Foraging Questions

Freya1234

Freya1234

Teenage Guinea Pig
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So I am planning on going foraging for my guinea pigs (I’ve never done it before) and I have looked at the safe to feed foraging guide and printed it off to take with me but I do have a few questions about foraging.

Can all plants that are safe to give to guinea pigs be fed fresh or do some HAVE to be dried?

I know that you can’t feed pigs cut grass as it ferments quickly and can make them poorly, is this the same for other plants or can I cut the plants I forage with scissors or should I just pick them with my hands to stop anything like that happening?

Other than picking plants that are a bit further away from the path is there any way I can guarantee that I don’t pick plants that have been weed on by dogs or foxes, if I do end up picking a plant that has been weed on by dogs or foxes then give it my pigs what would happen? (this is something that is making me a bit worried about foraging)

Thank you!
 
I suggest freezing what you find just in case and most plants don't need to be dried but some do so you should look it up. Most of the time you can just cut it with scissors bit if you prefer pulling you can. But make sure you about that certain plant other than that your good!
 
I would not think freezing forage is a good idea. Guinea pigs can’t be fed any foods which have been frozen.
I personally would focus on things which need to be dried to begin with as you can then build up a nice supply while the weather is good for drying to use throughout the winter. Anything you need to feed fresh will obviously be gone very quickly
 
Oh sorry I was thinking about something else but personally my guinea pigs hate dried things they forage but if not you can drive them
 
Pht said:
I suggest freezing what you find just in case and most plants don't need to be dried but some do so you should look it up. Most of the time you can just cut it with scissors bit if you prefer pulling you can. But make sure you about that certain plant other than that your good!
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Freezing is not a good idea I'm afraid, piggies should only eat fresh or dried foods not frozen then defrosted.
I would wash anything you forage from any public area where there might be dogs or foxes or pesticide spraying very well indeed.
I dont really forage much myself I prefer to grow my own in windowboxes, trying to think of who on here does a lot of foraging... is it @Mother Hubbard and @teddymouse ?
We have some foraging guides on here somewhere, hopefully someone will link them for you!
 
I know I realized my mistake sorry I was spacing our
 
The last issue of Guinea Pig magazine has a really good foraging article, you can download it online.
Anything high like nettles I cut part way down leaving the last 8 -10 inches in the hope dogs haven't peed that high! I have successfully dried bramble leaves (only picking near top of plant) and nettles for next winter. Lower growing plants like plantain and dandelions I never pick from the side of the path and I wash everything anyway just to be sure.
 
piggieminder said:
The last issue of Guinea Pig magazine has a really good foraging article, you can download it online.
Anything high like nettles I cut part way down leaving the last 8 -10 inches in the hope dogs haven't peed that high! I have successfully dried bramble leaves (only picking near top of plant) and nettles for next winter. Lower growing plants like plantain and dandelions I never pick from the side of the path and I wash everything anyway just to be sure.
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Thank you, do you use scissors or do you just pick the plants with your hands?
 
I just pick with my hands. But I’m sure you could use scissors if you prefer.

We have a hedge of some sort at the end of the road. Lots of bramble, hedge bindweed and nettles. We did have nettles in the garden but the husband pulled them up. They were taking over the garden! I have one plant of broadleaf plantain and sow thistle.
 
Nettles I cut long stalks, tie in bunches and hang in the greenhouse for a couple of days when it's hot and sunny. Brambles I cut individual leaves off the stalk and spread on newspaper in the greenhouse to dry. I also feed bramble leaves fresh one or two each a couple of times a week mixed in with their veggies/other foraged fresh leaves.
 
I forage a lot but it’s from my garden - it’s very easy as long as you follow careful guides and KNOW what you are picking - There is so much you can forage - I dry my nettles - pick rose petals, strawberry leaves (strawberries are too sweet so not to be given often), bramble leaves, plantain , sticky weed ,dandelion and I grow herbs rosemary,basil,coriander, thyme and mint in pots. I pull up fresh grass and as long as you give it to them straight away it’s ok (NEVER grass mowings as its poisonous) - I would always try a new plant a bit at a time and see that it does not cause diarrhoea - my two boys love the foraged foods especially the rose petals - it’s very easy to dry everything and then keep in a airtight jar for winter use.
Have fun foraging !
 
My piggies love fresh raspberry leaves from the bush in my garden, but I'm never sure how many to feed as they look like they might be high calcium though I'm not sure, so I usually just feed 3 per piggy once or twice a week... we used to dry nettles like that for my parents-in-laws goats @piggieminder , we'd cut huge bunches every summer then tie them with string and hang them in the barn to dry for winter forage!
 
