i am really worried about our two rescue piggies

[Jennifer1981]

We just rescued 2 female precious little piggies. They are so thin, and malutrtioned, I am super worried. As soon as we got sunny and honey we realized they are skin and bones. The owner couldn't get rid of them fast enough. Since we brought them home they are stuffing themselves with kibble so. They have been eating kibble almost constantly.They are not eating hay and they don't seem to know what veggies are. I love them so much already, we just lost Timmy after 5 years. These little girlies are bringing me so much joy,but we don't know how to get them to eat their hay and veggies. I can tell they are fragile , but they are active and drinking tons of water. We just want them to have a balanced diet. Please any ideas on how to get my precious little girlies to eat their hay and veggies would help a lot. Right now they just eat their kibbles. Any thoughts would be so appreciated. thanksfrom sunshine and honey. Please help

 

[Xiaoxiao]

Hello, dear. Is it possible to switch to a new brand of hay? If it does not help, you can feed piggies Critical Care which contains vitamic c and mix with water using syringe. Critical Care, Herbivore Formula

 

[Piggies&buns]

Have they been seen by a vet? That would be the first thing to do
If they have never been fed hay and veg before, then they’re going to have to learn to eat it. If they are so malnourished, then you will need to take vet advice on what to do. Giving them constant access to pellets (what you call kibble) isn’t good for their health (healthy pigs should only be having one tablespoon per day) but I would take vet advice on how to go about changing their diet vs their malnourishment

 

[Pound Shilling & Pig]

I agree you should have them vet checked. Make sure they have access to good quality hay at all times but try to limit their access to kibble. If the only option s hay they are more likely to eat it and most piggies will instinctively know it is food. If they have never had veg before tho that can be trickier to get them to eat, just keep trying them with small amounts of different things everyday and sooner or later they should start to have a little nibble on something out of curiosity. If you have access to fresh grass cut them a little and see how they go, they should have an instinct to eat it as it is the most natural thing for them to eat. If they do take to grass or veg feed in very small amounts and build-up the quantities very slowly because their guts won't be used to it.

 

[Swissgreys]

I agree that a vet check would be in order and then I would give them a week or so to settle.
Do you have any idea how old they are?

If they are clearly underweight and are young then for now I would let them have a good amount of high quality guinea pig pellets.
In addition make sure they have multiple piles of hay around their cage, so they can access it easily and at all times.
Limit fresh veg to a couple of types a day until they get used to it, and remove uneaten veg after a few hours.

It will take time for them to settle and adapt to their new life and foods on offer.

 

[Wiebke]

We just rescued 2 female precious little piggies. They are so thin, and malutrtioned, I am super worried. As soon as we got sunny and honey we realized they are skin and bones. The owner couldn't get rid of them fast enough. Since we brought them home they are stuffing themselves with kibble so. They have been eating kibble almost constantly.They are not eating hay and they don't seem to know what veggies are. I love them so much already, we just lost Timmy after 5 years. These little girlies are bringing me so much joy,but we don't know how to get them to eat their hay and veggies. I can tell they are fragile , but they are active and drinking tons of water. We just want them to have a balanced diet. Please any ideas on how to get my precious little girlies to eat their hay and veggies would help a lot. Right now they just eat their kibbles. Any thoughts would be so appreciated. thanksfrom sunshine and honey. Please help

Hi

Guinea pigs learn from their elders what is safe to eat; unfortunately it looks very much that they were already born to a malnourished mother living without hay or veg.
it is always a lot more difficult to introduce new food groups to guinea pigs who have never learned that they are edible. You will also factor in that you have to introduce any new foods; especially veg in very small quantities at first in order to avoid major tummy upsets because the gut biome cannot deal with it. Allowing the microbiome to develop and to broaden takes times.

Please try to serve a mix of alfalfa (rich legume for putting on weight) and timothy hay based pellets. They are still mostly filler and too soft to grind down the teeth in the long term but they can at least help with getting fibre in to the gut.

Try to gently syringe timothy high fibre based recovery food (like Critical Care) at first until they are used to the taste, then serve it in a bowl. Start mixing in the juice of veg and syringe that so they learn the taste and that it is safe. Use the syringe tip to smearfresh herbs and veg on it for the piggies to learn to recognise the smell and taste by licking and nibbling from an accepted source of food - you are basically mimicking their natural behaviour.
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide (includes a chapter on suitable recovery care products)

Use piggy whispering tricks to establish yourself a piggy elder that is to be obeyed. Tell them amply in piggy body language that they are members of the group you are leading (this also gives them an identity and somewhere they can belong) and that you love them; praise them lavishly and encourage them for every little step forward. I have found that this helps a lot with integrating new piggies that are fearful or have deficits.
Settling In And Making Friends With Guinea Pigs - A Guide

 

[alpacasqueak]

Aw, good luck with getting the little ladies eating well, poor girls sound like they haven’t had the best start. Hope a vet appointment goes well to get them checked over x