Adopting Dogs and Guinea Pigs - Is there something I should know?

CourtArtanis said:

I never implied this either. "For example, if their dog is vicious or snappy or difficult to control then i'd hope they wouldn't put the dog anywhere near the guinea pig in the first place...." In my previous post. In other words, if you can't teach the dog to behave otherwise - don't attempt it.

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While I think we are both after the same thing -- ensuring the pigs are safe and the dogs are happy too -- I still maintain that we cannot ever be 100% sure that we have taught out the instinct, or as you say, taught "the dog to behave otherwise." All it takes is one time for the dog to prove that we were mistaken, for it to be too late for a pig. The dog can be peaceable for 999 times, but who knows what could trigger it? Maybe it never happens. Why take the chance?

Keep them in an entirely enclosed cage. Decide whether the dog should have access to the room they are in.

Wildcavy said:

Keep them in an entirely enclosed cage. Decide whether the dog should have access to the room they are in.

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Neither of us can make the call, so it's best we just agree to disagree on all counts. It's up to OP what she really wants to do and it's unfair for me (or you) to tell her whether to let the dog free range with Guinea pigs, or not. Only share our experiences and opinions


So @mamattorney , just keep us updated on the route you decide to take.

I don't have to worry about the cats - they have passed away (allergies in the house so not getting any more). I only mentioned it because the dog and the cats crossed paths for 2-3 years so I witnessed those interactions. I would absolutely be honest with the shelter. I just saw that and thought - why would this shelter have a blanket "no dogs" provision? They are primarily a cat/dog shelter. They currently have this pair of pigs and one rabbit, but only cats and dogs otherwise.

I think I will set up the table for the cage where I want to put it and put an irresistible treat on there (pancakes - the dog LOVES pancakes, it's the only food she'll beg for) and then leave the house for an hour or two and see what happens. She's not that big (about 40 lbs) so I don't think she can even reach the table I bought for the cage, but we shall see. If the pancakes are still there, I'll feel 110% confident. If they are gone, I'll rethink where to put the cage. I want to keep it in a family area, not in a closed off room, but I could change that.

mamattorney said:

I don't have to worry about the cats - they have passed away (allergies in the house so not getting any more). I only mentioned it because the dog and the cats crossed paths for 2-3 years so I witnessed those interactions. I would absolutely be honest with the shelter. I just saw that and thought - why would this shelter have a blanket "no dogs" provision? They are primarily a cat/dog shelter. They currently have this pair of pigs and one rabbit, but only cats and dogs otherwise.

I think I will set up the table for the cage where I want to put it and put an irresistible treat on there (pancakes - the dog LOVES pancakes, it's the only food she'll beg for) and then leave the house for an hour or two and see what happens. She's not that big (about 40 lbs) so I don't think she can even reach the table I bought for the cage, but we shall see. If the pancakes are still there, I'll feel 110% confident. If they are gone, I'll rethink where to put the cage. I want to keep it in a family area, not in a closed off room, but I could change that.

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Sounds good! Damn, poor dog - i love me some pancakes as well

And the cage is 100% enclosed. That's not an issue; I have a 3 year old, so I wouldn't have it any other way.

Since your dog has never actually been around guinea pigs I would be extra cautious for the first little while. Guinea pigs are prey animals, whereas cats are not. You never know how a dog is going to react to guinea pigs.

I have two small dogs. I don't think they would ever intentionally hurt my pigs, but they could accidentally. They are very lazy, cuddly, cupcake dogs but I never leave them unsupervised with the pigs. I would never chance someone getting hurt. I had guinea pigs before I got my dogs so I was able to train a lot of their curiousness out of them while they were young. I still don't trust them with my small animals, though! They are playful and I'm afraid they would try to "play" with the piggies.

i've got 2 small dogs, and by small I mean one is not much bigger than my piggies, and he is terrified of Wazzi! LOL My other dog is a bit more in your face, and she's the one we are more cautious about. The male, Theo, is afraid and generally wants nothing to do with the piggies.
Wazzi does however LOVE the dogs, he runs to the side of the cage they are on, and sings to them. He also enjoys 'barking' with them when someone is at the door. Now this sounds weird, and maybe it's something else, but he Wheeks likes he's getting veggies when they bark! LOL
Our Keeshond we had a few years back, rest his sweet soul, was part rabbit as he would lay down and allow the bunnies to jump, nuzzle, and sleep on him. We 100% trusted him in every way with them. They shared salad time, and had run of the main floor until bed time, or when we went out. Then he'd whine to be inside their cage with them, but settle to sleep as far against the cage as he could get, and inside the bunnies nestled into the clumps of fur that managed to make it in the bars!
<3

mamattorney said:

I don't have to worry about the cats - they have passed away (allergies in the house so not getting any more). I only mentioned it because the dog and the cats crossed paths for 2-3 years so I witnessed those interactions. I would absolutely be honest with the shelter. I just saw that and thought - why would this shelter have a blanket "no dogs" provision? They are primarily a cat/dog shelter. They currently have this pair of pigs and one rabbit, but only cats and dogs otherwise.

