Guinea pig or Rabbit?

Heya,

So I sold off my colony of ASF's cuz I didnt need them anymore and my pet rat recently passed away.

So I am looking for a small animal to have as a pet.

I have always had guinea pigs in my life and I love them so much. I have never had a rabbit though but have always admired them and wanted one as a pet.

Like I said I have always cared for guinea pigs and it wasnt till about a year and a half ago that I had my last one pass away from old age. I have had guinea pigs since I was about 3 so it was about 16-17 years of my life I have had guinea pigs.

Years and years ago when I lived with my cousins they had a pet rabbit that I practically cared for. I loved that rabbit. But I moved away and never saw it again. Since then I have wanted a rabbit.

I am really torn between the two.

What do you all think?

Rabbit!
You can litter train them so they can free roam.

I know!

the only crappy thing about free roam is I have a lot of electrical cords in my bedroom that would be a pain to try to bunny proof.

I am leaning towards a guinea pig because they are so snuggly! Can just lay there on the bed with you snuggled against your belly.

But then again I think rabbits do that too lol

I used to have rabbits when I was younger. When Billy passed away, I slept with his brother Jinxi for a few nights.

Rabbit-proofing a home is too difficult for me. I tried it and failed, ended up having a large portion of our basement (200 sq feet?) converted into his roaming area.

I'll likely never have a rabbit again, they require so much more effort to keep happy than any other mammals I've ever had. They are darn cute though. I vote guinea pig, they aren't anywhere near as much effort, easier to socialize, and plenty cute.

I have had both. And also have had outdoor, as well as indoor potty trained rabbits. Rabbits are a lot of work. Piggies are cute as heck, and I love their sounds. Just wish they didn't wiz all over when they are out.

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Have you heard the noise a guinea pig makes? I find them cute for like the first 10 seconds then its just annoying. Rabbits are way better. Theyre softer, cuter, and they hop around which is adorable. Famous bunnies? Bugs bunny, roger rabbit, Thumper etc. How many famous guinea pigs are there? None.

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Originally Posted by Mike41793

Have you heard the noise a guinea pig makes? I find them cute for like the first 10 seconds then its just annoying. Rabbits are way better. Theyre softer, cuter, and they hop around which is adorable. Famous bunnies? Bugs bunny, roger rabbit, Thumper etc. How many famous guinea pigs are there? None.

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Need famous guinea pigs?
http://m.imdb.com/title/tt0436339/

I'd go with guinea pigs, rabbits are for eating.

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Originally Posted by ChrisS

Need famous guinea pigs?
http://m.imdb.com/title/tt0436339/

I'd go with guinea pigs, rabbits are for eating.

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Never heard of it.

On the other hand, everyone likes bugs bunny.

I'm not much of a small animal person but my mom has always kept rabbits (She had 30 baby rabbits at one point) and they seem to get more skiddish then my sisters pet guinea pig.

I'd so go with what your heart wants. It sounds like a guinea pig would fit the Bill for you.

None of the above.
Ferrets. ;)



But IF I had to choose, the rabbit. We had a lionhead rabbit who thought it was a dog and hung out with the shepherd at all times. And he always ran back to his cage to poop in the litter box when he was free roam.
G-pigs are so boring and really noisy. Not so bright...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v9...92046042_n.jpg



Whoever said rabbits are for eating, Guinea pigs are for eating too. Delicious little buggers.

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Need more famous guinea pigs?
How about wonder pets
http://www.nickjr.com/wonder-pets/

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Originally Posted by satomi325

None of the above.
Ferrets. ;)



But IF I had to choose, the rabbit. We had a lionhead rabbit who thought it was a dog and hung out with the shepherd at all times. And he always ran back to his cage to poop in the litter box when he was free roam.
G-pigs are so boring and really noisy. Not so bright...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v9...92046042_n.jpg



Whoever said rabbits are for eating, Guinea pigs are for eating too. Delicious little buggers.

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I would absolutely LOVE having a ferret like you dont even know Nikki!!!

I have been crazy for them.

But I cant convince my mom to ever let me have one :(

Yea nikki has a point. My neighbors are ecuadorian and they eat guinea pigs lol.

Skinny pig.
Changed my mind.

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Originally Posted by Mike41793

My neighbors are ecuadorian and they eat guinea pigs lol.

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Guinea pig is good!

Anyway, I'd skip right past both and head right towards a chinchilla. A little more difficult starting off, but they are fun animals.

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Originally Posted by RobNJ

Guinea pig is good!

Anyway, I'd skip right past both and head right towards a chinchilla. A little more difficult starting off, but they are fun animals.