I've always picked the odd dandelion leaf etc from the garden but didn't really get going properly with foraging until the lockdown. I lost my income and didn't know how long I had to make my savings last so every penny I could save was a bonus. There was also the problems with shopping of course. I'm really sold on foraging now and hope to expand my knowledge of what's safe for them to eat. After all the bladder problems we've had with the piggies I'm thinking foraged weeds are a more natural and healthier diet for them. I don't know about raspberry leaves @PigglePuggle I know strawberry leaves are high in oxalates and should only be fed sparingly and in the case of piggies with bladder problems best not at all.
Further to another post I found a reference to beetroot leaves, humans can eat the young ones. They are very high in magnesium, don't know if that's good or bad for piggies so haven't fed them any.
 
piggieminder said:
I've always picked the odd dandelion leaf etc from the garden but didn't really get going properly with foraging until the lockdown. I lost my income and didn't know how long I had to make my savings last so every penny I could save was a bonus. There was also the problems with shopping of course. I'm really sold on foraging now and hope to expand my knowledge of what's safe for them to eat. After all the bladder problems we've had with the piggies I'm thinking foraged weeds are a more natural and healthier diet for them. I don't know about raspberry leaves @PigglePuggle I know strawberry leaves are high in oxalates and should only be fed sparingly and in the case of piggies with bladder problems best not at all.
Further to another post I found a reference to beetroot leaves, humans can eat the young ones. They are very high in magnesium, don't know if that's good or bad for piggies so haven't fed them any.
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Yes I would also like to know about beetroot leaves, I planted some beetroot at the start of lockdown and I think its ready to harvest- the leaves look lovely and I've read they can be cooked for human food like spinach but I'd like to know if the piggies can have a few! If nobody knows I wont risk it, I know they'll eat the beetroot itself, just a bit finely chopped or grated in their salad once or twice a week- and we have carrots to harvest too so they can have the tops off those, I've grown quite a lot in window boxes and planter tubs considering we only have a small city patio garden!
 
I also want to get more into foraging. Regarding the leaves of green beans, does anyone know how often then can be fed? I’ve been giving them one leaf maybe every 2-3 weeks. Plan is to dry them and add to the forage collection. I need to go out for walks. Maybe early Sunday mornings.
 
Siikibam said:
I also want to get more into foraging. Regarding the leaves of green beans, does anyone know how often then can be fed? I’ve been giving them one leaf maybe every 2-3 weeks. Plan is to dry them and add to the forage collection. I need to go out for walks. Maybe early Sunday mornings.
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Good way to end up on crime watch, foraging in bushes on a Sunday morning 👍👀
 
Part of this weeks foraging, never pick near posts,gateways, signposts, gaps in hedges ,paths, as theses are often been sensed by animals.20200620_182412.webp20200627_201707.webpthis is my foraging tool of choice. Brambles are a favourite, young green shoots,the thorns are still soft and green, also the flowers, beetroot leaves and root they like, l like them grated in my salad and the young leaves instead of lettuce, nettles as said dried by hanging upside in dry shed, in fact most of what l forage can be Dryed, as has been said rose Petals, best way to store them in paper bags.
 
teddymouse said:
Part of this weeks foraging, never pick near posts,gateways, signposts, gaps in hedges ,paths, as theses are often been sensed by animals.View attachment 146680View attachment 146682this is my foraging tool of choice. Brambles are a favourite, young green shoots,the thorns are still soft and green, also the flowers, beetroot leaves and root they like, l like them grated in my salad and the young leaves instead of lettuce, nettles as said dried by hanging upside in dry shed, in fact most of what l forage can be Dryed, as has been said rose Petals, best way to store them in paper bags.
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So are beetroot leaves fine for piggies, in moderation? I thought they would probably be, that's sort of why I planted them, so they can eat the whole plant- but there a couple of weird old forum posts saying they aren't... not by very reputable posters though which is why I wanted to check with people we know and who have had piggies for a long time! :)
 
Siikibam said:
I also want to get more into foraging. Regarding the leaves of green beans, does anyone know how often then can be fed? I’ve been giving them one leaf maybe every 2-3 weeks. Plan is to dry them and add to the forage collection. I need to go out for walks. Maybe early Sunday mornings.
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That's interesting, I didn't know you could feed green bean leaves. Is that French Beans?
 
Well, if 60 yrs of having piggies, is a long time? Guess I have learnt abit about them, but I am still learning. Lol,last week Peridot and Amber got up into a15" high flower pot and ate all my lobelia off,the little darlings. Rosehip last year helped herself to my prize carnations, she would make a beeline for them,even after standing pots on bricks,she still managed to climb up the pot.
 
I take a plastic bag and sometimes a pair of scissors if I remember. Fresh forage is the best, sometimes I will put the bag in the salad box in the fridge if I’ve gathered too much and give the following day. I put a clothes peg around the bag to seal it and keep everything fresh
 
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