Linkpet Original Guinea Pig Food

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Hannah Boyd

Hannah Boyd

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Hi everyone, I bought a new piggy food today and wondered if anyone else has come across it before. Its called Linkpet Original Fruitti Guinea Pig Food, I bought a small bag of 2k for only £1.99 but its a mix rather than uniform pellets. However the main ingredient is grass pellets so I thought it should be fine. I am only trying this because I just became a student again and looking for ways to cut costs! and as my piggies do not rely on dry food (the majority of their diet is hay, grass and veggies) I have chosen to try a cheaper brand. I also realise that they may pick bits out but from previous experience as long as the amount given is monitored, it can be set at an amount where they will actually finish what they are given. Any thoughts much appreciated.
 
I have not tried the fruitti one but my next door neighbours provided the muesli version for their guinea pigs while they were away. From my experience the guinea pigs hated it and didn't really eat it, I ended up throwing out half of the bowl each day. I thought that the food was really poor quality and would not have fed it to my guinea pigs. If you want some cheaper food that is good quality I would recommend either Tesco nuggets: Tesco Guinea Pig Nuggets 2 Kilograms - Groceries - Tesco Groceries at £2.60 per 2kg bag it is worth it to prevent selective feeding. I have used this and my girls do like it.
Or even Asda nuggets, £2.00 per 2kg bag: Online Food Shopping - ASDA Groceries
I have not used the asda one but I can't see it being much different to the Tesco one.
 
Hi @Hank288 , thank you, i offered the piggies a small amount this afternoon which has all but disappeared, but I suspect it may be the piggy equivalent of 'junk food'. I will try the Tesco and Asda varieties too and see how those go down. The 2kg bags are handy for trials!
 
Well that is good if yours liked it. That is the thing with the fruity foods is they tend to be really sweet and have lots of sugar in them, which although the guinea pigs love, it is not good for them. Like you say junk food, lol. At least they ate it though.
 
Yes I thought as much, but it would be making up only a small proportion of their diet so maybe not so bad. The main ingredient in the Linkpet food is grass pellets whereas Asda and Tesco varieties is wheatfeed, is there any suggestions on this?
 
Can you copy the ingredients list and nutritional values off the packaging for us (I've tried to find it online but can't).

Personally I think it depends on the nutritional values and other ingredients. For example if its main ingredient is grass but other ingredients are really poor and sugary, or fibre content is low then the Asda or Tesco one may actually still be nutritionally better. Also museli's have been associated with teeth problems in rabbits (to such an extent that even pets at home stopped selling them) - it is generally considered that museli's are probably just as bad for guinea pigs.
 
Oh and also you say the main ingredient is "grass pellets". That's a very odd way for grass to be listed. Makes me wonder if its on about the main component of the museli being pellets made from grass and other things, rather than the grass actually being the main ingredient.
 
Okay the ingredients list is: grass pellets, whole wheat, flaked wheat, guinea pig pellets, flaked beans, flaked maize, flaked peas, extruded wheat disc, colourants.

Analytical constituents are: crude protein 14.87%, crude oils and fats 3.2%, crude fibre 10.1%, crude ash 5.2%, vitamin A 14000iu/kg, vitamin C 300mg/kg (ascorbic acid), vitamin D3 2000iu/kg, vitamin E 50mg/kg (alpha-tocopherol), copper 15mg/kg (culpric sulphate).

I completely agree with pellets being better than mix, and PAH don't stock mix for piggies either I don't think. But I was curious to whether mine would eat all of it or not, but aside from any of the disadvantages I don't know about, I have a feeling that the mix will result in bowl tipping for the good bits!
 
Right I'm thinking that ingredients list is naughty - grass pellets and guinea pig pellets are listed like single ingredients however they could be made up of anything. So I don't actually think grass is the main ingredient.

I would also be concerned by the crude fibre being a mere 10.1% - that's incredibly low. Which again makes me seriously question what the grass pellets are actually made up of. Also it contains colourants, which isn't good.

Compare it to the adsa food in which the nutritional content is considerably better (especially the fibre at 17%, which is much more the kind of level required by grazing animals). Off asda's website:
Protein 16.0%
Crude ash 7.0%
Crude oils and fats 5.0%
Calcium 0.8%
Crude fibres 17.0%
Ingredients:
Wheatfeed , Oatfeed , Sunflower Extract , Grass , Lucerne , Carob Meal , Vegetable Oil , Calcium Carbonate , Linseed , Minerals , Yeasts (0.08%).

Whilst it's not ideal for grass to be the 4th ingredient, I feel the good nutrional values help it still be a better food. It also doesn't contain colourants. Also being a pellet no risks of selective feeding and risks of teeth problems developing would be lower.

If you need a budget food I really think the Asda nuggets would be the healthier option. Tesco pellets are also very similar although very slightly more expensive than Asda's.
 
Hi @Cavy_lover , thanks for this, from your explanation I will change their food back to a pellet mix and use Asda's food. Thanks again, this forum is so helpful.
 
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