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Damn I have wanted one of those too!

For the past 10 years I have wanted a ferret.

Nikki is making me lean towards one now lol.

And if my mom doesnt like it well. As my good friend Mike Lopez says "ask for forgiveness not permission" .... In other words... Get one and dont tell her until I have it home in my bedroom. LOL My moms a pretty laid back women who loves animals so I know a ferret would grow on her.

I'd go with a rabbit, but it's mostly because GPs are too noisy for me. Rabbits tend to be a little bit smellier, especially if you have a male, but you can litter train them so they don't go all over the place like GPs. Bunnies are usually bigger also, easier to cuddle with.

I wouldn't get a ferret. They stink! Even if you clean up their poo/pee as soon as they do it and bath them daily (which you wouldn't want to actually do), they still stink. I lived with a couple girls in college that had two, and even though they took excellent care of them, they were just too smelly for me.

Chinchilla's are cool. We had a pair along time ago. Funny watching them take dust baths.

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Originally Posted by Sita

I wouldn't get a ferret. They stink! Even if you clean up their poo/pee as soon as they do it and bath them daily (which you wouldn't want to actually do), they still stink. I lived with a couple girls in college that had two, and even though they took excellent care of them, they were just too smelly for me.

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Ferret odor can be controlled. They have a unique scent. But most offensive smelling ferrets are icky because of a poor diet, unclean bedding, or too many baths.

Lots of commercial kibble diet contains vegetative matter and fiber. Some even contain fish. Ferrets are obligate carnivores. They cannot digest plant material or carbohydrates, which also promotes their odor and disease (insulinoma). Fish will increase their odor as well. A poor quality diet will also make huge stool since the ferret cannot absorb any of the carbs and plant fiber. So a lot of waste. 90% of ferrets in the North America are bred by the commercial breeders, Marshall Farms. They start all their kits on their own personal diet, which is very unhealthy (and fishy). The Many pet owners never switch foods because it negates the health guarantee on the animal. And sometimes the animal imprints on food and never wants to eat anything else...

A ferret fed on whole prey will have very little odor. They will also have a huge decrease in stool size. As obligate carnivores, they absorb all of the meat and organs. Basically the only thing that comes out is fur.

My youngest ferret was fed Marshalls food. The kibble itself smelled awful and it definitely made the ferret stink. I switched him to a quality high protein diet/whole prey and the odor and waste decreased immensely. I sleep feet away from my ferret cage and can't smell them. In contrast, I've been to apartments where I could smell the ferrets before even entering due to poor diet and bedding that hasn't been washed in a while.

And personally as someone who has handled hundreds of ferrets, I really believe their bedding and litter smell more than the animals themselves. It's important to wash all bedding and dump litter weekly or less. The oils from the ferrets get trapped in the bedding without frequent washed and can build up.

Also you wouldn't want to bathe a ferret daily. Or even monthly and yearly unless the ferret gets poop on them or something. Baths will make a ferret smell more. They are self groomers like cats. Bathing a ferret will strip them of their oils. They have oil glands all over their bodies to keep their fur in good condition. (They don't feel oily though.)
Striping the oils will make the oil glands go into overdrive to try to replenish itself. The only time I bathe a ferret is when I bring them home for the first time and when they get poo on their fur, which is rare. Some of my ferrets have gone years without a bath. They simply don't need it.


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Is a whole pray diet like giving them rats? Or ground beef or other meats.

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Originally Posted by carlson

Is a whole pray diet like giving them rats? Or ground beef or other meats.

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Whole prey= entire food animal
So feeding things like entire raw Rats, mice, chicken, duck, turkey, quail, rabbit, etc etc.

You can feed beef and chicken from the store, but that alone wouldn't be a balanced diet. Organs and other bodily parts will be needed.
And if you cook the meats, some of the nutrients are lost in the cooking process.


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Satomi, thank you for your info. How do you deal with the issue of contaminants from raw meat?

I say go with skinny pigs! Just remember guinea and skinny pigs do better in pairs or groups.
Heres the link to my piggy collection
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...88#post2031288

also guinea pigs can be litter trained too!

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Originally Posted by Sita

Satomi, thank you for your info. How do you deal with the issue of contaminants from raw meat?

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What contaminants?

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Originally Posted by Sita

Satomi, thank you for your info. How do you deal with the issue of contaminants from raw meat?

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Whoops. Sorry. Missed this post.

Get a reliable source or give fresh meat. I wouldn't trust commercial grocery meats unless it was cooked. I give live or prekilled animals.
I either raise my own prey or have an organic dealer.

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