How long outside?

Are you planning to leave him in the crate, with it closed, outside? Or in an enclosed area with the dog crate available for him to go into?

Either way, I wouldn't, because you never know when something (or someone) might come along and cause harm. If he's in the crate, he has no way to escape, and if he's outside in an enclosed area, he's very easy prey for a cat or large bird.

Bigger question is, why would you want to?

He's in a crate that's closed. It's a crate that has bars on every side, even on the bottom, giving him access to grass. The ones on the bottom are spacious, so it won't hurt his delicate feet.
I would want to because I want him to explore outside, and enjoy the lovely green grass, for a long period of time.
We do have a cat that can catch birds, but she has never showed any interest in Corey, plus she wouldn't be able to get in. Also, if anything tried to attack our pig, squeals of alarm would go up, and we would be able to hear... when he squeaks, it's heard all around the house.

Never leave him unattended. If you want to lay on the grass next to him for three hours, sure, if not then take him inside when you go inside. He won't mind leaving after 30 minutes to go home and take a nap anyways, trust me. In the summer time, I put my pigs in an enclosed and covered pen and then lay in the sun for about an hour or so.

If something attacked him, he would squeak at the last few seconds he has left, if at all. He won't squeal if he sees a bird above him or a cat trying to get in. You wouldn't get to him in time, and it's not worth the risk my friend.

horsenkat said:

Also, if anything tried to attack our pig, squeals of alarm would go up, and we would be able to hear... when he squeaks, it's heard all around the house.

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This is not a reasonable plan, because as Kimberly noted, once something attacks, your pig probably won't have much time left for you to intervene, if any at all.

There's no reason he needs to be outside for 3 hours, or any more than the time you spend outside to watch him and make sure he stays safe.

There are risks from spiders, snakes, flies, bees, larger animals knocking over the crate to try and get at him. I would NEVER leave a guinea pig unattended outdoors.

It is never safe to leave your pigs outside unattended. It is just not safe. If you are in the house you would not reach them in time to save them if something happened. If you want them to enjoy outside, sit outside with them. Period.

We had multiple pigs dumped at nearby shelters that were attacked by raccoons because their owner was sure they would be safe unattended in cages outside. Many didn't survive.

Is your dog any good as a guard? I leave my two out, covered cage, pegged down, shadecloth on the top and sides and boxes inside(you can't actually see them inside the cage), but Occy is out there with them. No cats around during the day - they come by once and are very enthusiastically greeted, then never seen again.

Without him I wouldn't be so relaxed. We are planning a permanant outside space so they can spend more time outside and that's mostly so they're more secure in a bigger space than I can manage inside.

If it makes you nervous, don't leave him.

Edited by bpatters: Please do not recommend dogs to guard guinea pigs. You may have the world's most trustworthy dog, but most have a high prey drive, and would end up killing any pig that got loose.

I wouldn't leave a dog out there to protect the guinea pigs. Dogs are predators and could end of being a risk to the guinea pigs, too, if the predator instinct kicks in. I would not leave them out there without you being there. Dogs can even injure or kill guinea pigs when they try and play with them.

I do have a dog. A deaf, old, dog. She's around 16 years old... and she has absolutely no hunting instinct. But if a pig got loose she would accidentally step on him... so ya, no dog guarding. I would probably be even more afraid if I had my dog guarding my pigs then if I didn't...

How much you trust your dog is a very individual thing. I'm not too keen on Occy being around them loose on their own unsupervised, because he does like to play (and is very big), but he was raised with a free range rabbit and is an excellent deterrent for other predators, so I'm happy to have him around when they're in their cage. Other people's dogs I wouldn't trust at all.

Having a dog in general though tends to reduce your number of potential cat visitors, even if she's really old - my Mum's dog and cat had very clear lines drawn over territory and the dog was 15, cat 17. Even if your dog isn't physically capable of chasing a cat they still usually steer clear. Having your own cat is good too.

Even supervised, dogs can injure or kill a guinea pig. It takes a split second. My sitter had a friendly black lab. They used to have their guinea pig out and dog out together while they sat there with them. The dog quickly picked up the guinea pig and dropped her, killing her, before they could react. Dogs and guinea pigs are not a good mix.

I should rephrase what I said - a dogs presence in the yard can deter other predators. Occy doesn't sit by the cage alertly checking for danger - he's lying on his back in the sun 50 metres away, or wandering the boundary fence, or walking down the driveway to see if we've left the gate open (he wishes). But his scent is all over the yard.

I'd kind of equate a dog with a 3 year old - you can show them the pigs and they'll think they're great, but they just don't have the skills to be left alone together. I've done it in the past but generally avoid it now. When we set up their run it was with knee high mesh that he can't get over anymore. In the cage though I think they're pretty safe but that's my cage, safe to my levels. Can't speak for other peoples setup.

For horsenkat, I'd suggest pegging the crate down, adding shadecloth or mesh to three sides and a cardboard box at the back - you can use zip ties to connect it to the cage so it can't be flipped, provides shade and shelter for a short period outside in nice weather. Days you're doing washing or gardening are ideal - you're not right there all the time but you are around.

I work on the idea that if I don't want to be outside neither do they, so some days they're in all day, others they're out all day, or for an hour or two.

I personally would not leave him unattended for any period of time.

I had a Pigeon that I raised from a chick. I would take Purpe out into the yard to be a bird. His wings were clipped. I would sit out there with him, watching him and playing with him. The last time I saw him, he was about 5 FT away from me and a Hawk swooped down and got him. I thought Purpe was safe with me at his side.

And, wouldn't it be fun to sit outside with your piggie, interacting and watching him? Good for both of you.

I recently made a C&C cage outside on our porch for Poppy. I was asked, rightly, if that was Poppy's permanent home. I will not leave him outside overnight as animals can and have broken through the screen. I went out in the middle of the night because I couldn't sleep. I saw a shape moving around. It was an Opossum. What if Poppy had been out there?

Please forgive me if I sound harsh and judgmental. I am not trying to be. I applaud you for asking an honest question. That tells me you really care for your charge. Otherwise you wouldn't have asked.

Thanks everybody! I'll stop leaving him out unattended..