guineas vs rabbits

[koco46]

Heatherboo,thanks for your observation on the different bunny breeds ,I totally agree with you on the breeder issue
Lissie,your comment is way out of line
I find that people who make the effort to research an animal,decide what would fit their lifestyle,family, living situation or what have you,find a reputable breeder that breeds what they are looking for creates the best scenario for a lifelong match

[lissie]

Originally Posted by koco46

Lissie,your comment is way out of line

Sorry if you feel it's out of line. I might not word it properly (English is not my primary language). My point is, if anyone who got their rabbits from "reputable breeders" and then rehome them or left them at shelters, then people who adopt from shelters will of course get a pure breed rabbits. Just like cats and dogs. There are many pure breeds and healthy ones in rescues and shelters, why recommend other people to contribute to the overpopulation problem?
I don't think there is such thing as a "responsible breeder". If they are really responsible, why won't they stop breeding altogether?

[Jennicat]

Originally Posted by HeatherBoo

The thing is, most of the bunnies in rescues and shelter didnt come from good, responsible breeders. They came from people who had a girl and thought, "Hey, one litter couldnt hurt." or from those people who produce litter after litter to sell the babies for $20 a piece. Responsible breeders actually produce very few litters a year. THOSE are the breeders I am for, not those irresponsible people who shouldnt even own an intact animal because they cant help but produce babies.

Dont get me wrong, I love it when people rescue and I am in fact rescuing a trio of Piggies soon myself. I dont blame those breeders who do there best to produce a few sound, healthy animals for the overpopulation though. I blame the other people who breed irresponsibly.

To be frank with you, I've never met a responsible rabbit breeder. ARBA has an appalling code of ethics, and their recommendations for care are often worse and more sparse than lab animals get. These "responsible" ARBA breeders churn out huge numbers of rabbits each year (most of them house in excess of 30 rabbits each). The unacceptables are given away at shows, abandoned at shelters, or slaughtered for meat. I have never met a breeder that was doing health tracking on their lines (and how could they, when they slaughter and give away the unacceptable "mismarks"). They don't enforce spay/neuter contracts, and many of them don't even have a vet for their rabbits, prefering to treat everything at home with over the counter remedies.

Even if one did subscribe to the theory of responsible breeders, directing people to ARBA is about the closest to opposite that you'll get.

[CavyLover94]

My piggies' personalities:
Chester- He is a sweet old man. He's 4 years old. If I'm holding him and he has to pee, he gives my finger a little nibble to tell me to put him back in the cage. After a few minutes, he's back at the cage door and wheeking to be let out again. I got him when he was one. He's been raised by two little girls who eventually got bored with him. I'm not sure where they got him from though.
Houdini- He is an abbysinian. I had his mother who I purchased from the store (I was new to guinea pigs and didn't know any better) and she ended up coming home pregnant. I kept this little boy who is best friends with Chester. I held him and hand fed him treas since a few days after he was born, but he hates human contact of any kind, is aggressive to me, and bites and scratches.

My rabbits' personalities:
Black Velvet- A three year old solid black rex. She's very explorative and doesn't really respond to people at all. She's been pretty solemn and unresponsive recently because she lost her companion a few weeks ago. R.I.P. my little Oreo! He escaped from what I thought was a rabbit proofed exercise pen and hasn't been seen since. We have 4 acres in an area covered with bobcats, coyotes, mountain lions, bears, snakes, raccoons, owls, dogs, cats, and anything else you could think of that might harm a defensless pet bunny. I'll miss him!
Tulip- The most recent addition to our little ranch menagerie here. She's a 10 week old mini lop that we got from a breeder because she is my FFA project for school and has to have a pedigree for the program. Don't diss the breeder now! FFA and 4-H are great programs that teach kids responsibility and are keeping several people I know out of jail because they have to follow school rules and get good grades to participate. It's not the program's fault that the rabbits have to have pedigrees to be shown at the fair. Sorry for that little bit there. Just got a bit touchy. It's gone now. Anyway, Tulip cuddles with me, climbs into my lap during florr time, is litterbox trained, and even knows her name and the command to go back into her cage!
I think that rabbits are more like a mix between a dog and cat really. They are a bit reclusive at times like most of those dignified felines, but they can be trained more easily than a cat and demand more attention than the average cat.
Guinea pigs don't seem to be as intelligent because they don't need to be. As one of my favorite guinea pig books states, "They don't need to be very intelligent in the human definition of the word because their food literally grows right into their mouth and they don't need to spend much time hunting for munchies." Something like that at least. I adore the fact that they accept so much from us humans in the way of handling without too much complaint about it. However, if I had to choose, I'd definately pick the rabbits over the guinea pigs because they seem to have just a bit more going up upstairs and, in my experience, are much more responsive and friendly and willing to snuggle. Now, I'm not speaking for ALL guinea pigs and rabbits. I understand that there may be some piggies that are more responsive and intelligent than some bunnies. This is just my personal opinion based on animals that I have owned.

[CavyLover94]

Personally, I agree with HeatherBoo too. I got my little Tulip from what I consider a "responsible breeder." She is an ARBA registered breeder. I went to her rabbitry and inspected each of her 25 rabbits. They all had ample space and there was a chart showing what rabbits got along with another and a schedule for floor time. She had files for each rabbit containing vaccination and vet records, plus show results of that rabbit. She was able to tell me any health issues from Tulip's line for about 6 generations back and the total: just an eye issue from her great-great grandpa that was not hereditary. It was obvious to me that rabbits, mini lops in particular, were her passion and I couldn't find fault in anything she showed me. I was given a packet of care information and a huge bag of the feed they used. She even told me that when Tulip's show days were over, that I should get her fixed! I did not expect to hear that from a breeder! She had eight rabbits that were housed in compatible pairs that had passed their prime show/breeding years and were neutered. Unfortunately, I don't expect to ever meet a breeder like her again. I can only wish that all breeders did the same as she does and that the people that don't really put in the effort and time to really understand all their rabbits and what they are doing would just not breed at all.

