Fat Piggies

[GinaG]

Vet says they're a little chunky...both 2 year old girls....in my defence, they are rescue pigs and have arrived to me that way...what can I do to help them? Each day I'm feeding them a handful nuggets each, cucumber slices, pepper slices, lettuce leaves and coriander. Occasionally they'll have a treat like a bit of carrot, apple etc. but no more than twice a week. They're indoor pigs but I put them in a big run during the day to encourage them to stretch their legs (they don't!) - anything else I can try?

 

[TheCavySlave]

Hmm. What do they weigh? Sounds like you're taking good care of them! I think the biggest causes of obesity are junky shop treats, and too much of things like pellets and sugary foods. Also, not enough exercise is a big problem, so it looks like you're doing everything you can. Do they run around their cage at all? Some pigs reach the point where they only move to eat, which is serious. But are they actually active?
The average weight of a female guinea pig is 700-900. However, a sow can weigh outside these margins yet still be healthy- bone structure plays a part.
Guinea pigs are naturally chubby animals, and weight loss is a bigger problem than weight gain. You can weigh them on ordinary kitchen scales, let us know what they do weigh!
Sadly I'm not a vet, I can only provide you with the information I know, but I hope I've helped, and good luck with your pigs.

 

[Guineapigfeet]

With regards to ideal weight, I think that 700-900 is quite low. My three rescues currently all fit that bracket, but they are still growing and my previous four have all been over a kilo (some more over than others!) and all been healthy. The biggest pig was somewhere approaching 9 years old when she died.

Can you feel their ribs or hip bones at all? You should be able to feel them slightly with gentle pressure (i think) if they are not feel-able then they may be carrying too much fat but the diet sounds fine and hopefully they will loose weight gradually with the improved care and diet they'll be getting from you

 

[GinaG]

Ok so Piggie 1 this morning weighed 929g and Piggie 2 102g....vet said they shouldn't be over 1kg really. They get fresh veggies twice a day, should I reduce that to once a day? No they aren't felt active, I'm guessing cos they're still shy, they do run about their cage but not much. I didn't really think of it as a problem until now, they're not greyhound after all and are naturally meant to be little tubby things, though ofcourse I want them healthy. They don't get any pet shop treat type things at all - perhaps I should just reduce the nuggets to a handful between them and halve the amount of veggies?

 

[Guineapigfeet]

If you reduce anything it should be pellets. I think the weights sound absolutely fine! (I am assuming piggie 2 does not weigh 102g but rather just over 1kg?)

You can encourage activity by hiding healthy treats in hay / tubes etc in their run or scattering some of their daily veg around if you normally feed it in bowls

 

[Swissgreys]

All 3 of my girls are over 1kg, and the vet has said they are in perfect health and a good size for an adult female.
To be honest the diet you are feeding sounds great, as does everything else you are doing.
If it were me I would be weighing weekly to keep an eye on things, but unless they are continually piling on weight I personally wouldn't change anything.
If you vet feels that an adult guinea pig shouldn't weigh over 1 kg, then I would be looking for another vet who knows bit more about guinea pigs!

 

[Guinea Slave]

I agree with Swissgreys. I get worried if any of mine are under 1kg, once full grown I'd expect them to be slightly over unless they are very tiny. And like human bearings, you can have big piggies and little ones, two of mine were very large but they felt solid and not fat and were very healthy and lived long lives. As long they are well cared for and have enough room to run and roam, and their diet is not full of humanised sugary snacks, then i am sure they are fine. It's also not a bad idea to have them a healthy weight as they lose it incredibly quickly if they become ill which is then a real problem.

Sounds like you have everything under control!

The vet advice would worry me too..

 

[Beans&Toast]

Beans is 1.12kg and that's her on the lighter side as she's getting older and losing weight. Toast is 1.19kg . they're both good weights, I'd worry if they were below 1kg. piggies can vary massively in weight and still be healthy, sounds like you're doing fine

 

[TheCavySlave]

It's actually hard to have a weight range for pigs- it really varies. Godfrey weighs 1100g and my brother keeps saying how chubby he is (he's a perfect weight, but looks adorably tubby)
Didn't mean to misinform- a website said 700-900 (I think it was Guinea Lynx) Ignore me- focus on what your vet said...Piggies shouldn't weigh over a kilo? I think your vet saying they shouldn't weigh over a kilo sounds wrong to me.

 

[GinaG]

Ok thank you guys that really reassuring, they feel chunky to me but I kind of expect them to, that's piggie shape surely. I'm trying my best to give them a balanced diet & not overfeed, it's hard to think veggies are overfeeding but I'm trying to remember 80% of the diet should be hay

 

[GinaG]

Vet was v clear they shouldn't be over 1kilo, which is really interesting in light of what everyone here has said.

 

[Poppy'sMum]

It depends on the breed as well. My vet is very knowledgeable Exotic vet & she has never said mine were overweight. My Rex sows were 1.3 kg & 1.2 kg & they were much bigger than some other pigs

 

[GPTV]

I've only ever had girls &they have ranged from 950g'ish to 1400g Grace who I have currently was the heaviest that I've weighed at home when she was in her prime. She's about 5yrs old &generally healthy (touches wood!) she had a bladder stone removed a few months ago &a couple of uti's &a hay poke that's it
I have two younger piggies who are around the 1kg - 1.1kg mark &they snatch Graces food or make her run round for it-so she has lost a lot of weight but also she's getting older &naturally they lose weight slowly as age anyway, she's about 1.2kg now.

I would just weigh her regularly &monitor it for now.
As the others have said its a good diet she's on by the sounds of it.
Ref pellets I give approx one small bowl of pellets for my 3 daily roughly 50g between them. The hay is the most important for them to be eating.
Xx

 

[DM030819]

I would say that your girls are fine and don't need to lose weight. I prefer to have a bit chunkier pig as it helps during recovery time when they're ill. One of my boars was 1200g and he went down to 1085g ish. He was still a healthy weight after his illness.

I found a good way for them to lose weight is to really reduce their pellets. My boar who is 1200g has had bladder sludge/stone issues for about 3 years now. One of my first preventative measures was to stop feeding him pellets as they were high calcium. He weighed 1400g before and has slowly gone down too 1200g. He's stayed at 1200g for 2 years now.

 

[gizzy]

Thay are what thay are. pigs come in shapes and sizes , and unless they obviously in discomfort l would leave well enough
Alown .
Incerdently the pig in my avitar pic (Toby R.I.P) was overweight but due to lack of exercise , and an unsuterbal
Cage , him and his partner could not walk properly they waddled ! I took me a long long time to get then walking properly