New Pig Won't Eat Veg

[lexi468]

Hello everyone!
So I got a new pig yesterday and he is super cute! However, he will not eat veggies. He's a rescue, so my guess is that the person that had him before me did not feed him any. I have no idea how old he is either, but he's quite thin underneath all his hair. At first, I just thought he probably didn't want to eat them in front of me. So I left them in overnight. This morning there still was not a single thing eaten. He loves hay, drinks water and ate almost all his pellets. Also, I give Midnight Oxbow vitamins every morning, which he thinks are treats, and when I got them out this morning my rescue pig went nuts, so I am assuming he has experience with treats. He even took it out of my hand. Anyways, should I just use my common sense and keep offering them to him until his pig instincts kick in, or has anybody else had this problem and has some ideas? Thank you!

 

[eileen]

new piggies can take time to settle in.i would leave new veg daily ,he will eat them eventually.has he got a companion in with him.try feeding him treat veg by hand when he is settled into his new home,eg,a weeks time.xx

 

[lexi468]

new piggies can take time to settle in.i would leave new veg daily ,he will eat them eventually.has he got a companion in with him.try feeding him treat veg by hand when he is settled into his new home,eg,a weeks time.xx

I will try that! He just seems to throw them around. He's going to be a companion with my other Midnight, but he's in quarantine right now.

 

[sport_billy]

Have you tried Coriander or lettuce yet? I would keep trying different stuff to tempt him once he starts he should be fine.

He is chewing pellets and hay okay - no over masticating?

 

[DM030819]

When he gets in with his buddy then it should get better. They usually see the other one eat and think "Wait a minute, that's food?!" and away they go.

Try the handfeeding and leaving some in his cage. It's a bit frustrating as you'll probably waste quite a bit, but it'll happen eventually

 

[flowerfairy]

I agree with what others have said. It took my (lovely) girls a few days to start eating their veg.

 

[lexi468]

Have you tried Coriander or lettuce yet? I would keep trying different stuff to tempt him once he starts he should be fine.

He is chewing pellets and hay okay - no over masticating?

Yes, I've tried lettuce, carrot, cucumber, blueberries, green beans, and tomatoes. He seems to be chewing his pellets and hay normally.

 

[lexi468]

Thank you so much guys! I figured my instincts were right and he would eventually know what to do, but knowing that other pigs have gone through this is very reassuring. I'm excited to introduce him to Midnight. Oh and we named him! His official name is Mocha

 

[Roclibrarian]

Mine wouldn't eat veg at first either. I found chopping the veg up really small encouraged them to try it. They use to think peppers were poison until they were finely chopped lol

 

[lexi468]

Mine wouldn't eat veg at first either. I found chopping the veg up really small encouraged them to try it. They use to think peppers were poison until they were finely chopped lol

I tried chopping them yesterday and he did end up eating some of the lettuce! Progress!