Introductions: Pigs and Cats

[TheCraftyFaerie]

Originally Posted by graycurse

I adopted a couple kittens a few months ago, when they were about 5 weeks old. They were SO tiny! One day when I was in the room with the piggies, the kittens crawled into the cage with them. I decided to watch and see how they'd react, since the piggies were a LOT bigger than the kittens at that point and the kittens had already been declawed. They never tried to attack the piggies, never pounced or chased them; they only sniffed nose to nose and proceeded to fall asleep together. Now the kittens are almost fully grown and there's hell to pay if i ever dream of closing the door to the guinea pig room. The only place they'll sleep is in the cage with the guinea pigs. Of course I'm careful and watch them to make sure they're not gonna hurt my piggies, but at this point I think they think they're guinea pigs. They even go to the bathroom in the pig cage and try to eat their food too :-\.

Oh my gosh that's SO precious!! Yeah I think my cats think they're people.

[crazychic]

I wouldnt worry about the kitties and pigs getting along. Ive had two pigs and three cats living together and they get along get. My cats put there paws in the cage and pat the pigs on head but this is nothing compared to what else they do! One one of cats jumps inot the cage every morning when I open the lid. He lays on the ramp and takes a nap. The pigs just move around him and dont mind at all. When my pigs get lap time, one of them almost always runs over to my cat (who sits beside us) and lays on him, curled up in my cats tail. I have a babyp pool that my pigs play in and while they do this, my third cat loves hanging out in the pool while watching them. They are all buddies.

[rabbitsncavyluv]

Your cats may be fine with the guinea pigs but that does not guarantee the op's cats will too. Every cat is different. Personally I wouldn't trust them 100% and leave them unsupervised.

[Paula]

Your post wasn't removed. I'm not certain where you're getting that. Everyone can see your original post.

And the fact that your cats get along "fine" with your guinea pigs does not mean you should be recommending to others to let their cats and pigs "play together." All animals are different and you can never be too careful. Introductions and interactions between predator - prey animals (cats - guinea pigs) should always be closely supervised and they should not ever be left alone without someone to keep a close eye on them. No matter how well you know your pet, you cannot predict animal behavior.

What CF is trying to do is a great idea, it's just that it might not be worth the stress/risk associated with taking the cats to a store or shelter so they can meet random guinea pigs.

[Ly&Pigs]

crazychic- your duplicate post has been unapproved. We don't need two duplicate posts stating the same exact thing and your first post was not removed. We have rules here that we expect everyone to follow.

[crazychic]

My cats and pigs don't get along "fine", they get along great. I did not say that I leave my animals alone unsupervised and I did not recommend taking cats to a store/shelter to meet guinea pigs either. What happened to this site being one where pig lovers can come together and express their opinions and experiences without being ridiculed? I am an excellent life-long pet owner, shelter volunteer, and soon opening my own non-profit, no-kill shelter. I have also gone to school studying animals and animal interactions and have the degrees to prove it. I think I know a thing or two about animals. I think it is time to stop being so politically correct on here and start being real.

[graycurse]

Paula's right, my intention wasn't to recommend that you completely trust your cats with your piggies, I just wanted to share my experiences. I don't let my cats in here unless someone else is in here. Fortunately, the pigs share their room with the computers so either my boyfriend or I are in here for all but 2 hours of the day so the cats/guinea pigs are happy

[rabbitsncavyluv]

gray - I think our replies were more to crazychic's post. (Not getting into the declawed part)

A cat's claws can severely harm a guinea pig. They have different saliva and a guinea pig can contract a very deadly infection from a bite or wound very easily.

Originally Posted by crazychic

I wouldnt worry about the kitties and pigs getting along. Ive had two pigs and three cats living together and they get along get. My cats put there paws in the cage and pat the pigs on head but this is nothing compared to what else they do! One one of cats jumps inot the cage every morning when I open the lid. He lays on the ramp and takes a nap. The pigs just move around him and dont mind at all. When my pigs get lap time, one of them almost always runs over to my cat (who sits beside us) and lays on him, curled up in my cats tail. I have a babyp pool that my pigs play in and while they do this, my third cat loves hanging out in the pool while watching them. They are all buddies.

