Best guinea pig grain mix?

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scpiggy

scpiggy

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I feed my pigs on excel pellets but since one of my girls had dental work done she will only eat guinea pig museli rather than the full pellets. I tried weening her off the museli and back on to excel but she's not having any of it. So now I'm looking to start them all on museli but dont know whcih brand is the best. The museli i've tried them with is a mix made a shop nearby, so not an actual brand and while they enjoy it i'm not sure how good it is for them. Is there anyone who can suggest a good grain mix?
 
I did use Waggs muesli mix, but i'm finding it really hard to get hold of these days! So switched to Supremes mix.

http://www.supremepetfoods.com/product/gerty-guinea-pig-complete-muesli/

'Nutritionally complete and balanced diet
Promotes natural foraging behaviour
Added vitamin C – 250mg/kg, an essential daily requirement
Enhances digestive health & dental wear with optimum fibre levels
Rich in fibre – 10% with Lucerne known for its quality
Carefully blended natural ingredients for interest and enjoyment
No added sugar to reduce the likelihood of obesity
Nutritionally optimised to provide high quality dietary satisfaction
Composition:
Alfalfa, flaked peas, flaked maize, wheat, flaked wheat, oats, soya flakes, extruded locust beans, anise and fenugreek oil, soya oil, oranges, bananas, minerals, salt'
 
hayls<3 said:
I did use Waggs muesli mix, but i'm finding it really hard to get hold of these days! So switched to Supremes mix.

http://www.supremepetfoods.com/product/gerty-guinea-pig-complete-muesli/

'Nutritionally complete and balanced diet
Promotes natural foraging behaviour
Added vitamin C – 250mg/kg, an essential daily requirement
Enhances digestive health & dental wear with optimum fibre levels
Rich in fibre – 10% with Lucerne known for its quality
Carefully blended natural ingredients for interest and enjoyment
No added sugar to reduce the likelihood of obesity
Nutritionally optimised to provide high quality dietary satisfaction
Composition:
Alfalfa, flaked peas, flaked maize, wheat, flaked wheat, oats, soya flakes, extruded locust beans, anise and fenugreek oil, soya oil, oranges, bananas, minerals, salt'
Click to expand...

The supreme mix looks really good, i've also had a look online and found a couple of places to buy waggs mix so now trying to decide which looks best. Might buy both and see which they prefer.
Is there a risk of upsetting their tummies by switching their food around too much?
 
I feed my piggies Waggs guinea crunch. I always get empty bowls and it's available in most pet shops. ;)
 
hayls<3 said:
I did use Waggs muesli mix, but i'm finding it really hard to get hold of these days! So switched to Supremes mix.

http://www.supremepetfoods.com/product/gerty-guinea-pig-complete-muesli/

'Nutritionally complete and balanced diet
Promotes natural foraging behaviour
Added vitamin C – 250mg/kg, an essential daily requirement
Enhances digestive health & dental wear with optimum fibre levels
Rich in fibre – 10% with Lucerne known for its quality
Carefully blended natural ingredients for interest and enjoyment
No added sugar to reduce the likelihood of obesity
Nutritionally optimised to provide high quality dietary satisfaction
Composition:
Alfalfa, flaked peas, flaked maize, wheat, flaked wheat, oats, soya flakes, extruded locust beans, anise and fenugreek oil, soya oil, oranges, bananas, minerals, salt'
Click to expand...


Please don't give Gerty to your piggies, it contains EU permitted colourants which have been linked to neurological problems & false positive diabetes in piggies :(

Wagg Guinea Crunch is better if you have to feed a muesli type food. I mix that with Wagg Optimim pellets, my piggies love them & eat it all :)

Wagg Optimum is sold as Harringtons in Asda now I believe & Wilkinsons & Morrisons sell Wagg Guinea Crunch.
 
scpiggy said:
The supreme mix looks really good, i've also had a look online and found a couple of places to buy waggs mix so now trying to decide which looks best. Might buy both and see which they prefer.
Is there a risk of upsetting their tummies by switching their food around too much?
Click to expand...

Try them on a small amount to start with. Wagg Optimum pellets (Now called Harringtons) are much smaller than Excel so your piggy may find them easier to eat.

http://www.waggfoods.co.uk/about_wa...g-Optimum-Premium-Rabbit-and-Guinea-Pig-foods
 
Poppy'sMum said:
Please don't give Gerty to your piggies, it contains EU permitted colourants which have been linked to neurological problems & false positive diabetes in piggies :(

Wagg Guinea Crunch is better if you have to feed a muesli type food. I mix that with Wagg Optimim pellets, my piggies love them & eat it all :)

Wagg Optimum is sold as Harringtons in Asda now I believe & Wilkinsons & Morrisons sell Wagg Guinea Crunch.
Click to expand...

:( deffinatly going to stay away from Gerty then. I guess Waggs it is, found some good deals for it online. :)
 
Poppy'sMum said:
Please don't give Gerty to your piggies, it contains EU permitted colourants which have been linked to neurological problems & false positive diabetes in piggies :(

Wagg Guinea Crunch is better if you have to feed a muesli type food. I mix that with Wagg Optimim pellets, my piggies love them & eat it all :)

Wagg Optimum is sold as Harringtons in Asda now I believe & Wilkinsons & Morrisons sell Wagg Guinea Crunch.
Click to expand...

:... Sorry Poppy's I wasn't aware! Best stick to Wagg then!
I bought Supreme for the pigs as I couldn't find Wagg anywhere.

Had a look at Waggs additives list, does this look ok? it's got colourants in it too?

Vitamin A 20,000 iu, Vitamin D3 1,200 iu, Vitamin E (alpha tocopherol acetate) 40 iu, Vitamin C (ascorbyl monophosphate) 200 mg. Trace Elements: Iron (iron lll ferric oxide) 360 mg, Iron (iron sulphate) 3 mg, Iodine (calcium iodate) 0.6 mg, Copper (cupric sulphate pentahydrate) 2.5 mg, Manganese (manganous oxide) 12 mg, Zinc (zinc oxide) 10 mg, Zinc (zinc chelate) 10 mg. *Colourants, Antioxidant. *Colourants
 
hayls<3 said:
:... Sorry Poppy's I wasn't aware! Best stick to Wagg then!
I bought Supreme for the pigs as I couldn't find Wagg anywhere.

Had a look at Waggs additives list, does this look ok? it's got colourants in it too?

Vitamin A 20,000 iu, Vitamin D3 1,200 iu, Vitamin E (alpha tocopherol acetate) 40 iu, Vitamin C (ascorbyl monophosphate) 200 mg. Trace Elements: Iron (iron lll ferric oxide) 360 mg, Iron (iron sulphate) 3 mg, Iodine (calcium iodate) 0.6 mg, Copper (cupric sulphate pentahydrate) 2.5 mg, Manganese (manganous oxide) 12 mg, Zinc (zinc oxide) 10 mg, Zinc (zinc chelate) 10 mg. *Colourants, Antioxidant. *Colourants
Click to expand...

Their colourants are from natural minerals, not artificial ones as in the Supreme mix.

The CCT were getting piggies referred to them because their owners were told by vets their pigs were diabetic. Diabetes can occur in piggies but it is extremely rare. That's when a link was found with EU artificial colourants. I stopped using Supreme after both of my first pair of piggies died from neurological problems & I haven't had a problem since. Of course it is hard to prove, but false positive tests for diabetes could result in unnecessary tests & treatment or worse, so not worth the risk in my opinion.

Pellets are better to feed than a mix. I use mainly Optimum pellets with a tiny amount of Crunch mixed in.
 
Poppy'sMum said:
The Optimum ones are pellets, tiny ones so easier for them to eat.

This is the old packaging :

http://www.waggfoods.co.uk/products.aspx?ProductID=13

And the new one:

http://www.waggfoods.co.uk/about_wa...g-Optimum-Premium-Rabbit-and-Guinea-Pig-foods

The product is the same. :)
Click to expand...

Ahh ok :) I think those are sold at the sainsburys i usually shop at so it should be easy for me to get some. Just hope they're good enough for my fussy little girl. rolleyes :p

Thank you all for your suggestions, I'll buy some of these as soon as possible and let you know how she gets on with them
 
scpiggy said:
Ahh ok :) I think those are sold at the sainsburys i usually shop at so it should be easy for me to get some. Just hope they're good enough for my fussy little girl. rolleyes :p

Thank you all for your suggestions, I'll buy some of these as soon as possible and let you know how she gets on with them
Click to expand...

They're not that expensive but if you are worried about her not liking Wagg pellets pm me your address & I'll pop a few in the post if you like :)
 
Poppy'sMum said:
Their colourants are from natural minerals, not artificial ones as in the Supreme mix.

The CCT were getting piggies referred to them because their owners were told by vets their pigs were diabetic. Diabetes can occur in piggies but it is extremely rare. That's when a link was found with EU artificial colourants. I stopped using Supreme after both of my first pair of piggies died from neurological problems & I haven't had a problem since. Of course it is hard to prove, but false positive tests for diabetes could result in unnecessary tests & treatment or worse, so not worth the risk in my opinion.

Pellets are better to feed than a mix. I use mainly Optimum pellets with a tiny amount of Crunch mixed in.
Click to expand...

I'm sorry to hear about your piggies :(
I'm going to try the optimum pellets first but might switch them over to the crunch or try your way of mixing the crunch in with the pellets if they dont like the optimum.
 
Poppy'sMum said:
They're not that expensive but if you are worried about her not liking Wagg pellets pm me your address & I'll pop a few in the post if you like :)
Click to expand...

Thank you that's a very kind offer :) I think I'll just buy some myself though and if she doesnt like them I can always send them to rescue or something so I wont be wasting money.
 
scpiggy said:
Thank you that's a very kind offer :) I think I'll just buy some myself though and if she doesnt like them I can always send them to rescue or something so I wont be wasting money.
Click to expand...

No probs you're welcome :) I hope she likes them, one of mine was being fed a made up mix of allsorts before I got her, even she loves the pellets.
 
Crunch is a mix. I normally get the large bag. It usually costs me about £15 for a 15kg bag, that lasts me about 2-3 months. ;)
 
Well after all that, I give them some excel tonight and Sookie tucked into it like it was the best thing ever. mallethead rolleyes
 
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