Rabbits or Guinea pigs

[Sunflowerpower52]

We are looking for our next pet ( we have always just had hamsters) we would absolutely love a pair of bunnies or guinea pigs.

I am doing all the research possible, I had a rescue rabbit 30 years ago as a child, but I expect a few guidelines have changed.

Keen to hear from anyone who has any advice on either or pros and cons of both.

Thank you

I have 6 piggies, kept indoors in C&C style cage in their own room 🙈 They're fairly low maintenance, they go outside in the summer in a run during the day if it's nice (and not too hot). If you have loads of time to spend with them then they get very tame and some enjoy cuddles/pets but many don't. Generally the advice is to keep pigs indoors but you can have them outdoors in an insulated hutch or shed. The hutch should be large enough for the number of pigs, so basically bigger than most hutches you'd get from pets at home! Keeping them indoors they get tame by default really and it's so lovely to see them throughout the day.

Rabbits I think are a lot more work. Hutches I don't think are recommended anymore, either indoors or a kennel with run type set up. My friend had house bunnies and they were a lot of work, but lovely company and very sweet.

I know someone who has rabbits, they are house rabbits so have a bedroom all to themselves.
I don’t know wether it’s her being bonkers but honestly they are such high maintenance- she won’t leave them for more than a few hours at a time so has been known to get a ‘babysitter’ when she goes out!
It’s like having twin toddlers that never grow up…

Guinea pigs are a delight.

Guinea pigs are just angelic little darlings sent to bring joy and squeaky happiness.

Piggies all the way! Great little personalities and love a cuddle ❤️

Def Guinea pigs - I used to love it when you came out to feed them and they get so excited and squeaky and they are easy to handle

I'd suggest speaking to a couple of rescues and seeing if you feel the same after speaking to them.

I love and have had both but as you say, so much has changed, not least the cost of veterinary care, the need to keep in pairs and sheer worry of fragile pets.

I love both but I'd recommend neither 🫢

I've got 2 male guinea pigs that live indoors. I keep them on fleece bedding plus a litter tray, with an outdoor run for when the weather's good.

They make lovely pets, very characterful, and (helpfully for us) they're too big for cats to bother. If you go for piggies please don't leave them in a cage outside! they do like company, and although they don't mind the cold, they hate the damp, it's not good for them.

That says it all 😍

Guinea pigs are generally far more social and friendly than rabbits. Rabbits are prey animals and, in my experience, often behave like it. The pigs I’ve had have been far easier to handle and enjoy. You need a pair (as a minimum). They should never been kept alone.

Keep them indoors and change their bedding (lots of people use fleece) regularly. Make sure to have a large, safe run outside for them to stretch their legs and enjoy the grass.

Rabbits need lots and lots of space. Far more than most people think!

You may wish to ask MNHQ to move this to the small pets board for more traction.
I don’t hav experience of guinea pigs but I have rabbits. They are not very child friendly pets. They need a lot of space, a lot of care and do not like being picked and held. Mine live happily and slightly ferally in my garden, they’ve eaten everything in sight and have dig a burrow at the bottom of my garden.
But I have young adults who enjoy them, and don’t demand anything of them. They’d be terrible pets for young kids.

A bunny fan here... I love that they can be litter trained, whereas GPs don't have the same bowel control. We've had both house rabbits and outdoor bunnies. The house rabbits would chew everything, so we had to make sure that everywhere was rabbit-proofed!

I feel like they all have such unique personalities, regardless of whether they are a GP or bunny. So my main recommendation would be to go for a social pet ... It's wonderful when they are playful and love spending time with humans!

I’m team guinea pig!

We got 2 piggies at the start of the year, and so far so good, they are both pretty friendly and happy being handled, and get very excited when my daughter returns from school (she feeds them!). The cage is MUCH larger than we used for 2 Guinea pigs when i was a child.

I have house rabbits, and have had them for a decade, after having a rabbit as a child.

You’re right, OP, that expectations have changed massively since then. They absolutely must be kept in bonded pairs and have permanent access to a secure run with plenty of hidey holes, of at least 1m x 2m. I would personally not keep them outside as we have urban foxes and also I think they benefit a lot from human company. They need vaccinating and neutering (even if kept in same sex pairs - males will fight and females will often get uterine cancer if not neutered).

I adore mine but they are not a suitable pet for children. They hate being picked up and have very fragile skeletons and can suffer terrible injuries if dropped. The best home for them is one where their humans meet them on their own terms. Ours follow us around in the day, sit by us in the evening and will happily have a stroke as long as their paws remain firmly on the carpet. They are creatures of mood, though, sometimes they don’t want to be sociable, and they doze a lot during the day. They aren’t amenable to being dragged out of their house for a cuddle, so they and children would not get on. We sometimes joke that they have no notion of providing “minimum service standards” to their source of food (us!)

Guinea pigs. I knew someone who had rabbits and the kids couldn't hold them as they'd nip. My pigs have never bitten.

I got mine as babies and it was a nightmare as unbeknownst to me one had ringworm. It was a nightmare but because I had to handle them a lot when they were little they're now very friendly and open to being picked up.

I like their squeaky sweet innocence.

*edited for typo

Guinea Pigs are easier and generally friendlier (in my experience) but it depends on who you are getting them for (a young child would manage to hold a guinea pig more than a wriggly rabbit, for example). Rabbits are also lovely but need more space and maintainance than Guinea Pigs. Both are social so you need at least two or three. They are very different so be clear what you are looking for in your next pet.

Team rabbit here. TOILET TRAINED!!!!

I have had rabbits. I kept them outside in a well made well insulated hutch and gave them the whole well fenced garden to live in in the day just put them in the hutch at night.
I loved them they would follow me around and I never had to mow the lawn,
However they hated being picked up they weren't very friendly with the children and as they were a male female pair they were expensive to have neutered.
Also if you go on holiday it can be difficult to get them looked after.
I would not recommend rabbits as pets for children.
I think a cat would have been easier.

I loved our guineas. Indoor piggies though, with a big cage.

Guinea Pigs! They have to be in pairs though and when one dies you need to get a new mate pretty quick or they die of loneliness/heartbreak so 3 is a good number. A small point, out of the lettuces, they can only tolerate Romaine and don't give them too much spinach as the high level of calcium can play havoc with their tums.
Have them indoors though. Get a c and c cage (Google it) for plenty of room. **

I’ve heard rabbits don’t want to be pets at all so they’re not great if you’re expecting something to play with or pet. Guinea pigs are probably a better shout, though you need two because they can’t be alone.

My nephew has had 2 bunnies. First one liked to be by themselves and doing their own thing and didn't like to be petted. The current one likes people, comes close, can sit next to you for an hour and lived being petted. They are also house trained so that's nice. I just feel like they're a lot fo work for what you get. But I get the same feeling about guide a pigs

Definitely guinea pigs; having had both, they’re easier and more friendly. And keep them inside c and c cages perfect, ours is my daughters best friend 😍

One of ours died. We tried to link the remaining one with another, didn’t tolerate it and we tried for a second time some time later, still didn’t. He’s now been alone for over 2 years, it makes us sad but he seems to love life. He gets a lot of attention daily from my daughter but it’s not always the case you have to get another!