I think I will set up the table for the cage where I want to put it and put an irresistible treat on there (pancakes - the dog LOVES pancakes, it's the only food she'll beg for) and then leave the house for an hour or two and see what happens. She's not that big (about 40 lbs) so I don't think she can even reach the table I bought for the cage, but we shall see. If the pancakes are still there, I'll feel 110% confident. If they are gone, I'll rethink where to put the cage. I want to keep it in a family area, not in a closed off room, but I could change that.

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That pancake part is an awesome idea. Love it. Love to know how it works out with the shelter and if you get those two GP's how your dog and GP's do.

CourtArtanis said:

It's a common misconception that dogs and cats like to eat guineapigs, or in fact alot of small animals.

They just want to play with them, so if you teach the dog (Cats are more difficult...lol) not to play then you should be fine - dogs are very adaptive to other animals in the house

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lol, thats not necessary true. i had a cat.. and any chance hed get to kill something.. hed do it. I lost two hammys to him and i cant tell you how many birds, baby bunnys, mice.. snakes.. and even a farrit once, we found on our back porch

I have had dogs that I felt 100% certain they would not eat my small animals. My collie, Zeus RIP, when I still lived at home. I left him often in the same space as my house rabbits and guinea pigs that were open caged on the floor with out worry. Currently I have a sheltie, Rudy, who I also have left alone with free range house rabbits and I leave him alone with my guinea pigs. With the pigs current cage he can't reach in but there is no lid. I wouldn't do this with all dogs but these two I trained, trusted, and were not high prey drive breeds.

Wildcavy said:

There isn't a way to entirely train that trait out of the dog. I can stop the dog physically, but not change the desire, at least not to the degree of confidence that I'd walk away from a dog with a pig out of a cage. If it could be entirely taught out of a dog, then I could leave my pigs out with a dog with no cage and no worries, right? Would you EVER leave your dog out with an uncaged pig, no matter how well-trained you thought he was? If you would, then I'd say you should never have pigs and dogs at the same time.

And that's what it comes down to. We can say all we want that humans have the power to profoundly, permanently, and assuredly change the very nature of a dog or other animal. The fact is, we cannot, and we are arrogant to think that we have that kind of absolute power.

My message is simply this: no matter how much you fantasize that you have control over the nature of your dog, err on the side of caution and humor silly folks like me, who have to clean up after the dogs eat the pigs.

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Exactly! You can try to train it out all you want. It is something the dog doesn't naturally.

And @CourtArtanis , I didn't say you had to put your pig next to your dog. Not sure where you got that from. I'd also like to add that cats do often eat rodents. When my cat was younger she ate squirrels and birds all the time. Even tho she always had quality kibble and can food. And it isn't just the dog's breed that always comes in play. I've seen my sisters shi-tzu hunt/eat snakes.

As said quite a few times, when it comes to opposite species, just play it safe.

My Dog Mr Bojangles is wonderful with other animals. Infact he's better with animals than he is with humans. He just sits and watches them and if we say to him "gentle" when he is near the cage he starts moving super slowly so as not to startle the piggies. Its very cute.
Of course, dogs with piggies is just like dogs with kids - you can never be too careful because you never know if they will react.

mamattorney said:

And the cage is 100% enclosed. That's not an issue; I have a 3 year old, so I wouldn't have it any other way.

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That's great. I hope the rescue will consider you to adopt them. A well secured and appropriately sized cage should make them feel better about the pigs going to a home with a dog.

MrWhistles said:

Exactly! You can try to train it out all you want. It is something the dog doesn't naturally.

And @CourtArtanis , I didn't say you had to put your pig next to your dog. Not sure where you got that from. I'd also like to add that cats do often eat rodents. When my cat was younger she ate squirrels and birds all the time. Even tho she always had quality kibble and can food. And it isn't just the dog's breed that always comes in play. I've seen my sisters shi-tzu hunt/eat snakes.

As said quite a few times, when it comes to opposite species, just play it safe.

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Intresting that you talk about cat eating rodents. I just watched a video with this girl who lets her cat in her c&c cage whenever it wants even when she isnt there. But she doesnt allow her dogs, I'am not disagreeing with you just though it was intresting thing to bring up. I guess it just matters on the dog or cat really.

I think it all depends on the animal not the breed or type. Both cats and dogs have a prey-drive, you can not truly take it away from them, it is something that makes them them. But I do not think they should rule out people adopting the pigs if they have dogs, it is not a good idea.

