigger animal and might be too eager and hurt her, although she's generally quite pleased if he just doesn't rub her the wrong way (against the hairs). After she lost her cage mate, she seems not to get so easily annoyed with the dog showing his affection. Ariel isn't semi free range anymore, mostly because people leave things plugged in everywhere, but also just in case. He is a hunting dog, so I'd better be safe than sorry. But I'm pretty convinced he thinks she's family. When I put her in with him in his donut bed, he'll lift his leg and make room for her, and lick her all over.

I guess he's in touch with his feminine side! Spaniels are lovely!

Cat_67

Post   » Wed Oct 17, 2007 5:42 pm


Got a time-out when editing:

Here's some photos of Emil, as a puppy. In the first he's being trained to leave Martin alone during floor time. Martin's not quite sure, and wants to get back into the cages. At the time we had a cage arrangement for three cavies consisting of several cages in a row, with the end grating taken out in all of them so they could get between the cages, and on that occation the open door for floor time was at the other end. Emil was quite a boisterous puppy, and Martin wanted to get back in!

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This is what happens when the kids have forgotten a cage door after floor time! Emil wanted to play with the guinea pigs and jumped right in through the opening you can see. Anne and Martin were nimble-footed enough to escape to the neighbouring cages, Ariel was a little slow as usual. Be careful to really dog-proof your cage! We were lucky he just wanted to play and cuddle. Ariel got a real cleanup.

Image

(OT: Springer lovers will notice that European springers look different from American springers)

CodysMama

Post   » Wed Oct 17, 2007 5:54 pm


I've been a member of Guinea Lynx for about three years. There have been MANY "my dog killed/severely injured my guinea pig" stories in that time. After all that, I wonder why people just don't GET that most dogs are dangerous around guinea pigs???

Do you really want to find out the hard way about your precious new puppy's prey drive?

Erin8607
Knee Deep

Post   » Wed Oct 17, 2007 6:01 pm


I have 5 dogs. Lucky(7yo lab mix) likes to come check out the piggies every saturday when we clean cages. She's far more interested in eating poop than eating pigs.

Hudson(3yo bc mix) sniffs them, but he's scared of them eating him.

Sparky (90yo retriever mix) doesn't care about anything unless it is invading his sleeping space.

Coco(7yo besenji mix) and Frankie(3yo bc mix) would, if given a chance, like to eat a pig in a heartbeat.


ETA - back in 2002, we were dog sitting a shep mix.. I was getting the pigs some food or hay or something and the dog was in the room with me. I turned around to get something out of the closet, turn back around and he had Carmelita in his mouth. Worse that happened was she lost some hair, took her to the vet the next morning and she checked out ok. Scared the daylights out of me and the dog when I screamed!

Cat_67

Post   » Wed Oct 17, 2007 6:16 pm


I think the hunting instinct varies a lot between breed and individuals of dogs, but why be sorry when you can be safe? Even a kind dog kan be careless. I never leave Ariel and Emil alone together. She would be just as dead if he squashes her as if he bites her!

Poor Baby Cuzko
My piggy made me give!

Post   » Wed Oct 17, 2007 7:37 pm


My dog has high hunting and herding instinct. She's a border collie/pointer mix. What she does herd, she hunts. She loves to catch chipmunks, squirrels, mice, shrews, you name it, she's caught it.

But she knows the guinea pigs are off limits. That being said, I never leave her alone with the pigs. The pigs are currently in the living room on the floor. I made a lid for the cage just to be safe because although I don't think she'd do anything, I don't want to take that risk.

If you get a sheltie, be prepared for lots of barking. My neighbors next door have two and all they do is bark. All the shelties I've known are notorious barkers.

oscar+buddysmom

Post   » Thu Oct 18, 2007 12:21 am


I think that you can have a dog and guinea pigs so long as you never forget that your dog is always going to be a dog and you need to be aware of their demeanor around the pigs all the time.

Here is my recent dog and piggie stories. Oscar, Buddy and I moved in with my parents and their beloved rottweiler last year. I was definately nervous about it, but let me say that this dog was the saddest excuse for a Rottweiler. His bark shook the house, but he was usually barking from his bed and not bothering to protect us from whatever he was barking at. Introducing the pigs to the dog was hilarious. Roxy, (the dog) got so excited he bounced around the cage like a little kid until he peed on the floor. The next day we put the pigs on the floor and let Roxy sniff them out. Next thing I know, Roxy was bouncing around trying to get them to play with him. He even nudged poor Buddy. Buddy just stood there. Roxy looked up at us so confused about why Buddy wouldn't play with him. Oscar and Buddy just stood perfectly still probably scared out of their minds. I relieved them and put them back in the cage. I honestly believed Roxy thought they were little dogs. A few days later he started licking his lips every time he saw them, so I guess he figured it out. I still let them be near each other, but not freely. A dog is a dog.

Sadly Roxy passed away last March from a quick bout with cancer. During the hardest days I would take the piggies out to see him because he wasn't really able to move around much. It just seemed like he needed the company.

In July we got a 5 month old Black Lab. Now this dog is funny! She flunked out of hunting school and I know why! Up until about 3 weeks ago, when Oscar got sick...she was terrified of the guinea pigs. I couldn't get her in their room. If I took them out, she was running. She was always a very scared dog and ran from everyone and everything. She lived under my parents bed unless my mom was around. You couldn't get her out of there. She also is really big on eating grass, leaves and wood. She was using the bathroom everywhere, especially when nervous. I didn't realize it until the vet gave her a strict no carb diet (as a behavior modification approach) but our new dog was acting like a guinea pig! Now I can't keep her out of their room. She isn't so interested in them, she just loves to get at the hay that falls to the floor! She still gets really nervous if they start talking, lol.

Anyway, I noticed those few months in which my home was dogless, the piggies got so relaxed and layed back. As soon as we brought another dog in the house they were, "scaredy pigs," again, so I do worry a bit about their stress level...though they seem to be a lot less scared of our new dog than the Rotweiller.

Finally as a complete side comment, if you are interested in a great story about strange animal combinations, or just need a reason to smile, check out this link: http://www.owenandmzee.com/omweb/

It's my favorite story. You would think it was a fairy tale, but it is 100% true! The books are great too, especially for children.

User avatar
kristina
Supporter in '12

Post   » Thu Oct 18, 2007 4:36 am


She would be just as dead if he squashes her as if he bites her!
This I totally agree with! The dog that attacked my pig probably just thought it was a toy, he sure squeaked like one, but the force of his jays cased a hernia on the guinea pig. If he would have shock him like dogs usually do with toys I would have one less pig today.


So, the question is not: Will the dog attack and want to kill the pigs, it is also: will the dog try to play with the pigs? Equally dangerous.

I would never ever leave a dog alone in the same room as the cage - no matter how the dog behaves.

User avatar
Malilla

Post   » Thu Oct 18, 2007 5:49 am


The above inserted pic of my dog with the piggies is, I hasten to add, not the usual way to keep the three!
A dog is a dog and a piggie is prey in the dog´s eyes.
I never even let my dog alone with my babies (my children).

But I love the Emil in the Cage-Picture!

Sue

Post   » Thu Oct 18, 2007 7:03 am


I think this will depend on the dog, i have a Yorkie (Peggy) who weighs about 5lb and she plays with one of my girlies in particular, they actually chase each other around the house and its usually Peggy that gets worn out first!

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