Feed a Guinea Pig

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As a pet owner, your biggest goal should be to maintain the health and happiness of your pet. One of the main ways you can do this is to feed it a balanced and healthy diet. Guinea pigs, like all other pets, require specific nutrients for them to thrive. If you take the time to make sure your guinea pig is fed a healthy diet, it will go a long way towards assuring that they have a happy and healthy life.

Steps

Providing a Well-Balanced Diet

  1. Feed your guinea pig hay. Guinea pigs love hay! They need it for digestive and dental health. Guinea pigs should have unlimited access to hay, which often means refilling a good-sized dish 3 to 5 times daily.
    • Timothy hay is the best hay for all guinea pigs in general. They will happily eat it and play with it, and it's healthy for pigs of all ages.
    • Alfalfa hay contains a lot of calcium, so is inappropriate for older pigs except as an occasional treat. Even if your guinea pig loves alfalfa hay, use it sparingly. It should not be a part of their everyday diet. Think of it as a dessert, or a treat.
      • Alfalfa hay should be used for pregnant or nursing sows, and young guinea pigs under 4months of age.
    • Other types of hay include meadow hay, bluegrass hay, brome grass hay, oat hay, and orchard grass. These can be used occasionally to vary your guinea pigs diet.
    • Look for hay that is green and soft, as yellow and hard hay means it's actually straw.
    • Hay can be purchased from pet stores, but often it has sat too long, which isn't very healthy for guinea pigs. You can often order hay directly from a local farm, or through your exotics veterinarian, which is often cheaper and better hay.
  2. Feed your guinea pig about a cup of fresh vegetables daily.[1] The key is to provide it with a lot of variety, so that it gets a balanced diet. Veggies that are good for guinea pigs include celery, carrots, off-the-vine tomatoes, cucumber, corn, kale, a bit of raw broccoli, small amounts of spinach and pod-peas[2].
    • Other vegetables such as beetroot, parsley or small quantities of pepper and forages such as clover or dandelion leaves (wash them first), should be given on occasion.[3]
    • Do not give your guinea pigs spoiled or wilted vegetables. Remember, don't feed them any vegetables in poor enough shape that you wouldn't eat them.
  3. Feed your guinea pig pellets. Be aware pellets are high energy, and eating too many can lead to obesity and dental problems. Feed only an 1/8 to 1/4 cup per day to supplement the other parts of its diet.
    • Look for pellets that are supplemented with vitamin C. This is an important nutrient that guinea pigs need in their diet.
    • Avoid providing muesli feed as this can lead to selective feeding.
    • Only use pellets designed for guinea pigs. Pellets for rabbits or other rodents aren't suitable for guinea pigs as they contain different quantities of essential vitamins and nutrients.

