Feeding the guinea pigs at TEAS

I feed a lot of herbs, but mainly parsley, coriander, dill, basil and sometimes mint. I also feed a lot of mixed salad leaves, peppers (all colours), cucumber, kale (occasionally) and spinach (occasionally). I tend not to feed spring greens very often and I avoid celery, as I have had a couple of piggies react badly to it and get bloat every time they've eaten it. I occasionally feed corn on the cob too! In the summer they have less veg, but unlimited grass.
 
furryfriends (TEAS) said:
I feed a lot of herbs, but mainly parsley, coriander, dill, basil and sometimes mint. I also feed a lot of mixed salad leaves, peppers (all colours), cucumber, kale (occasionally) and spinach (occasionally). I tend not to feed spring greens very often and I avoid celery, as I have had a couple of piggies react badly to it and get bloat every time they've eaten it. I occasionally feed corn on the cob too! In the summer they have less veg, but unlimited grass.
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I see you feed all your veg once a day. Is there a reason for this? I have two pigs with bladder issues and I'm trying to see if I can help with diet. Nancy has IC while Pumpkin has had bladder sludge and a stone. I feed a lot more wet than many other people ( i feed a lot of cucumber). But I feed two proper portions of veg twice a day and then also piece of cucumber at another time. I find when their urine is more dilute they are normally in less pain ( they will wake me up in the night squeaking in pain if they are bad, but some cucumber seems to help). Neither of them drink. Do your pigs drink?
 
This is a fascinating thread. It's also somewhat distressing, as it adds to my anxiety that I might be doing everything wrong for my pigs, and that I am giving them a poor life by keeping them purely as indoor pigs, and giving them a restricted veg diet.

With guinea pigs I've always had this idea in my head that there's things about them that everyone misses, or misunderstands, and that common advice from vets etc. might just be wrong. Essentially, by having them as pets, forcing them to live an unnatural, structured and restricted life.

I have it in my head, that I can't shake, that adding more veg will just add a litany of problems; watery veg causing soft poos and leading into gas, bloat and GDV, and leafy greens flooding their bladders with calcium.

Am currently dealing with what 2 vets that think my boy, Bertie, has sterile cystitis, but I lost one of the girls suddenly a few days ago. I wonder now if my boy was aware there was something critically wrong her that I didn't pick up on, and that's what brought on his cystitis (if it is that, and not stones). I'm also obsessing fussing about them at the moment, so possibly adding more stress. I assume because they have a quiet existence, and are comfortable with me, that they couldn't be stressed.

I think I also need to start foraging for fresh grass, as it's something I never do, but I'm always paranoid about dog and cat urine, so I will have to hunt around for a good spot somewhere, and introduce it slowly.

Bertie is also now on Septrin as the vet found white blood cells in his urine analysis, not yet for 48 hours, but he's woken my up twice tonight with painful urination, so today I might try introducing more wet veg to his diet. This seems to have helped a number of members here. Hoping he shows a linear improvement soon, as I'm eager to find a girl to adopt, as having just two guinea pigs now is equally stress inducing (for me, mostly, but possibly them, too).
 
Hello I’m sad to read your post.
I wanted to comment just to give you reassurance 🥰
I’m sorry you lost your piggy a few days ago.
I think as caring owners we do get upset, anxious and distressed.
I think losing your girl will have added to your feelings …. we always have questions what if, why etc.
I’ve read stress can come from how piggies are bred and how sensitive they are to foods etc.
My piggies are indoor piggies and I give them the best life I can.
My garden is a gravel garden and I have a dog so I’m super careful where I get grass from and what I use from my garden.
I grow dandelion plants in pots and a few herbs. I have an apple tree and a willow tree.
I’m sure your piggies have a wonderful life , you obviously care and are doing the best you can.
Try not to be too hard on yourself.
Sterile cystitis is a newly discovered health issue and great that your Vets have picked this up.
There is info on this in the guinea pig info at the top of the page.
Keep posting as sharing how you are feeling will help you to know you’re not alone in how you are feeling.
Take care as you grieve for your girl
 
Roselina said:
Hello I’m sad to read your post.
I wanted to comment just to give you reassurance 🥰
I’m sorry you lost your piggy a few days ago.
I think as caring owners we do get upset, anxious and distressed.
I think losing your girl will have added to your feelings …. we always have questions what if, why etc.
I’ve read stress can come from how piggies are bred and how sensitive they are to foods etc.
My piggies are indoor piggies and I give them the best life I can.
My garden is a gravel garden and I have a dog so I’m super careful where I get grass from and what I use from my garden.
I grow dandelion plants in pots and a few herbs. I have an apple tree and a willow tree.
I’m sure your piggies have a wonderful life , you obviously care and are doing the best you can.
Try not to be too hard on yourself.
Sterile cystitis is a newly discovered health issue and great that your Vets have picked this up.
There is info on this in the guinea pig info at the top of the page.
Keep posting as sharing how you are feeling will help you to know you’re not alone in how you are feeling.
Take care as you grieve for your girl
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Thank you, it is hard, and I'm still playing the blame myself game, but I've done that with every pig I've lost other than the one that had renal failure, but I know from experience it'll get a little easier over the coming weeks.

After reading this post and some of the other comments earlier, I immediately gave Bertie a large slice of cucumber, and shortly after a larger amount of watery greens for their breakfast than usual, and I've not had any squeaking since (and he seems more active this morning). Perhaps this is coincidental, and the antibiotics / glucosamine are working, but I think the change in diet might be notable. I've now mapped a new diet trial I'm going to try. Instead of the IC diet on here twice a day, with smaller, controlled amount of veg, I'm going to try a larger breakfast of salad greens, then cucumber in the afternoon, and for dinner probably pepper, coriander and perhaps cucumber again, or I might give the cucumber later on before I sleep. I'll adjust this if stomach trouble seems to cause issues. I think I'll cut out the green bean a day / every other day, for now.

But the stress thing does also make some sense. Bertie is a typical energetic, dominant boy when he's relaxed, but he's also the most skittish I've had as well of the 8 I've known. The vet trip he had on Saturday may have also been the reason he seemed worse yesterday, as well.

I'd love them to have a garden to wander. There is one but it's a front garden by a main road, but it's too noisy and dangerous for him, and dogs quite often frequent it as it's not fenced off. So it'll be grass foraging, which might be fun to do, anyway.

Thank you again. I'll update here about the diet, as it might help others.
 
Please don’t worry yourself although I understand that’s easier to say than to do.
As @Roselina said, you are obviously a very caring owner
My piggies live indoors and always have done.
They don’t get outdoor time because we have too many birds of prey around and I won’t risk them being scared.

I cut fresh grass from the garden with a pair of scissors to be sure there’s no dog or cat pee on them.

My piggies would be very happy if all I fed them was red lettuce!
They do get a variety but red lettuce is the absolute favourite.
Maybe just introduce a new veggie in a small quantity to see if they like it or if it causes problems.
Soft poo caused by veggies usually goes away if the vegetable is stopped.

So sorry that you lost your girl.
Be gentle with yourself as you grieve.
 
Merab said:
Please don’t worry yourself although I understand that’s easier to say than to do.
As @Roselina said, you are obviously a very caring owner
My piggies live indoors and always have done.
They don’t get outdoor time because we have too many birds of prey around and I won’t risk them being scared.

I cut fresh grass from the garden with a pair of scissors to be sure there’s no dog or cat pee on them.

My piggies would be very happy if all I fed them was red lettuce!
They do get a variety but red lettuce is the absolute favourite.
Maybe just introduce a new veggie in a small quantity to see if they like it or if it causes problems.
Soft poo caused by veggies usually goes away if the vegetable is stopped.

So sorry that you lost your girl.
Be gentle with yourself as you grieve.
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Thank you.

At the moment I haven't really had chance to properly grieve, as my boy Bertie has been having issues with suspected IC + a blossoming UTI, and today, the third day on Septrin, he appears to be losing his appetite, which I expected to happen, as it did last time (though last time it was in pill form so I was hoping the liquid form would be easier). His painful squeaking seems to have lessened today, which is good if it continues, but the next couple of weeks are going to be increasingly intensive syringe feeding as I suspect he will be off veg of any kind in a day or two. I will still try and persue a more leafy, watery diet, though as I think that's worth a careful try, especially for an IC piggy. And definitely try to hunt down a reliable source of fresh grass to bring back!

Hopefully in a couple of weeks all will be well, I can think about the loss of my Acorn and look for a girl to adopt for my remaining two.

Thanks again for your support, though!
 
Digital-Sneeze said:
Thank you.

At the moment I haven't really had chance to properly grieve, as my boy Bertie has been having issues with suspected IC + a blossoming UTI, and today, the third day on Septrin, he appears to be losing his appetite, which I expected to happen, as it did last time (though last time it was in pill form so I was hoping the liquid form would be easier). His painful squeaking seems to have lessened today, which is good if it continues, but the next couple of weeks are going to be increasingly intensive syringe feeding as I suspect he will be off veg of any kind in a day or two. I will still try and persue a more leafy, watery diet, though as I think that's worth a careful try, especially for an IC piggy. And definitely try to hunt down a reliable source of fresh grass to bring back!

Hopefully in a couple of weeks all will be well, I can think about the loss of my Acorn and look for a girl to adopt for my remaining two.

Thanks again for your support, though!
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Do you feed your piggies pellets ?
Piggie Parcels ( owned by a forum member ) produces pellets with glucasamine etc to help prevent urinary issues
It might be worth trying for their futures
I was told by a Vet that dandelions are good to amaze piggies urinate more

Guinea Pig Pellet - Joint and Urinary Support Formula 1kg
 
Roselina said:
Do you feed your piggies pellets ?
Piggie Parcels ( owned by a forum member ) produces pellets with glucasamine etc to help prevent urinary issues
It might be worth trying for their futures
I was told by a Vet that dandelions are good to amaze piggies urinate more

Guinea Pig Pellet - Joint and Urinary Support Formula 1kg
Click to expand...
Funny you mention that, I stopped pellets a fair while ago, but I got a delivery of the joint and urinary Piggy Pellets yesterday haha. They've only tried them once so far, but they ate them (they're a lot smaller than I expected) but that's good. I might only give them once a day, but the added glucosamine is a nice feature. I give my girl the oxbow urinary tablets once a day, as she's sludge prone, but I might be able to drop it to half a tablet if I use the the Piggy Pellets.

Good idea about the dandelions, I'll have a look at buying a pack of them.
 
Digital-Sneeze said:
Funny you mention that, I stopped pellets a fair while ago, but I got a delivery of the joint and urinary Piggy Pellets yesterday haha. They've only tried them once so far, but they ate them (they're a lot smaller than I expected) but that's good. I might only give them once a day, but the added glucosamine is a nice feature. I give my girl the oxbow urinary tablets once a day, as she's sludge prone, but I might be able to drop it to half a tablet if I use the the Piggy Pellets.

Good idea about the dandelions, I'll have a look at buying a pack of them.
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I’m pretty sure I’ve seen @Guineautopia (owner of piggie parcels) say not to feed any additional glucosamine containing supplement at all when using her pellets as they already contain maximum amounts

EDIT: yes I’ve found it here at post #13
Sterile Cystitis Questions
 
Piggies&buns said:
I’m pretty sure I’ve seen @Guineautopia (owner of piggie parcels) say not to feed any additional glucosamine containing supplement at all when using her pellets as they already contain maximum amounts

EDIT: yes I’ve found it here at post #13
Sterile Cystitis Questions
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Ah, thank you. I couldn't see an amount of the back of the pack (I think the Oxbow supplements are about 45mg), so I'll be careful not to give it them on the same day.
 
Sorry to keep reviving this thread, and making it about me, but going forward I am definitely going to adopt this strategy of veg feeding going forward, as clearly my own, hyper-regimented IC diet approach is not working, as I've just rushed my cystitis-diagnosis boy, 4.8 years, into emergency out of hours, for an obstructed urethra from a stone (unfortunately not my first time with this, the last time being 5 years ago from a similar aged boy who had it happen twice in two weeks, the second time after a successful surgery). Hopefully he makes it, until an exotics vet shows up, as a non-exotics will be performing surgery if not, which doesn't give me much hope.

Going forward will be a wet diet; plenty of watery greens, not worrying so much about occasional oxolate / calcium veg, and I will give the Piggy Pellets, and track down a good source of grass I can forage. Barring stress, from being indoor pigs which I can't control at this point, it seems like the logical option from reading about TEAS, and some of testimony on here.

It does make me wonder even more now if indoor pigs; which I always thought were safer, and happier, is antagonistic to their natural predisposition. It makes sense. Guinea pigs may be domesticated, if that's the right term in this case, but you can't fight genetics. They are outdoor creatures, so who knows how how they minds work being indoors all the time, and how stress can contribute to a variety of health problems.

I'd love to hear from other purely indoor pig parents, who have had great success with avoiding bladder problems and getting their pigs to ripe, old ages, tailor their diets and lifestyle, and if it coincides with the TEAS approach.
 
Digital-Sneeze said:
Ah, thank you. I couldn't see an amount of the back of the pack (I think the Oxbow supplements are about 45mg), so I'll be careful not to give it them on the same day.
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Hi, Amanda from Piggie parcels here. Our pellets contain a substantial amount of glucosamine, far much more than the tabs. That’s why you must not feed both.
In just one tablespoon, there is 200mg of glucosamine! They replace the need to feed any additional supplements x
 
My two beloved sows, Shimmer and Saffron love their piggie parcels pellets. Being tiny is great as they are easy to hide all round their cage.

They also have lots and lots of greenery. I will cut back on spring greens and broccoli, etc.

This is such a great and informative thread.

I never handle my two, although I did have to pick them up to get them into the shady front garden during that (long ago) heat wave in the Summer.

They were all soft and plump and warm and lovely to hold but they were not at all impressed.
 
Guineautopia said:
Hi, Amanda from Piggie parcels here. Our pellets contain a substantial amount of glucosamine, far much more than the tabs. That’s why you must not feed both.
In just one tablespoon, there is 200mg of glucosamine! They replace the need to feed any additional supplements x
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Thank you, that's very useful to know. And means I don't have to buy the oxbow ones any more!
 
Guineautopia said:
Hi, Amanda from Piggie parcels here. Our pellets contain a substantial amount of glucosamine, far much more than the tabs. That’s why you must not feed both.
In just one tablespoon, there is 200mg of glucosamine! They replace the need to feed any additional supplements x
Click to expand...
Hi Amanda, how are you? Can I buy this product in Canada?
 
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