I bought my bf a Holland lop baby and made her a 4x2 c&c enclosure until she's litter trained, but I also have guinea pigs and am wanting to upgrade their cage to a 4x2 as well (they currently have a XL living world cage) I'm just wondering how far should their enclosures be apart? I read up on Bordetella Bronchiseptica and am wondering if they can even share fleece blankets that have been washed! I originally wanted their cages side by side but piggies on a higher level so they wouldn't interact. Now I'm unsure how to go about housing them. Would a few feet apart be safe?
Guinea pigs and bunnies?
- Thread starter toru.kun
- Start date
Welcome to the forum
Rabbits and guinea pigs should not really be in the same room.
As a rabbit and guinea pig owner myself, i am fastidious with my hygiene and ensure there is no risk of any cross contamination between the two species.
The rabbit cage is far too small - doesn’t matter whether she is litter trained or not - rabbits need a minimum of a 3 metre by 2 metre enclosure at all times (so for an indoor rabbit that pretty much means free roam of a room).
Coupled with that you won’t be able to successfully train her until she is old enough to be spayed (which is around 6 months of age). Therefore it is not appropriate to keep her in a 4x2 c&c (which is not big enough even as a bedroom space even with constant access to another area) for many months (you say she is a baby). A 4x2 enclosure can be used as a base for her hay and litter tray etc but the door always needs to be left open so she can come and go as she pleases into a larger area. If she ever needs to be shut into an enclosure while you aren’t there etc, then the cage needs to be made much much bigger (I would not consider anything less than a 6x2 c&c).
She also needs a companion - rabbits should never be kept alone. A neutered buck (male rabbit) is the best companion. The buck and doe (both once spayed and neutered - you will find it very difficult to bond unneutered rabbit’s (never mind the pregnancy risk) cages also need to be side by side while they go through the correct bonding process (the bonding process is slightly different to that of bonding piggies).
You could get a female friend for your rabbit and introduce them, of course, without the risk of pregnancy. The issue is that they both need to be spayed immediately upon sexual maturity as two does tend to be territorial and can have issues in their bond when they reach maturity.
The best thing would be to see if there is a rescue centre near you who has a neutered buck and who can help with bonding.
The other reason female rabbits must be spayed is due to the high uterine cancer risk (along the lines of 80% at 2 years of age)
Rabbits and guinea pigs should not really be in the same room.
As a rabbit and guinea pig owner myself, i am fastidious with my hygiene and ensure there is no risk of any cross contamination between the two species.
The rabbit cage is far too small - doesn’t matter whether she is litter trained or not - rabbits need a minimum of a 3 metre by 2 metre enclosure at all times (so for an indoor rabbit that pretty much means free roam of a room).
Coupled with that you won’t be able to successfully train her until she is old enough to be spayed (which is around 6 months of age). Therefore it is not appropriate to keep her in a 4x2 c&c (which is not big enough even as a bedroom space even with constant access to another area) for many months (you say she is a baby). A 4x2 enclosure can be used as a base for her hay and litter tray etc but the door always needs to be left open so she can come and go as she pleases into a larger area. If she ever needs to be shut into an enclosure while you aren’t there etc, then the cage needs to be made much much bigger (I would not consider anything less than a 6x2 c&c).
She also needs a companion - rabbits should never be kept alone. A neutered buck (male rabbit) is the best companion. The buck and doe (both once spayed and neutered - you will find it very difficult to bond unneutered rabbit’s (never mind the pregnancy risk) cages also need to be side by side while they go through the correct bonding process (the bonding process is slightly different to that of bonding piggies).
You could get a female friend for your rabbit and introduce them, of course, without the risk of pregnancy. The issue is that they both need to be spayed immediately upon sexual maturity as two does tend to be territorial and can have issues in their bond when they reach maturity.
The best thing would be to see if there is a rescue centre near you who has a neutered buck and who can help with bonding.
The other reason female rabbits must be spayed is due to the high uterine cancer risk (along the lines of 80% at 2 years of age)
Expanding her cage isn’t a big deal, it was more so a baseline since she’s so small but everywhere I read said it was over requirements and I never heard rabbits NEED companions. Though I’m not against any improvement, I’m just new at bunnies lol but the question is more so about safety for my piggies. Would putting them up on a higher level a few feet apart from her enclosure be ok? If they’re out of sneezing distance? And would they need separate fleece liners? Would hot water be enough to disinfect? Avoiding the spread of disease and illness is my biggest concern
Ideally I’d have them in the same room at a safe distance if possible but if it’s not worth the risk I won’t bother, but was hoping raising their cage and keeping a bottle of hand sanitizer and washing my hands would be enough
Your post may be more about the safety of your piggies, but the care needs of the rabbit also need to be considered and met and at present without a companion and without a good sized space, they do need much improvement.
The cage is most certainly not over requirements, it is woefully under size sadly. 3 metres by 2 metres at a minimum, along with a base bedroom for litter trays and hay measuring at least 6ft by 2ft within the enclosure and that the door to the base bedroom door is never closed. Welfare requirements state that rabbits require 24/7 access to minimum of 60 square feet of space, so a 4x2 c&c covering only 13/14 square feet does not come anywhere near close. Rabbits need to be able to run, binky, and stretch up high and dig to meet their enrichment needs and she will not be able to run or binky in a small cage.
I’m shocked that you’ve not been able to research that rabbits need companions before you got her - it is well known that they are highly social animals and must have a companion - a single bunny will become lonely and destructive through boredom, depression is also a real possibility I’m afraid. It is one of their five rights - companionship of their own species. Their interaction is through physical touch and grooming but also through pheromones and body language which a human cannot replicate and consequently without a companion whom understands them, they can get very lonely.
As I said, the rabbit should ideally be kept in a totally separate room to the piggies to reduce all risk of cross contamination. I would not consider a few feet of space between them appropriate. It’s not just Bordatella, there are several illnesses which are transmissible and can cause health issues and potentially be fatal to piggies. Some illnesses are airborne so hand sanitizer won’t do anything to protect the piggies.
Do not share fleeces or any items between the species. They need everything separate.
A lot of sites said human companionship should be enough but what you said does make sense, obviously we cannot replicate a bond two bunnies will have. Again, not against improvement so I’ll expand her enclosure and work on bunny proofing the house. I got loads of spare grids thankfully and will definitely spay her when she’s old enough. Maybe shouldn’t trust the first results on google next time lol but ok, I won’t risk it. My piggies safety is my priority
I‘d suggest the sites were either not reputable and/or up to date on rabbit care!
The bond between two rabbits is beautiful. I spend ages watching my current pair snuggling up with each other and playing together.
The biggest issue you face is getting her a companion and attempting the bonding. As a youngster it is even more important that she has a friend now so she can learn social interactions while she is young. If you were to find a young female you might be able to get them bonded before they become sexually mature and hope you get them spayed quickly enough that hormonal behaviours don’t upset their bond, but bonding unspayed sexually mature females is pretty much impossible (they are too territorial) - not something I’d attempt even with my 35 years of rabbit keeping experience!
The best thing would be to get a buck and ensure they have no physical contact until they are both neutered and spayed and then bond them (Bucks can be neutered at 4 months old and does spayed at 6 months old) as a mixed sex neutered pair is much easier to bond and has better long term success.
Unfortunately by getting a young single rabbit you’ve thrown yourself in the deep end with needing two separate enclosures and have taken on a lot without bonding experience.
To bond, rabbits need to live side by side for a few weeks to get to know each other through the bars and then carrying out the neutral territory bonding. One method is to put them together for a few hours over a few weeks and then separate them back into their own enclosures - this has been a commonly accepted method of bonding rabbits but in some cases can cause issues if they are struggling with forming a hierarchy. The other method is living side by side for a few weeks and then doing the 24/7 bonding method and just putting them together in neutral territory.
Its different to piggy bonding and can be a lot more dramatic - you will see chasing, fur pulling etc.
You will find people who do keep piggies and rabbits in the same room but the risk is always there and for me is not something I would do (supported by my vets advice that they should not share air space). Much safer to keep them and everything entirely separate.
To add, it takes six weeks after a buck is neutered for him to become infertile so would still need to be kept apart for quite some months
As another piggy and rabbit owner I would agree with everything said above.
I would never risk having piggies and rabbits in the same air space.
I also have separate cupboards for their various supplies, and they never share anything.
As far as rabbits go I would say companionship of their own species is even more critical than for guinea pigs.
Based on 20+ years of rabbit ownership they rely heavily on physical contact, mutual grooming sessions and close physical interaction, none of which can be provided by human companionship.
Unlike guinea pigs my rabbits will always seek each other out, lay together and groom each other. OK our male does sometimes try to sit on his own, but the female will find him and sit with him anyway
If you can separate your rabbits and guinea pigs into 2 rooms then this will make it easier to set things up so you current bun can have free roam, and remove the stress from you having to worry about cross contamination between the 2 groups. As a single rabbit she will need a lot of space and a lot of stimulation to prevent her become bored, destructive and aggressive.
Please consider contacting a local rescue with a view to finding an older, neutered male as a companion which will reduce the time she has to live alone.
Do also be prepared for a bonding to be a lengthy and time consuming project.
I have had rabbits who have been in love at first sight and i have had bondings that have taken almost a month!
They really are fantastic pets if you have the time and space to house and care for them properly, so hopefully you can come up with a solution that meets everybody's needs.
I would never risk having piggies and rabbits in the same air space.
I also have separate cupboards for their various supplies, and they never share anything.
As far as rabbits go I would say companionship of their own species is even more critical than for guinea pigs.
Based on 20+ years of rabbit ownership they rely heavily on physical contact, mutual grooming sessions and close physical interaction, none of which can be provided by human companionship.
Unlike guinea pigs my rabbits will always seek each other out, lay together and groom each other. OK our male does sometimes try to sit on his own, but the female will find him and sit with him anyway
If you can separate your rabbits and guinea pigs into 2 rooms then this will make it easier to set things up so you current bun can have free roam, and remove the stress from you having to worry about cross contamination between the 2 groups. As a single rabbit she will need a lot of space and a lot of stimulation to prevent her become bored, destructive and aggressive.
Please consider contacting a local rescue with a view to finding an older, neutered male as a companion which will reduce the time she has to live alone.
Do also be prepared for a bonding to be a lengthy and time consuming project.
I have had rabbits who have been in love at first sight and i have had bondings that have taken almost a month!
They really are fantastic pets if you have the time and space to house and care for them properly, so hopefully you can come up with a solution that meets everybody's needs.