Feeding Your Guinea Pig

  1. Make sure your guinea pig is getting enough vitamin-C. Guinea pigs are one of the very few mammals (along with humans) who can't make their own vitamin C, so they need to get it from their food. They need 10 - 30 MG of Vitamin C daily.[4] Vegetables that are high in vitamin-C, and that are good for your guinea pig, include dark, leafy greens, bell peppers, broccoli, and cauliflower.
    • Guinea Pigs are highly prone to getting scurvy, which is a disease caused by low levels of Vitamin C.
    • You can supplement your guinea pig's vitamin-c intake
    • Putting vitamin-c into your guinea pig's water is not recommended. Adding vitamin C to the water can cause a guinea pig to stop drinking water if they don't like the taste. In addition, it's hard to control how much vitamin C your guinea pig is getting, as they may drink a little or a lot of water.
  2. Avoid giving guinea pigs foods that are bad for them. This includes large amounts of fruits with high sugar contents (they should only be given in moderation) and any starchy vegetables, such as potatoes.[5]
    • Vegetables to avoid feeding your guinea pigs include iceberg lettuce, rocket salads, red leaves, cauliflower, beet greens, potatoes, and radishes.
    • Feed fruit in small quantities. Not only does fruit have a high sugar content, but it may also have a low calcium to phosphorus ratio, which could lead to bladder problems and possible diarrhea.[6] This is true in fruits such as raisins.
    • Avoid giving your guinea pig citrus fruits altogether.[7]
    • Guinea pigs are herbivores. This means that they should not be fed any meat or dairy products.[8]
  3. Avoid commercial guinea pig treats. These are a waste of money and are not good for your pet. Your guinea pig would like a treat of a piece of apple or rolled oats much more than a commercial treat filled with sugar and the natural treat is much better for them.[9]
  4. Feed a balanced diet, instead of supplementing with multivitamins or salt wheels. These kind of additions to your pet's diet are not necessary if you take the time to feed your guinea pig well. If you do need to feed your guinea pig supplements, consider giving it vet-approved supplements that are high in fiber.
  5. Control the amount of food you give your guinea pig. Guinea pigs chew instinctively and will eat as much as you feed them throughout the day. Watch how much you give them and stick to a balanced diet. Explain this gently to small kids who own guinea pigs so that they do not overfeed their pets.
  6. Serve food in ceramic dishes. Guinea pigs will chew on anything they can get their teeth on, including their food dishes. Opt for a heavy ceramic dish that can't be easily be overturned and won't be easily destroyed.[10]
  7. Keep food fresh. Uneaten food should be removed promptly, within one day. Guinea pigs can be picky eaters, so keeping food in their cage longer will probably not make it any more appealing to them. If they have avoided it for a whole day, they are probably never going to eat it and it will just simply become a mess in their cage.
  8. Adjust food quantities if the guinea pig becomes underweight or overweight.[11] The amount of food a guinea pig will need depends on its age, its lifestyle, and its general health. This means that the amount of food you feed your guinea pig may need to change over time to keep them in good health.
  9. Provide fresh water at all times.[12] Place a water bottle in your guinea pig's cage, so that it can access clean water at any time. Don't allow the water bottle to become empty. If a guinea pig doesn't have access to water it can become very ill.
    • The best water bottles are designed for guinea pigs or rabbits and have a metal ball in the spout.
    • If your guinea pigs lives in a pen outside, make sure that the water doesn't freeze during the winter.
    • Clean the water bottle nozzle frequently with a Q-tip to keep it free of obstructions and food residue. Clean the water bottle itself by placing uncooked rice and a little water in the bottle, and then shaking it vigorously. The rice will dislodge any greenish (algae) build-up.
  10. Let your guinea pig graze occasionally. If you have a lawn that you know does not have chemicals on it and is not used by by other pets for urinating and defecating, you can let your guinea pig graze on it. Get a fully enclosed outdoor run and let your guinea pig roam around in it during warm weather. Just make sure there is no breeze and the temperatures are between 60 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit (15-24 degrees Celsius).
    • Only allow them outdoors in a run when supervised. While some guinea pigs do live in pens outdoors, they should not be left in an open-air pen without supervision. This could leave them exposed to predators or allow them to escape.
    • Make sure they have a dark place for them to hide in from the sun, or if something scares them.
    • Move the run around from day-to-day. Guinea pigs will keep your lawn nice and short, and they fertilize it too.

Tips

  • Guinea pigs each have their own food preferences. If they consistently leave a certain food, they probably don't like it. However, don't be discouraged; sometimes it takes a few bites to figure out that it is tasty. This is especially true if your guinea pigs are young or if you have just acquired them from pet store, which usually only provides one type of food. They may not have a diverse palate quite yet.

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ http://www.guinealynx.info/diet.html
  2. ↑ http://www.rspca.org.uk/adviceandwelfare/pets/rodents/guineapigs/diet
  3. ↑ http://www.guinealynx.info/diet.html
  4. ↑ http://www.guinealynx.info/diet.html
  5. ↑ http://www.guinealynx.info/fave.html
  6. ↑ http://www.guinealynx.info/diet_ratio.html
  7. ↑ http://www.rspca.org.uk/adviceandwelfare/pets/rodents/guineapigs/diet
  8. ↑ http://www.guinealynx.info/nutrition.html
  9. ↑ http://www.guinealynx.info/nutrition.html
  10. ↑ http://www.humanesociety.org/animals/guinea_pigs/tips/guinea_pig_feeding.html
  11. ↑ http://www.rspca.org.uk/adviceandwelfare/pets/rodents/guineapigs/diet
  12. ↑ http://www.rspca.org.uk/adviceandwelfare/pets/rodents/guineapigs/diet

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