[Ly&Pigs]

Take a breath notice: Let's all please take a breath, walk away, get a cup of coffee, whatever it takes to calm down the emotions in this thread.

From now on, we would like to see all posts

• QUOTED, so that we can see which post you are replying to, and
• About a TWENTY MINUTE interval between your new post and your quoted post!

Thank you!

[TheCraftyFaerie]

I have no idea what's going on in MY thread. Interesting.

I know my cats and I know how they act. The fiance is going out of town this weekend to visit his son so no trip to the pet store. I might take them to a friend's house though just to get them out.

[Ly&Pigs]

Originally Posted by TheCraftyFaerie

I have no idea what's going on in MY thread. Interesting.

You may have been the one to start the thread, but you don't own the thread. Any member can come along and add in a reply. The thread once submitted becomes public domain. Threads often start out one way and end up somewhere else.

[TheCraftyFaerie]

I was agreeing with you Ly. Kind of thinking if I, the person WITH the cats isn't upset about what's being said why should chic get upset? Thanks for being you though.

[Ly&Pigs]

I can't be anyone else but myself.

[TheCraftyFaerie]

And I guess it works for you.

[Marzopan]

My cats are more scared of the piggies than the pigs are of them
They're too old to even give a dam about killing rodents
haha gotta love my strange cats

--did I mention one of them eats GP treats? o.o

[Amsley246]

Well I have a little story to share. A long time ago, when I lived at home, I had a hedghog named Priscilla. She lived in my bedroom and was the sweetest thing ever. My sister had a cat, who was never allowed in my room and I kept the door closed strictly for that reason. One day my brother went into my room to get something and didnt close the door. The cat got in and got Priscilla. When my sister and I got home, I found a huge mess in my room, and my sister found a dead hedgehog in hers.

I'm not going to say all cats behave that way towards small animals, that's just my story. I think it's better not to find out what a cat will do because nobody can predict what will happen. But, that's totally up to the decision of whoever trust their cat enough.

[BabyBellie]

I can top the cat eating GP treats. If I don't clean up quickly enough after floor time my cat eats the pig poop It's the strangest thing I've ever seen him eat.

[xxlizzybordenxx]

I have two cats who i love dearly. They are wonderful and sweet and awesome. Unfortunately they are cats ha, and cats eat little animals. Therefor i keep the guinea pigs in a room that the cats are not allowed in! I'm sorry but i have no idea whats going on in my cats head and i am not going to sit around and see what happens when their hunting instinct kicks in. It only takes a 1 second for something to go terribly wrong.

I guess it would be different if my cats were declawed i would maybe worry a bit less, but mine have their claws and they are sharp.

Every once in awhile i will take a cat in the room with me and let her or him look in the cage for a minute or two with me holding them. That is about the extent of my guinea pig cat interactions.

Also i would think that it would stress out the guinea pigs having an animal sit on the top of their cage and stare at them all day.

Thats just my opinion, better safe then sorry!!

[Seonta]

My guinea pigs ten or so years ago got along fine with the cat (which we still have, the pigs have long long since departed). Tiger has never attacked any of our animals that we have had in cages- mice, rabbits, guinea pigs, and hamsters have all lived in harmony with our cat. He never has attacked anything we've kept in a cage but any mice infestations have been easily ended by him.
The guinea pigs could run at him and he would just step over them. He would sit and watch them but for some reason he never hurt them. But really it depends on the individual cat and their personality. Good luck.
(note at this point I do not have any guinea pigs.)

[Peggysu]

I think all animals can be unpredictable, especially cats. My parents have three cats and when I lived there we had as many as six. My mom used to rescue cats so we had a house full. I love cats but I do not trust them at all.

I was out of town and my mom watched my guinea pigs for me for a week and they stayed in the spare bedroom with the door closed. The cats didn't even seem like they cared but they weren't allowed in there at all. My mom's dog might like to get them but he's too short to get into the cage. My dog I completely trust with them. He's never alone with them though. With any kind of animal that could hurt my guinea pigs I would never leave them together unattended. I would never forgive myself if something ever happened, especially if it's something completely avoidable.

Now in regards to taking a cat to the shelter or somewhere to see some guinea pigs I don't think is necessary. The risks out weigh the benefits to you cat. Also I've noticed with pets that when you bring them into your home other pets tend to sense that they are part of the house hold.