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hiya

my smaller piggy is still not gaining much weight - she is eating the hay and vegsgies but not the pellets.

not sure why - any advice would be appreciated - she does not seem unwell at all
x
 
Hi :)

If you could answer the following questions, it'd be really helpful as it'll just shed a bit more light on your piggies and your circumstances

How old is the piggy in question?

How long have you had piggy?

How often are you weighing? (could you give an example of the recent weights?)

Roughly how much does hay, veg and pellets make up her diet (e.g. veg 20%)?

Have her eating habits changed? Have you noticed that she was previously eating pellets but now shes not?
 
how much veg are you feeding? if you are feeding too much veg they will eat that rather than pellets which are more fatening! they should have around 1 cup each of mixed veg daily, if you are feeding more maybe cut back on the veg. Hay should be unlimited so thats fine. if she is still gaining I personally wouldnt be worrying too much, their weight gains will slow as they get older. obviously if she is losing then that is cause for concern. Another thing to take into consideration is the time you weigh them, you want to weigh them at the same time of the day, it's surprising how much difference that can make with a small animal.
Hope that helps.
 
How old is the piggy in question? she is 6weeks old

How long have you had piggy? we have had her 1 week

How often are you weighing? (could you give an example of the recent weights?) weighed her twice this week - first weight was 247g and now she is 270g so she has gained weight but her sister is 310g - i worry maybe she is bulllying her?

Roughly how much does hay, veg and pellets make up her diet (e.g. veg 20%)? hay 70%, veg 10%, pellet 20% - well meant to be but i have yet to see her eat them

Have her eating habits changed? Have you noticed that she was previously eating pellets but now shes not? i havent seen her eat very much dry food at all - when i got them they were on museli and i have changed them to pellets.

i have cut back on the veggies - trying to encourage the pellets and hay x
 
it could be the sudden change away from muesli. If that is all baby piggie had been eating the pellets would be so strange. Have you not got a bit of muesli you could mix in with the pellets? Or perhaps you could dampen the pellets? Not sure if this is right thing to do but sure someone will tell us if not!
 
Keep weighing her regularly as you are, at least once a week. I've not had little pigs myself, but those weights are small for 6 weeks, for both of them. Can I ask where you got them from? Her weight gain is good though. Someone with a bit more experience of young piggies will be able to advise further about the weights.

Like children (and any other animal!) some grow quicker than others, but you're right to consider that maybe the other is maybe dominating the food bowl.
You could introduce another food bowl, so that if this is the case, she still gets an opportunity to eat the pellets if the other piggy is being bossy over the bowl, or you could try scattering some pellets amongst the hay for her to forage for while she's munching.

Generally speaking, their diet should be at least 80% hay, 15% veggies and 5% pellets, so I wouldn't worry too much about her not eating many pellets if this hasn't changed (i.e. she was eating them but now has stopped). At this age pellets should be provided in an unlimited supply.

As long as she's getting an unlimited supply of good quality hay (meadow hay or timothy hay, with a handful or so of alfalfa hay added at this stage would be recommended), and she's eating her veg well and is getting some high vitamin C veg each day, I wouldn't worry too much about her not eating the pellets. She might be eating some, but just not many.

What pellets are you offering? Some are quite big for little pigs. There's a huge size difference between the original burgess nuggets and the blackcurrant and oregano ones. It might be worth trying some of the latter? I hear they generally go down well with young pigs and they're also quite small!
 
just checked its the blackcurrant and oregano ones we have - will add another food bowl in x
 
Those weights are small, they were probably too small to leave their mum :(

Try them on Harrington's pellets, they are tiny, you can buy them in Asda. Failing that use Wagg Guinea Pig Crunch as they don't have artificial colours in, mixed with some pellets. Please weigh them daily at this stage, at the same time of day.
 
a quick update

changed the girls back over to a muesli and they are eating away especially tink and she is now over 300g

so long may it continue - thanks for everyones advice
x
 
Good to hear she is eating ok :)
She may have just needed a 'settling' in period to her new surroundings etc. - all a bit overwhelming for a little one :))
All of ours have the Wagg (now Harrington's) optimum and a handful of Science Selective - they are varying ages so eat different amounts and took me a while to get a balance as was wasting an awful amount. The older piggies don't eat as many pellets as the younger ones but still get two helpings per day :(|)
 
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