[rabbitsncavyluv]

It's a myth that only irresponsible breeders' pets end up in shelters. I have seen tons of breeders who got in over their heads, and "retired" breeders animals or their culls end up in shelters.

"Responsible" breeders in the rabbit world like the cavy world are breeding for looks - not health. Arba and 4Hers' policies and care are often very scary and inhumane.

Your viewpoints are really naive (assignment personality traits to breeds now?) and there is nothing wrong with rescue or shelter rabbits. Most of them are great house pets. I've seen a lot of "purebred" rabbits with issues due to inbreeding and breed related issues.

[Froggirl009]

My friend has 2 guinea pigs and a rabit in c&c cages (seprate cages) I have held the rabit before and it is sometimes snuggly but they can jump. And when they do the jump far. One minute they could be sitting on your lap and the next minute they could be rinning all over the floor. So, I do prefer guinea pigs.

[CavyLover94]

Originally Posted by rabbitsncavyluv

Arba and 4Hers' policies and care are often very scary and inhumane.

I know what you mean. I read the care sheet for rabbits provided by our local 4H and it treated them as if they were all nothing more than a peice of furniture. Not even that really.
But my FFA advisor's care guidelines are almost identical to many on this site and I follow them with only a few variations for the specific weight, age, and size of my rabbits.

And I don't know if you meant me when you said my viewpoints are very naive but I can't help it if they are. I've only been the sole owner of my pets for about 2 years now and don't have the "experience" of others on this site. I'm open to new ideas, but I was just sharing my current opinion and some of my experiences.

"Assigning characteristics to breeds now" what did you mean by that? You weren't meaning me right? I didn't give any breed a specific temperament. I know you can't do that. It's just like dog breeds. The breed doesn't matter so much as how the animal was brougt up.

Anyway, I was wondering if anyone has owned a Jersey Wooly? How big are they, really? I know the whole weight thing but, like, in comparison to a guinea pig or small dog. My friend and I were having an argument about their actual size. Thanks in advance for any info!

[heartpiggies]

I had a rabbit as a child (it was supposed to be some kind of dwarf but grew to the size of a dog). We lived in a small, suburban house and ended up rehoming it with a girl at my school who lived on a farm. Anyhow, it really never showed any affection towards me or anyone else. It was very much in its own world. It also kicked and scratched and was very awkward to hold. The thing was just huge LOL. It pooped everywhere too. I don't know if my mom made any effort to potty train it but I really didn't have to potty train Gary (my piggy). He just naturally goes to the bathroom in his "kitchen" and wherever he sleeps I definitely wouldn't say that particular rabbit seemed to have any thing more "going on upstairs" than my gp. I like the simple sweetness of guinea pigs anyway. It's a huge part of their charm to me. Gary will let me do pretty much anything with him as long as there's a treat involved

[Catayn]

I find rabbits more loving towards people, actually. My guinea pig doesn't interact with me at all (maybe because I only have it for 3 weeks or so) while rabbits play and bag for food and to be petted. They have a very strong personality and, after a while, they can really speak to you and you understand what they mean. It's funny how you bond with them. My piggie, in the other hand,seems to be scared all the time and he also makes a huge mess in his cage, so it's harder to keep him clean. The rabbits' cage needs cleaning only once a week.

[foggycreekcavy]

I'm concerned by some of the posts I've read on this thread.

Why would anyone advocate getting a rabbit from a breeder when rabbits are the third most common animal at shelters? Any rabbit you buy from a breeder or a pet store is just one more rabbit that is euthanized.

For the most part, rabbits are not "friendly" and certainly not cuddly. Just like guinea pigs, you get some that are, but most would rather go through their lives without being picked up by you. Some like to be petted, and occasionally one will like to be held. But they like to come to you on their own terms.

Rabbits really need free range. Cages are fine for the night, but rabbits are built to run and jump. Not much of that happens in a cage, even a really large one. So free range, at least in one room, is best. Then, of course, you'll need to "bunny proof" the place, because rabbits are very destructive.

Rabbits must be spayed/neutered. To leave your rabbit intact is irresponsible.

Rabbits and guinea pigs should not be housed together. I'm dismayed that a rescue adopted out a guinea pig and rabbit as a pair.

For more information on house rabbits, please check out the House Rabbit Society, at House Rabbit Society Rabbit Care Guide .

[heartpiggies]

Originally Posted by Catayn

My guinea pig doesn't interact with me at all (maybe because I only have it for 3 weeks or so)...My piggie, in the other hand,seems to be scared all the time and he also makes a huge mess in his cage, so it's harder to keep him clean. The rabbits' cage needs cleaning only once a week.

It can take a while for guinea pigs to warm up to a new human. Have you thought about adopting a friend for your gp? They feel happier and more secure in pairs. It can be quite a process finding a suitable partner so I would get on that right away. It's also important to provide a large enough cage with several hiding spots. This makes them feel safe because they have more places to run in case of any danger. I'm not sure what you mean by your gp making a "huge mess" in his cage but it leaves me wondering what your set up is like. If you post a pic in another thread maybe we can offer suggestions about how to organize things better.