[Gpdd] MISC: Re: piggies and other animals

Guineapigfilms at aol.com Guineapigfilms at aol.com
Sun Jan 8 17:53:06 EST 2012


Linda,

I agree with your comments about having a household with a variety of 
animal species. It's certainly possible, and sometimes it can be a lot of fun.

And I also have to say--yes, mastiffs have big jaws, because they *are* big 
animals. But a friend of mine has a Mastiff Rescue and, in my years of 
acquaintance with these animals (and, mind you, these are mastiffs who are in 
Rescue because they've been abused  by humans), I would say that mastiffs are, 
for the most part, just big babies. In fact, many dog breeders will tell 
you--the bigger the dog, the bigger the baby. It's the tiny little terriers 
who look like ragmops that think they have to be fierce, like little bantam 
roosters. (The Napoleon complex, eh?)   ;-)

I also would say that it totally depends on the particular animal and its 
personality. Squwigr, my second Yorkie, got along great with Hazel, our first 
guinea pig. They would play together (constantly supervised, of course) all 
the time. Because Squwigr was bigger, we had to admonish him sometimes to 
be gentle, as he would sometimes try to play with her as if she were another 
puppy. But it was so funny--whenever we scolded Squwigr to "play gentle" and 
he'd get all subdued and stop playing--Hazel herself would go up and 
initiate play, much like a puppy herself! They loved each other so much and would 
look for each other, first thing in the morning. At the time Hazel was an 
"only pig" and Squwigr was an "only dog," so I think they bonded because they 
both needed an animal friend.

Milton, my third Yorkie, and Susie, my Westie, cannot be trusted with Otto, 
our current guinea pig. They both have a very strong terrier instinct. They 
don't have playtime together, and Otto is safely in a cage, high up on a 
table, in the living room. On the other hand, Milton did play (very closely 
supervised) with Waldo, one of our long-haired guinea pigs (who was somewhat 
free-range). Milton would even let Waldo drink out of his doggy water bowl!   
I'm pretty sure that Milton thought that Waldo, because of his long-haired 
appearance and very cunning personality, was another Yorkie! 

When Alyssa was making her guinea pig movies, we had 23 guinea pigs in huge 
open tubs in our living room. (You're right--we had NO living room for 
people!) Her cat, Precious, would wander through the house among the tubs and 
not bother the piggies at all. (We were supervising Precious's passage.) 
Precious and Alyssa's gerbils, hamsters, mice and rats were also friends. (Alyssa 
introduced them nose-to-nose.)

Now I will say that you have to be very intuitive about your own particular 
pets and very in-tune with their personalities and emotions in order for 
this type of bonding to be successful. I realize there are some dogs (my 
Westie Susie, for example) that could NEVER be trusted with a tiny rodent or 
guinea pig. Her terrier instinct is just too strong. We don't even put Otto 
outside in his outdoors pen in the backyard if either of the dogs is out there. 
(And we stay outside supervising Otto, when he's out in his pen partaking of 
his grassy salad bar buffet!)

Yet it's also interesting that our cat would chase and catch wild 
mice--yet, left our domesticated rodents alone (or just regarded them with friendly 
interest). And our cat was great friends with our Westie Susie, when she was 
a puppy. They'd play together for hours. But Susie will chase (and bark at) 
other neighborhood cats. Yet she loved Precious as if Precious was her 
substitute momma.

I do think animals can distinguish "friend from foe," even overriding their 
own instincts to be predators.

And the humans in the household need to play a HUGE role in supervising the 
inter-species play. You have to know your own animals very well and be 
tuned in to their feelings so things never get out of control or playtime never 
gets too rough (if the animals are allowed to play together).

Alyssa has a ferret, a cat, a Welsh corgi and a Chihuahua/Papillon mix--and 
all four animals, including the ferret, play together happily and roam 
freely. (Both dogs and the cat are rescues.) 

And Susie, my Westie, plays happily with Scout, the ferret, even carrying 
Scout around in her mouth! Both of them just adore each other! Susie never 
forgets to have a "soft, gentle mouth" when interacting with Scout.

I'm not suggesting that mastiffs and guinea pigs should play together. My 
dogs are tiny--not too much bigger than guinea pigs! Sizes should be pretty 
evenly matched. And, even then, there are some dogs and cats who will always 
see smaller animals as prey (instead of playmates), and owners need to take 
steps to protect the smaller animals.

Love and WHEEEEEEEEEPS,

Nancy (& the Very Vocal Guinea Pig Otto, who does NOT play with either of 
our dogs)
www.carrotwars.com



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