Have trawled t'internet there seems to be quite some conflicting info about what greens etc to feed and more importantly what not to feed. We have tried brocolli, kale, carrots and parsley. They aren't that fussed about any of it. We feed them on a pet shop mixture, pellets and hay. We would just like them to have some fresh but seem resolute in ignoring our efforts.
Fresh Food Do's and Don'ts
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Lola1
New Born Pup
My girls are also very fussy on what they are willing to eat when it comes to fresh veg. They have turned up their noses to celery, tomatoes, and peppers. However one unbelievably popular treat for them is cucumber, you really have to be careful not to get in their way when this is in front of them! The also seem to quite like cauliflower leaves or cabbage and sometimes apples, and mine actually love carrots, although I am conscious not to give them many.
As you can see I have tried many things, and really the key is perseverance.
Good luck!
As you can see I have tried many things, and really the key is perseverance.
Good luck!
karonus
Adult Guinea Pig
Our piggies love cucumber, kale, spinach, tomatoes, carrot, cabbage, sprouts, red pepper, celery, parsley, coriander and brocolli. They will mug you for parsley and cucumber.
We have found they like carrot tagliatelle, use a potato peeler on the carrots and get lots of long strips, ours seem to love it.
The older 2 can tell the difference between the sound of a rattling plastic carrier bag and the rattle of the opening of a plastic bag containing spinach or parsley.
We recently tried them with thyme (saw this mentioned on this forum as good for URI) and they turned their nose right up at it.
We have found they like carrot tagliatelle, use a potato peeler on the carrots and get lots of long strips, ours seem to love it.
The older 2 can tell the difference between the sound of a rattling plastic carrier bag and the rattle of the opening of a plastic bag containing spinach or parsley.
We recently tried them with thyme (saw this mentioned on this forum as good for URI) and they turned their nose right up at it.
Guinea pig slave
Senior Guinea Pig
Are your piggies new to you ?/
It took one of my girls almost a week to ravish any veg and I was worried for her - think she just needed the 'settling' in period.
A pellet/nugget dry food is better than the mix tbh, the coloured bits are fatty and contain no nutrition, a good pellet contains Vit.C and other nutrients needed for a healthy pet. Wagg, Science and Burgess are probably the most popular and better quality brands of dry food.
http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=38805
It took one of my girls almost a week to ravish any veg and I was worried for her - think she just needed the 'settling' in period.
A pellet/nugget dry food is better than the mix tbh, the coloured bits are fatty and contain no nutrition, a good pellet contains Vit.C and other nutrients needed for a healthy pet. Wagg, Science and Burgess are probably the most popular and better quality brands of dry food.
http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=38805
It's a case of keep trying things. Sometimes mine will turn their noses up one day and much away for England the next with the same food!
Firm favourites with mine are Florette salad, sweetcorn, parsley, yellow peppers, spinach, watercress, celery leaves. I also give them a good variety of other veggies too.
It took a little while for them to enjoy veggies because they'd only been fed on rabbit food before being rescued.
Now they're on a proper guinea pig diet and looking very healthy!
Just take your time and keep introducing them to various veggies.
Firm favourites with mine are Florette salad, sweetcorn, parsley, yellow peppers, spinach, watercress, celery leaves. I also give them a good variety of other veggies too.
It took a little while for them to enjoy veggies because they'd only been fed on rabbit food before being rescued.
Now they're on a proper guinea pig diet and looking very healthy!
Just take your time and keep introducing them to various veggies.
Hermes
Teenage Guinea Pig
You may have already read this thread but this lists loads of different fresh stuff you can give them, the other stickies in this section of the forum are also worth reading. http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=42
You could try chopping up their veg and mixing it with their food or try giving them small handfuls of grass, dandelion leaves and herbs.
You could try chopping up their veg and mixing it with their food or try giving them small handfuls of grass, dandelion leaves and herbs.
Hi! It may be better to gradually switch over to pellets - that has the advantage that you won't end up chucking half the mix away due to selective feeding and you will also have an instant food source at home in case you need to suddenly hand feed a very sick piggy in an emergency (you can always mush up pellets for that purpose, you know!). Up to 80% of the daily food intake should be hay.
