How to put weight on a piggy?

[Pigglywinks]

I have 5 boars and one of them has been feeling a bit skinny so I weighed him and was horrified to discover that since the end of April he appears to have lost around 100g or so; am desperately hoping it is my extremely old kitchen scales (you know the ones with a bowl on top and a little metal dial thingymajig); one or two of the others seem to have lost weight too and I haven't a clue as to why! All 5 of them are bright and chirpy, popcorning and running about as usual, I'm thinking that it may be due to me reducing their pellets to 1 eggcup full each (but this change was quite a few months ago)?

The reason I reduced them was because I was concerned that the pigs were favouring their pellets over hay and I know how important hay is in their diet, I was also worried about excess calcium as I was noticing white deposits on the fleece (also bought a brita filter for their water) and 2 of my boys (they're brothers) have had bladder issues in the past, one of which is currently being treated for a UTI. Regarding vegetables I have cut out everything high in calcium and their usual veggies include:

Slice of pepper each daily (red, green, yellow)
Cucumber
Romaine Lettuce
Gem Lettuce
Baby corn
Beetroot (once a fortnight)
Chicory
Brocolli (occasionally)
Parsnip (occasionally)
Apple (1-2 a week at most)
Grapes
Basil (very occasionally)
Dill (very occasionally)

My boy who has lost the 100g seems to be drinking alot, I don't know if he's always been like this or I've just gone all mega paranoid since I've weighed him; am so scared that he now has diabetes! :0 Should I increase the amount of pellets so all my pigs can gain back the weight they've lost? I know it's normal for weights to fluctuate a bit but surely not this much, their weightloss also seems to correspond with the extremely hot weather we've been having. If he shows any signs of illness I will be taking him to the vet ASAP but as my others seem to have lost a bit of weight also I am quite confused. :{ Basically I need tips on how I can help them gain back the weight without obviously feeding them stuff high in calcium as I don't want further bladder issues. My boy who has lost the 100g will be 3 years old in September.

Sorry for extremely long waffling post, any help given will be much appreciated! Thanks.

 

[piggyfan]

Before you do anything I would recommend you take him to the vet. Weight loss is often a sign of illness and he should be checked out and also have a urine sample.

 

[scpiggy]

I would take your boy who's lost 100g to the vets to get him checked out. My 3 year old girl lost about that much due to dental issues which I think is the main reason for weight loss. Whatever the reason for it though, he should see a vet. The vets should give you some recovery food/critical care which you can syringe feed to your piggy to help him put on weight.
I hope someone with more experience can offer you more advice.

 

[2280CLAIRE]

As others have said, you do need to visit the vets to investigate the cause of the weight loss. However, I have found bran mixed with some water, Ribena, or cranberry juice is a favourite...and really helps weight gain for poorly pigs. I don't advise feeding this long term, though-especially not with juice, although it increases calories, it's no good for their teeth (and they can put on weight very quickly!)