Are pellets needed?

[Fizzgig&squishie]

Our piggies love their pellets, but we are sure to only feed them 1 tablespoon per piggie per day, which they eat pretty quickly after being fed. Our pellets are just Timothy pellets from the same farm that we get our hay boxes from (KMS Hayloft here in the US). Why do they like them so much - just variety? Are they needed for vitamins or basically just a morning treat? For reference they always have access to unlimited Timothy and oat hay and get a cup of mostly leafy veg per might.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Pellets are fortified with vitamins and minerals so they serve a purpose in ensuring all their dietary needs are met. However they are just a supplement to their diet. If you can be entirely sure you can meet all their dietary needs by providing a good balance of veg, natural forages and grass (as well as hay), then you technically don’t ‘need’ to give them pellets

 

[Fizzgig&squishie]

Thank you! I’m happy to see then that the KMS pellets are fortified. They will keep getting their breakfast pellets!
We are trying our best to provide a balanced healthy diet, but these are my first herbivores so it is really different
We regularly feed cilantro, baby mix lettuce, green/red/yellow peppers, dill, and other occasional treats of fruit, parsley, cabbage, etc.
I have just begun foraging and it is really fun because I am literally a professional botanist, so can ID all the plants. They have really been enjoying a bit of fresh spring grass, many species, including ripgut brome, slender oats, and hair grass. I’m really careful about awns, though - only immature awns or soft ones. Tomorrow we’ll go look for some bedstraw, as I see here many piggies love it! I think you might call it sticky weed or something similar, Galium sp.
Fizzgig says hi and thank you!