Piggies that have never had veg in their lives before don't always take to them quickly. It is a case of be patient and persist. Don't introduce more than one new veg at a time.
You may find this thread helpful; it lists what veg you can give; about 1 cupful per piggy per day in as many servings as you like. If you vary and feed everything in moderation, you can't go much wrong. What you feed is ultimately down to practicability, piggy preferences and your bank balance! Everybody needs to find out for themselves what works.
http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=42[/url]
Generally, we recommend a mix of several chopped veg per day, including one high vitamin C veg, like a slice of pepper of any colour, a bit of broccoli (any part) or some fresh parsley; the latter two should not be fed every day.
You can feed cabbage (not just kale) without problems if it is part of a mix and provided that you don't have a piggy with a tendency for bloating/tender digestion. Fresh coriander/cilantro, cucumber and chopped celery can also be fed daily.
Be very careful with exotic fruit (diarrhea) and don't feed fruit and tomatoes more than 2-3 times a week - too much can cause sores on mouth and lips. Spinach is very high in calcium, like kale - too much on a regular basis can further the build up of bladder stones in guinea pigs with a disposition for them; lettuce and carrot are high in vitamin A (which builds up in the liver). None of these foods should be fed on a daily basis, but you can rotate between them!
The things you really need to stay clear of are: any bulbs from plants of the onion family, potatoes (too starchy), mushrooms, pulses (but you can feed green beans and mange tout), some varieties of avocado (highly poisonous to guinea pigs), nuts, seeds (too fatty and can get stuck in the teeth), dried fruit, any dairy product (including yoghurt) and sugar/honey (i.e. pet shop snacks are junk food for pigges!).
Piggies that have never had veg in their lives before don't always take to them quickly. It is a case of be patient and persist. Don't introduce more than one new veg at a time.
You may find this thread helpful; it lists what veg you can give; about 1 cupful per piggy per day in as many servings as you like. If you vary and feed everything in moderation, you can't go much wrong. What you feed is ultimately down to practicability, piggy preferences and your bank balance! Everybody needs to find out for themselves what works.
http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=42[/url]
Generally, we recommend a mix of several chopped veg per day, including one high vitamin C veg, like a slice of pepper of any colour, a bit of broccoli (any part) or some fresh parsley; the latter two should not be fed every day.
You can feed cabbage (not just kale) without problems if it is part of a mix and provided that you don't have a piggy with a tendency for bloating/tender digestion. Fresh coriander/cilantro, cucumber and chopped celery can also be fed daily.
Be very careful with exotic fruit (diarrhea) and don't feed fruit and tomatoes more than 2-3 times a week - too much can cause sores on mouth and lips. Spinach is very high in calcium, like kale - too much on a regular basis can further the build up of bladder stones in guinea pigs with a disposition for them; lettuce and carrot are high in vitamin A (which builds up in the liver). None of these foods should be fed on a daily basis, but you can rotate between them!
The things you really need to stay clear of are: any bulbs from plants of the onion family, potatoes (too starchy), mushrooms, pulses (but you can feed green beans and mange tout), some varieties of avocado (highly poisonous to guinea pigs), nuts, seeds (too fatty and can get stuck in the teeth), dried fruit, any dairy product (including yoghurt) and sugar/honey (i.e. pet shop snacks are junk food for pigges!).
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neuroticmum
Junior Guinea Pig
My boys love:
Corriander, Parsley, basil, Kale, Spring Greens, Broccoli, salad mix (no iceberg) carrots, apples, green pepper, celery.
They will also occasionally eat cucumber, parsnip, swede.
Its very much a case of rotating this as they cant have some of these things every day.
If you have a chance to get to a Lidl or Aldi they do much cheaper veg than the main supermarkets so its a good opportunity to try something new without spending a fortune.
Corriander, Parsley, basil, Kale, Spring Greens, Broccoli, salad mix (no iceberg) carrots, apples, green pepper, celery.
They will also occasionally eat cucumber, parsnip, swede.
Its very much a case of rotating this as they cant have some of these things every day.
If you have a chance to get to a Lidl or Aldi they do much cheaper veg than the main supermarkets so its a good opportunity to try something new without spending a fortune.
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