Hi, my gp is at the vets at the moment having had his teeth filed down, I’m aware that he needs to eat plenty of hay etc but how can I encourage him to do that? He’ll eat nuggets and fresh food but ignores his hay. He’s always for fresh hay there, 2 big hay corner dishes full which he uses to lie in. I’ve tried scattering hay, putting it in one spot, stuffing it in a cardboard roll with holes in and they all get ignored. We get the feeding hay from PAH. Any suggestions would be massively appreciated, I want to do whatever is best for him
Hay
- Thread starter Laurabe
- Start date
First, do you ensure his nuggets and veg are kept to the recommended limited amounts? One cup of veg per day and just one tablespoon of nuggets per day? Over feeding those items or leaving them with constant access to nuggets will cause some piggies to reduce their hay intake
The other thing would be to try a different type of hay. They can be quite fussy with their hay and trying different types and brands can help. My two used to be quite happy with the hay they had and ate lots of it, but when I tried something else, they went mad for it and they prefer hay over anything else
The other thing would be to try a different type of hay. They can be quite fussy with their hay and trying different types and brands can help. My two used to be quite happy with the hay they had and ate lots of it, but when I tried something else, they went mad for it and they prefer hay over anything else
Definitely a good idea to keep nuggets strictly limited. They shouldn’t be fed freely as they are the least important part of the diet (should not make up any more than 5% of their daily food intake), they contain unhealthy fillers, as you’ve found can stop hay consumption which can lead to dental problems as well as contributing a large amount of calcium to the diet (along with unfiltered drinking water). Too much calcium can lead to bladder problems (stone formation).
Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets