Keeping Rabbits & Guinea pigs together is a common occurrence in the UK however it is detrimental to both animals, and possibly even life threatening.

So you've probably always thought it was fine... just another option when it comes to keeping small furies. After all so many people keep a guinea pig with a rabbit & have done for so long how could it not be? One rabbit, one guinea pig. Perhaps they are to be children's pets (after all rabbits & guineas are very popular as children's pets), and one child wants a rabbit, the other wants a guinea. It might seem like the perfect solution.

Well if you are one of the many who think this way (author included until about a year ago) you're not alone. Many people still think its ok to keep a rabbit with a guinea in the same cage... and who can blame them? The out of date books & money-grabbing pet shops all say it is. But the Chief Vetinary officer of the RSPCA, announced in recent years that keeping Rabbits with Guineas is NOT such a good idea after all.

Infact there are many reasons why keeping the two species together is a bad match for both animals.

First of all there is the diet. Guineas (like us humans) are unable to make their own vitamin C so they need to get it from fresh fruit & veg each day. Rabbits don't need as much, and often upon eating the guineas fresh food develop diarrhea. Then there is the dry food. That can be a problem too. Rabbit food contains antibiotics to prevent coccidios in rabbits (a potentially fatal condition). These additives are toxic to guinea pigs! And of course the rabbit food won't have extra vitamin C for the guinea, and the guinea food won't have extra Vitamin D for the bunny.

Left: Prince & Spam found fame recently when our article on rabbits & Guinea pigs (based on this page) was published in Nibbling News Magazine. See links for contact details.

Ok so there is a problem with food... bad enough. But it gets worse. Both guineas & Rabbits are sociable pets who like to have company. Great you might think; they can have the company of each other. WRONG. Because the two animals are 2 completely different species & originate from different, opposite parts of the globe they don't speak or understand each others language. So they may tolerate each other but they will never be 'friends'. And of course a guinea pig would be far happier with another guinea pig to keep him company, and the rabbit would choose another rabbit as the companion of choice too.

The next reason is the most serious of all. And the very risk of it I'm sure would convince anyone never to keep the two animals as a pair. Not only is keeping a guinea with a rabbit unpleasant for him because the rabbit might mount the guinea & be aggressive towards him, but it might actually cost him his life. Yes that's right. Guineas have died of fatal injuries when their friend, quite harmlessly as rabbits do, has kicked out when happy doing the 'lambs leap'. The guinea has fallen foul of those powerful hind legs of the bunny & died as a result.

Many people have kept rabbits and guineas in the past without incident, and may even feel the two have been good friends. To you I would say it is great that this partnership has gone without incident, but next time you (or the guinea to be precise) might not be so lucky.... and is it worth the risk? Especially if the two are to be children's pets as it is so upsetting for the child when their beloved pet dies. How much harder would it be if the pet had died in an unpleasant, messy way at the hands of another pet? Not something that would be easily explained or forgotten.

Pet shops are eager to sell you a rabbit & a guinea as it means they make an extra £20 or so! You cannot keep 2 intact bucks together so perhaps in persuading you that a guinea pig is an equally good pal they make double the money on you, instead of you going home with a single bunny (or visa versa). Anyone who has had to deal with the poor guineas who have been severely injured in these situations will tell you, its not a matter of opinion, but a hard fact. Especially for the ANIMALS concerned.

So as we've seen, although Rabbits & Guinea pigs are popular pets with similar appeal, and both enjoy company- that company is best provided by a creature of their own kind. As they are both delightful, yet quite different animals with differing needs.