Rabbit and Guinea Pig Behaviour Consultancy

Pet behaviour therapy or counselling has grown out of public demand. Rabbits and guinea pigs are the most common pets kept today and yet it is amazing how many owners struggle to comprehend their pets behaviour. Its understandable really. After all, when you learned to speak English it took you several years of daily practice & trial and error. Sometimes we still get it wrong as adults! You cant be expected to understand what your rabbit or guinea pig is telling you right away, because you don’t speak fluent rabbit or guinea pig! But we do and we can act as an “interpreter”. You should be reassured that there will always be a reason why your pet behaves in a certain way and that for the vast majority of the time, if the behaviour is problematic, it is simple to rectify. The chances are, we will have seen it and treated it before too!

Some animals do display behaviour that is destructive, aggressive and is difficult to live with or understand. With a huge growth in the number of bunnies being kept as free range house rabbits it has become even more important to get inside what makes these beautiful creatures tick and how to live along side them with the maximum understanding between rabbit and owner.

Lorna has many many years of experience with closely observing the behaviour patterns of hundreds of rabbits and guinea pigs both as an owner and as a rescuer and Lorna recently undertook a fascinating two part course in "Animal Communication"

Frequently Asked Questions

I think my pet needs your help. What do we do?

If you are purely interested in knowing more about your pets “normal” behaviour then you can contact us right away.

If your pet is displaying destructive or aggressive behaviour then you must make sure that there is nothing physically wrong with your pet first. You should take your pet to the vets for a check up (we can recommend a good small animal vet if you don’t have one already) and at the consultation mention that you are considering using our services. Please give our contact details to the vet and ensure he or she is happy for you to come to us once your animal is given a clean bill of health. If you wish we can send you a free information sheet and business card to give to your vet which explains who we are and what we do.

What will you do for us?

Are you a qualified animal behaviourist?

Lorna has no official “on paper” qualification and would not wish to mislead anyone into thinking this was the case.

What she does have is the culmination of years and years of working very closely with her own pets and their various problems and of working in our rescue centre where she cares for rabbits and guinea pigs from all kinds of backgrounds, with all kinds of behavioural difficulties day in, day out, all year round. Many of the animals here at the rescue are left here purely because of these behaviour problems and we know we cannot rehome them until this behaviour is resolved. Experience has shown us it is almost always possible for Lorna to find the cause of this behaviour and to modify it, so that when the animal does find a new home both owner and animal are able to have a normal life, free from the stress of adverse behaviour. We are able to provide references for people who will happily tell you we have transformed the relationship they have with their pet through the advice and care Lorna has offered them. We can also tell you stories of many more animals who arrived at the centre as aggressive, terrified animals and left as happy, confident and affectionate pets.

We have another animal (not a rabbit or guinea pig) who might need help. Will you see them?

Lorna’s area of greatest “hands on” experience is ONLY with rabbits and guinea pigs although with Animal Communication Training, in theory, it should be possible to gain some positive insight with any animal.

Here is Lorna having a communication with a lovely horse we met in Central Park, New York!

However, if you have another pet in need of therapy we will be able to contact someone we know with experience in that particular area. We are able to refer to a wide range of specialists including Dog trainers, Reiki practitioners, Horse whisperers, aromatherapists, “T Touch” therapists, and qualified animal behaviourists.

What will all of this cost?

Our primary objective as an animal welfare organisation is just that: Animal Welfare. That’s why you can trust our advice. We will not keep recommending consultations just to make more money from you. Infact, you do not have to give us any money at all if you feel the advice we have given hasn’t helped at all.

Unlike petshops and breeders whose primary objectives when giving advice are sales and profit, we just want you and your pet to be happy. Pets with behaviour problems probably aren’t happy, many end up in rescues because of them, and that’s why this service was born.

We also know not everyone can afford to spend hundreds of pounds on “therapy” for their pets and that’s why we rely on goodwill and:

WE DO NOT MAKE A SET CHARGE FOR THIS SERVICE. WE ASK FOR DONATIONS TO OUR RESCUE.

However, when thinking about how much to give please remember: