Not all pet pairings finish in friendship. Cats, for instance, don’t are inclined to get together with, and will attempt to eat prey animals like guinea pigs, rabbits, hamsters, and mainly any pet you home in a cage or tank. It’s simple to overlook that our candy little home kitties are born predators, and their predatory instincts inform them such critters are prey and meals. It’s disturbing for us, however do not forget that cats merely function by nature’s guidelines, and looking is as pure as respiratory is to them.
Proudly owning a cat and guinea pig on the identical time will be difficult for quite a lot of causes and we’d usually advise towards maintaining each in the identical family. Cats can generally be educated to disregard the guinea pig and coexist peacefully, however there’s all the time that lingering predatory tickle of their minds with regard to prey creatures. It’s a hazard that requires fixed vigilance, each by you and your guinea pig.
For those who’d wish to study extra about cats and guinea pigs, you’re in the best place. Down under, we’ll be speaking a bit extra about every of their locations within the animal kingdom, and tips about defending your guinea pig out of your cat.
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Cats within the Wild
Cats are obligate carnivores, pushed by tens of millions of years of evolution to hunt prey like rodents, birds, lizards, fish, and extra. Occasionally, they’ve been identified to eat bugs as properly, however they don’t make a behavior of it. In contrast to canine, cats achieve nearly no dietary profit from carbohydrates. Fairly, they achieve the majority of their vitamins by way of protein and fats.
Due to their excessive protein wants, cats have turn out to be honed killing machines. Their eager nostril, stealthy dexterity, low-light imaginative and prescient, and must chase are all tuned for one goal: looking and killing smaller animals. As cat homeowners know, this predatory intuition manifests in some ways, from chasing plastic luggage and yarn, to stalking and pouncing on roaches.
An vital closing observe about cats is that they’re solitary hunters that choose to be alone until looking for out a mate or caring for younger. They don’t have any household construction much like our personal and do their very own factor whatever the setting. Siblings will usually fortunately co-exist, and plenty of will benefit from the companionship of one other cat, however by their nature, they won’t essentially search or yearn for feline firm.
Guinea Pigs within the Wild
In stark distinction to cats, guinea pigs are social animals that reside in small household items of three to 12 guinea pigs per group. These teams are diverse and even type complicated hierarchies. You see alpha guinea pig males dominating “decrease” males, in addition to claiming extra land and mates. The guinea pigs we all know and love hint again to the tough South American mountains the place they’ve tailored to outlive amidst harsh climate and harmful predators.
Guineas are adept at not solely digging, which any proprietor is aware of, however mountain climbing and long-distance operating too. As a result of they’re prey animals, hunted by practically each predator on the market, guinea pigs are continuously on the transfer within the security of numbers, and within the seek for meals. Particularly, vegetation of practically any kind. Due to their pure social construction, guinea pigs saved as pets ought to by no means be housed alone.
In one other distinction to cats, guinea pigs are completely herbivorous and depend on vegetation for many of their meals and water consumption. Most leafy greens are largely water, in any case. Two of probably the most important vitamins for a guinea pig are fiber and vitamin C, which helps a wholesome physique and staves off scurvy.
Do Cats Eat Guinea pigs?
Today, cats usually are not going to come across guinea pigs within the wild, until they occur upon one which has escaped their enclosure, so that they wouldn’t be thought-about a part of a cat’s pure eating regimen. Nonetheless, a fast-moving, squeaky little creature like a guinea pig is prone to be fairly irresistible to a cat on the prowl.
In case you have a cat that goes open air, you’ve little doubt been witness to their looking escapades. Some cats are very primal, and can hunt, kill, and eat their prey. Others seem to have the looking drive, however not essentially the follow-through. Their instincts inform them to chase, pounce, and catch the prey, however 1000’s of years of domestication have made them overlook why. So that they play with the hapless creature, and infrequently carry it to their people as some type of providing, alive or lifeless.
So the reply to the query “Do Cats Eat Guinea Pigs” is: Perhaps. However even when they don’t eat a guinea pig, there’s a excessive probability they’ll nonetheless kill it, as a result of cats that aren’t voracious hunters are nonetheless unlikely to withstand enjoying together with your cute cavy, and that play is prone to finish badly.
How you can Defend Your Guinea Pig From Your Cat
Cats and guinea pigs usually are not a great combine, however it’s extremely dependent in your cat’s temperament. Younger, hyperactive kittens are positively a no-go, however a extra laid-back senior cat may work. To assist maintain your guinea pig secure out of your cat, think about a few of our useful suggestions under.
Maintain your guinea pig in a secure, safe enclosure when your cat is free in your house.
When letting your guinea pig out for some train or socialization, think about placing your cat in a crate or confined to a room.
Even when your cat is restrained, watch them and your guinea pig for any alarming conduct.
If potential, maintain your guinea pig in a completely separate space of your own home that your cat doesn’t have free entry to.
A very vital consideration when maintaining these species collectively in a single family is the invisible results it could have. Whether or not they present it or not, your cat is conscious of your cavy pals, and they’re very a lot conscious of your cat. This may imply that your cat is usually switched onto looking mode, alert and able to pounce, which may truly be fairly taxing for them. To your guinea pigs, figuring out there’s a cat about will maintain them on excessive alert on a regular basis. This might imply continual stress and even sleep deprivation. So even when you don’t observe any apparent interactions between these two species, they are going to be having an impact on each other.
Image dwelling in a home, figuring out there are Velociraptors outdoors. You may go about your day-to-day actions indoors, however you’re continuously conscious of, and in worry of, being eaten.
Conclusion
Cats naturally understand guinea pigs as prey and can virtually all the time hunt and kill them if left unsupervised collectively. Equally, guinea pigs will all the time understand your cat as predatory, whether or not they present curiosity in them or not. Whereas it may be potential for some cats to coexist with guinea pigs, you need to all the time maintain them bodily separated from one another always to stop accidents from occurring. For those who at present have one or the opposite, think about the wellbeing of each species earlier than placing them in the identical dwelling.
In case you have a cat or cats and are determined so as to add a pocket pet into your life, think about a rat. Though rats are a common prey species for cats, their assured and curious natures imply they coexist with felines rather more fortunately, and in some (very rigorously monitored) conditions, may even type friendships.
Featured Picture Credit score: Lipatova Maryna, Shutterstock
