cats in pictures make me MAD!

Re: cats in picyures make me MAD!

I agree. I know people will say that their cat loves their guinea pig to pieces etc, but instinct is instinct. If you are going to have a cat and a cavy in the same house, either the cage must have a roof of some sort, or the cat should not be allowed in the same room. It doesn't matter how friendly the cat is, it is a predator and the guinea pig is prey.

Re: cats in picyures make me MAD!

Even though she seems apathetic towards piggies, I would never let my cat climb over their cage or pen walls. The only times she'll meet the girls are when they're on my lap. I want her to know they exist so if some negligence on my part lets them sneak away or my cat near them, she won't immediately want to pummel the poor guineas, but they'll be by no means good buddies.

Re: cats in picyures make me MAD!

I have two cats and I wont let them near the pigs when they are out JUST INCASE they attack them, you never know!

Re: cats in picyures make me MAD!

I've had one of my cats around my pigs. She is terrified to death and just runs away. I don't like when people insist they "play" but most people know their cats well enough.

Re: cats in picyures make me MAD!

I know my cats wouldn't attack. Of course I don't let them play and sleep together but I don't mind the cats being in my room while Ginny's in her open cage or out for floortime. I've even left them alone together for 5 minutes but that was cause I had to get away urgently, nothing happened.

Re: cats in picyures make me MAD!

I have my pigies in an open cage. I also have 2 cats. Neither of my cats care for the pigs. They didn't care when I brought them home. They still don't care now. I have no worries. And yes I have a picture of my cat in the floor time pen. One of the piggies was in a bag and Popcorn( the cat) thought they were put up, so she came out of hiding and was headed to the kitchern. Well the pen takes up the path to the kitchen so she had to jump in. Well the piggie moved (from inside the bag) and Popcorn froze. Snap. Got the picture. She turned and ran the other way. Didn't see her for another hour.

Re: cats in picyures make me MAD!

I too have a cat and an open cage. My cat is scared of them, he won't go near them. He got close to one of my piggies face before and he got bitten, since then he keeps his distance. I don't see anything wrong with taking a picture of cats and pigs together, aslong as their not left on their own together I see no problem. It's the same as my rabbits. My rabbit adores the cat, they play together and sleep together. Now I wouldn't leave them alone as my cat is rather large (about 12kg) but he knows that he cannot harm them. Cats are not stupid they know what they can and cannot do.

Not to mention the fact that my cat sleeps all day and then goes outside at night. He only goes after things with tails. Domestic cats tend to play with their prey before they kill them. There was a mouse in my shed once and the cat got hold of him. I managed to get the mouse out of his mouth with no problems, then I let the mouse go in the field across the road.

Re: cats in picyures make me MAD!

I personaly think that a cat is a cat! He has instinct to catch and kill small prey. If someone wants to risk their pig getting killed/injured, well that is very sad indeed!

Re: cats in picyures make me MAD!

I believe people who say that their cats couldn't care less, and wouldn't bother the pigs, because I don't believe mine would either. He's more scared of them than they are of him! In general, I think most cats know what they're capable of "taking on"--mine won't even attack a spider that he thinks is too big. (Obviously there are cats that are more aggressive hunters than some.)

When I built my cage, I wasn't sure how the cat would adjust to the pigs, and so I made it *extremely* secure and catproof. And while I'm glad I did, and wouldn't suggest otherwise to anyone...honestly, if it was completely open, I don't think the cat would ever enter it.

At first, he liked to lie on the back of the sofa, staring at the cage ("watching guinea pig TV", I liked to call it! ), until he fell asleep. Now he's bored with even that. The only time he's ever put his paw in the cage is when he wants some of the fresh grass I put in for them!

In the beginning, I'd never leave the pigs out on the floor with the cat in the room. Now, while I wouldn't leave them alone for hours or anything, I think nothing of a trip to the kitchen and back or something. That may seem controversial to some, but I do believe that people know their pets and can gauge their moods, etc.

But I do also agree with the "you never know" sentiment. They ARE animals, afterall, with sometimes uncontrollable instincts and reactions. So I don't think you should get complacent, or take for granted that they will always "get along".

Re: cats in picyures make me MAD!

I allow my cats to interact with the pigs when I am home. The cage has a lid, but I leave it open when I am home. Instinct or not, I know my cats and the cats know the pigs are mine therefor not food.

One of my cats is older and lazy. She usually doesn't play with the pigs. She just watches then through the grids and is happy with that. The other is younger and likes the pigs. She grooms them and sleeps in their cage. I know she will not hurt them. They have climbed on her, pulled her fur and bit her and she has not lifted a paw to stop them. If she doesn't like what they are doing, she leaves.

The cage is also in the way of the best sunning window (there is a dark curtain for the piggies but she sits on the window side of the curtain). She has to walk through it to get there. I would rather she peacefully walk through the cage then try to walk on the lid and hurt herself. My bigger kitty has decided the ledge is too much work fpor her and suns on the bed.

