Grass - Maybe A Daft Question

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flm1977

How nutritious is grass?

I asked my H this the other night and he said 'well cows eat it and they make milk no bother' ;D

Just wondering how nutritious it is for piggies?
 
Its got lots of nutrients but the second its picked it starts losing them so let them eat it fresh-hard to do when its pouring with rain like it is here!
 
Depends on how old it is and what type of grass it is :) Some are better than others :) It has pretty much everything guineas need and promotes the correct chewing action to wear down teeth too. Timothy and Orchard are best, Cereal grasses are packed with Vitamins and Minerals and high in Protein. Grass will keep the gut moving along nicely too :)
 
oo great stuff!
talking about fresh stuff straight from the garden...LOL I feel like a sheep when I'm going round my garden picking handfuls of grass ;D
 
I felt pretty sad myself when on a school outing I spied a field of Timothy grass and said out loud, 'I wish I had a bin bag with me'. ::)
 
I know!
Once, when I first got my guineas and they were in there inside pen(it was raining so I couldnt put them outside), I felt so sorry for them I went out in the rain wth a bag and started picking clumps of grass for them. My neighbour looked over the fence and thought I was a right loony!
 
Does fresh picked grass give the same teeth wear as hay, not for my piggies but my buns who don't really eat alot of hay bu do gass just wonderin if it helps to wear there teeth down the same :-\
 
kezza30 said:
Does fresh picked grass give the same teeth wear as hay, not for my piggies but my buns who don't really eat alot of hay bu do gass just wonderin if it helps to wear there teeth down the same :-\
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I know what you mean hay is meant to be the bulk of a bunnies diet, but mine doesnt eat that much either!
 
Yeah we think it's cos the house Buttons came from he only ate grass anywhere, no properhay or pellets apparantly what where told so he just doesn't eat it but wild bun eat grass as there whole diet really and they don't have teeth pronlems :P
 
grass has quite good nutritional value fresh i think. ;) :) mine loove it and go out when ever they can, not toooo much though. :)
 
Grass isn't quite as abrasive but it wears the teeth down in the same way.
 
karenrgpr said:
I felt pretty sad myself when on a school outing I spied a field of Timothy grass and said out loud, 'I wish I had a bin bag with me'. ::)
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;D that made me chuckle Karen I would of said the same ;)
 
flm1977 said:
oo great stuff!
talking about fresh stuff straight from the garden...LOL I feel like a sheep when I'm going round my garden picking handfuls of grass ;D
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LOL! I'm the same, crawlin round my garden in my dressing gown in the dark before trying to find a bit of long grass that hadn't been picked already this week ;D my mum's going to have to sack our gardener soon lol there's no grass to cut! x
 
Ooh I'm glad I saw this thread - we were wondering how good grass was for piggies as our poorly little'un Lucky loves grass (he hasn't bothered with salad/veg apart from kale and a bit of celery) and he seems very boney so we are trying to get him to eat as much as poss.
Is it possible to give a baby too much grass? He's had a small handful today and eaten it all..
 
I don't know if it's possible to give too much or not. My Bob is 10 weeks old and yesterday he was out in the run, I put it half on grass and he ate heaps but seemed to be ok afterwards :)
 
katiep said:
Ooh I'm glad I saw this thread - we were wondering how good grass was for piggies as our poorly little'un Lucky loves grass (he hasn't bothered with salad/veg apart from kale and a bit of celery) and he seems very boney so we are trying to get him to eat as much as poss.
Is it possible to give a baby too much grass? He's had a small handful today and eaten it all..
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I don't think so, but you need to introduce it slowly and slowly build up the amount your feeding. ie don't feed one handful today then 5 handfuls tomorrow because it might be too much, like any vegetable/herb ;)
 
katiep said:
Ooh I'm glad I saw this thread - we were wondering how good grass was for piggies as our poorly little'un Lucky loves grass (he hasn't bothered with salad/veg apart from kale and a bit of celery) and he seems very boney so we are trying to get him to eat as much as poss.
Is it possible to give a baby too much grass? He's had a small handful today and eaten it all..
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If you have Timothy Grass thats best, its not as 'rich', but with any grass (and baby tums) introduce gradually. Give him a 'meal' of hay (if he'll eat it) before the grass that'll help :) Cereal Grass and other herbage is great for tempting sick guineas back into eating and is good for them too. Try him on Plantain (Ribwort/Long). Just be wary of clover and Dandelion (Dandelion is OK fed in small amounts). As he's quite ill I'd be wary and do it gradually monitoring the 'outcome' ;)
 
Thanks Karen, we are giving him just a handful of grass a day, and he does love his hay, we are just a bit worried that he is not eating much veg. He has had some romaine lettuce today as that was all he would eat from his salad, but at the moment he is lapping up his Science Recovery paste! Actually it smells quite nice!
 
If he'll eat herbage instead of veg that'll give him the vits and minerals he needs, just be careful to monitor the 'outcomes' as I'm sure you do :) My well pigs get quite excited when I mix up Critical Care or the like, :)
 
Can they not eat Clover, I thought that was safe! Oh dear, they've not had tons, but definately had a nibble when outside...
 
They can have White Clover, but best fed early in the year or if you grow your own feed when its young. This time of year it isn't a good idea to feed it. Clover hays aren't good for pigs with bladder problems (sludge) either, its much like Alfalfa. Like everything, a little won't do any harm and Clover is a good tonic, and high in Protein (not too good for those kidneys :) ) .
 
Thanks Karen, phew, it was fairly early in the year, the weather has been so bad, we haven't had them near the grass!
 
karenrgpr said:
If he'll eat herbage instead of veg that'll give him the vits and minerals he needs, just be careful to monitor the 'outcomes' as I'm sure you do :) My well pigs get quite excited when I mix up Critical Care or the like, :)
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Oh good, thats a relief.
Yup, have been monitoring "outcomes" obssessively, esp since he had colic!
 
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