I have four cats, I trust my two old ones to not hurt my guinea pigs but I never trust the little ones (partly because they were born feral and stray so they were brought up to hunt to live). But with all four, they will bring in birds, lizards and rats from outside. If they are inside the house when we're not there we make sure the rooms the pigs are in have the doors shut, they are open when we are there but shut when we are not because no matter how much I trust them I can never fully be sure they will not harm the pigs whither on purpose or accident.

I've never had a dog, but our house backs onto a off leash dog park reserve so am always around them. My friends have a dog that was brought up with their rabbits, they trust the rabbits to roam though the house freely with the dog and them around, but if they are not there the rabbits go into their cage where the dog is not allowed with-out anyone home.

I think you should contact the people and talk to them about why they say no dogs, I do not think having dogs should stop you from getting them.

@mamattorney if they shelter gives you a reason for the prohibition, I'd be interested in knowing what it is. I got Amy from Craigslist, and she was in a house with a huge Husky. They had her cage on a stool when I arrived, so it was right on a level with him, but he was more interested in extorting some belly rubs from me.

Of course, dogs are all individuals, but I hate to see a blanket policy. I really do wonder if they've had a bad experience in the past, and perhaps even one that didn't involve actual aggression. I have friends with a large dog who is totally cat friendly and lives peacefully with many adult cats. They took in a stray kitten, and the dog killed it without any intent to do so. She's a very jumpy dog, and the kitten was tiny, so she inadvertently crushed it. It never even crossed their minds that it could happen.

theguineapigguy said:

Intresting that you talk about cat eating rodents. I just watched a video with this girl who lets her cat in her c&c cage whenever it wants even when she isnt there. But she doesnt allow her dogs, I'am not disagreeing with you just though it was intresting thing to bring up. I guess it just matters on the dog or cat really.

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If i saw an animal other than a guinea pig in a guinea pig cage, I'd be frightened. I feared for my own dog's wellfar when she decided to see what the cat was doing inside her crate.

The shelter is closed on Mondays, but I sent them an email. Here's what I sent -

Hi!

We are looking to add a pair of guinea pigs to our home this holiday season. I took a look at the pigs on petfinder and adopt-a-pet this morning. Bonnie and Clyde are adorable and I love that they are a boy (neutered)/girl pair. But, we have a dog and three kids (age 10, 7, and 3). Our large (8sq ft) cage has a top and will be up on a large card/banquet table. Is the "no dogs" firm? If it is, that's OK, but I thought it couldn't hurt to ask. Thanks.

mamattorney and contact information

I will let you know what they say. As an aside, I am actually happy that I came across this ad. Even if I do not adopt these particular GP's, I am fortunate to be made aware of extent of the possible issues prior to actually obtaining new piggies. After the pancake test tomorrow, I will know more about whether my cage placement is appropriate. I highly doubt I would have had the foresight to come up this idea without seeing that "no dogs, please" in the ad. I just have a lot of faith and trust in our dog, but I'm glad to be testing her in advance with food rather than live animals.

Also, I just want to take a moment to thank this forum's members. I have learned so much and I really do feel welcome (even if I have a Midwest cage instead of C&C ). I have posted about 5 questions and each one has been answered quickly and thoroughly. That alone is worthy of my thanks. This forum is such a great resource; thanks to all that take the time to answer what are probably the same old questions day in and day out.

Did you know you have a guinea pig rescue in your area? Critter Corral They are in Steger, IL. Not sure how close that is but you can be assured of a healthy pig if you went through them. Sometimes they have events in other areas around Chicago so check out their events page.
Though they will probably encourage you to get a C&C cage because technically the Midwest cage is only 7 sq ft inside the cage and doesn't meet the minimum size for 1 or 2.
Good luck!

I have to disagree on the Midwest cage - I hand sewed (as in with a needle and thread, not a sewing machine) 4 fleece liners for it (what a labor of love - it took me about 4 hours for each) and am intimately involved with the inside dimensions. The cage is 47" x 24" or 7.83 sq. ft

Length


Width:


Now, I recognize that this is not a large cage by this forum's standards. However, this is the cage I have and this is the cage I am using. One of the first questions I posted was how important was it to have two vs. one GP, taking into account the size of my cage. As one person said, on a scale of 1 - 10, having two is an 11. So, that's why I was looking at a pair. I know I need to have either two girls or a boy/girl pair as two boys may want more space. I am keeping that in mind during my search. The babies that we are considering were all girls, so that is good.

And yes, I am aware of Critter Corral. They have the bulk of the adoptable GP's in my area. They are on my "list"; these guys just caught my eye. They aren't exactly far - Steger is around an hour/hour and half away, but that's a bit of a misnomer, since the pigs are all fostered; they don't have a central shelter. I don't really know where the piggies are.