My cats have never lived outdoors and with the exception of bugs, have never hunted anything. One is very lazy and slow and the other is one of the best trained cats I have ever had. She does tricks and she knows the rules around here very well. I trust her with my pigs.

Cats are very clever. They are not the dumb instinct driven creatures you think they are. There is a reason we can't train them to do manual labour.

Re: cats in picyures make me MAD!

Sabriel said:

Cats are very clever. They are not the dumb instinct driven creatures you think they are. There is a reason we can't train them to do manual labour.

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I couldn't agree with you more! My cat has learnt that they are apart of the family and not food.

Re: cats in picyures make me MAD!

Ukyou, the little one has learned the sound my husband's feet make when he walks up the steps. If somebody else walks up the stairs to our floor she keeps sleeping, but when my husband comes home she's right at the door waiting for him.

Re: cats in picyures make me MAD!

Not just cats but dogs also. And while it may be true that some cats/dogs do not harm the piggies, I personally feel it it irresponsible behavior on the persons part to to the risk. Taking the risk that they might not is wrong. Why?? Well lets say my piggies are out and I leave the room with my dog in there. Now she has never before hurt them but if she does well then I can't go back and undo it. Plus with the piggies being a PREY animal they often do not find it comfortable having a predator with them.

I know my dog probably would not hurt them and I even have one pig that walks up to the cage on the bedroom door (they have their own bedroom) and looks at the dog and isnt scared, but, I still would never take the chance because IF something happens it can not be undone.

Here is a good example of how something might happen at my house:

My dog (a german sheppard) knows the pigs are part of the family and only has a passing interest in them. Now if I decided to let her in the room with them while I was cleaning their cage she would probably just nose them and lay down. However, when one of them spooked and scurried away her natural instinct MIGHT kick in and she just chase it and catch it. (Just the chasing would be stressful enough). How do I know this? Simple...run from your dog and its natural for them to chase.

So why take the chance? People take the chance for many reasons, but none of the reasons are for the right reason. What is the right reason?? The right reason is always "What is in the best interest of the piggies".

Re: cats in picyures make me MAD!

My pigs enjoy their time with the cat. They approach the cat and play with her. Kero who lives by himself right now especially enjoys playing with his kitty. He popcorns when I ask him where his kitty is.

So maybe your animals aren't ok around your pigs, but my cats are. They have no intrest in hunting (except flies.) Heck the fish are sitting ducks and my cats doen't even try to eat them, they just try to drink the water they think is fresher.

My pigs have done more harm to my cats then vice versa. I don't see anything wrong with supervised play if my cats are up to having thier tails nibbled on and my boar trying to mount them.

Re: cats in picyures make me MAD!

And if you read my post I said the "risk" of doing so and especially unattended. Your cats and piggies very well may get along just fine. Heck there are cases of rabbits being raised as puppies by dogs and things like that.

Re: cats in picyures make me MAD!

Leaving the house is risky. Lots of things involve risks. But I feel that when I am home and in the same room there is very little risk. You imply that anyone who leaves their pigs with any cats are bad owners taking needless risks.

You also state that having a cat around would make the pigs nervous. I have not seen that with my herd. They are curious and playful around the cats.

I wouldn't leave the house with the cage open, but I will go to the kitchen and make myself a cup of tea with the cage open. And I won't limit interaction as long as both animals enjoy it. It's not like I'm housing them all in the same cage.

Re: cats in picyures make me MAD!

Everything in life is risky, but you don't just sit in your house all day just incase. There was a newspaper article last month where a small child was killed by the pet dog. Now it is risky keeping animals with small child too, but you don't stop having pets do you?

Re: cats in picyures make me MAD!

Ok there is risk in everything. Rationalizations like that do not change the fact. Leaving GP's alone with an animal that is a predator is a "needless" risk. Supervised is one thing. Even then though the question comes down to why ?? Is it in the GP's best interest or is it for the humans benefit?. In General, please note the word General, it is a bad idea to mix prey animals with predators. Its that simple. That does not mean that every person that has GP's friendly with the other pets is a bad owner.

Re: cats in picyures make me MAD!

In my case I find that it does inhance my gp's life. Especially that of my currently single boar. We are in the process of adopting my a gp buddy but for now I think he quite enjoys his time with "his" kitty.

I couldn't care less if they likes thier time together and if they didn't want to see each other that would be fine too, but since he enjoys it I won't take it away from him.

I think it's also a question of how domesticated your cat is. My cats are really bad hunters. They don't enjoy hunting type toys and the only things that interest them are flying things. My cat's primary intent when she enters the cage is to sleep on the fleece or the super pet chair. That's probably why she gets climbed on so often. She is fast a sleep when they start playing with her tail.