Opinions on grass time?

[Emmaclay95]

My two boars get full run of our grass in the back garden more or less every day when the weather is nice, however for no longer than 30 minutes as they don't run around much they just eat! They also have constant access to an exercise run on concrete which is where they do their running and popcorning about all day long, along with this I get them out for a mix of floor and lap time each day too usually more than once. So I know they're getting plenty of exercise and attention, I'm just wondering if other piggy owners think grass time is beneficial? And is every day too much? I don't want over weight piggies! They're 5 month old and weigh 950-970g so I don't think they're overweight as it stands :-) x

 

[Wiebke]

Once you have slowly accustomed your piggies to rich fresh grass in spring, you can let them out for longer. They will eat their fill, go to sleep, have some fun and repeat the process. I balance the amount of juicy fresh veg I give in the evening with how much fresh grass they have eaten throughout the day and prefer to wait a bit with serving veg to give the tummies time to settle in order to avoid soft poos.

If your boys are outside for longer, I would recommend to also put out a hay box (a cardboard box, open or with airing holes or a seed tray is ideal) and a water bottle when the grass is becoming dry and less nutritious in high summer. Make sure that they have somewhere they can get out of wind and weather at all times and that they have plenty of shade.

The slightly higher summer weight will disappear again in winter; with my adult piggies it can make a difference of about 50g, not more.

Your boys are a good weight for their age and will probably be soon over with their quick growth phase, having acquired most of their adult weight. Once that is the case, you can start to slowly reduce the amount of pellets you feed.

 

[Emmaclay95]

Ah okay great thank you :-) when they were really young it was 5 minutes at a time and slowly built up not to upset their little tummies, I just wasn't sure if they'd eat and eat and eat if I increased the time any longer! The hay box is a good idea :-) and I know what you mean about amount of veggies based on how long they've been on the grass I do that too lol! Thanks again x

 

[Stewybus]

My 5 piggies are out on the grass 3 out of 4 days. They usually eat for about 30 to 40 minutes then all settle down to rest. This is when I bring them in. They're never out for more than an hour. Our lawn is our front garden which is open plan so I or my wife have to be there all the time.

 

[Emmaclay95]

My 5 piggies are out on the grass 3 out of 4 days. They usually eat for about 30 to 40 minutes then all settle down to rest. This is when I bring them in. They're never out for more than an hour. Our lawn is our front garden which is open plan so I or my wife have to be there all the time.

Ah our lawn is our back garden and it's quite enclosed so I could leave them for 5 minutes but I'd never leave them unattended for more than a toilet trip or something incase of a cat or an escape attempt! :-p after I posted this I put one of my pigs, sweep, on the lawn and he was running around like mad lol

 

[Stewybus]

It's not just cats, also beware of birds of prey & even seagulls, though a think a lot of seagulls these days have never seen the sea!

I always use a run with a top on especially after I saw a hawk grab a starling in our back garden.

 

[Freela]

Mine never run around either. They essentially graze until they nod off. I have a large pen and supervise them when they're out and generally take them in once the 'food coma' stage hits. They love being outdoors... I'm in Canada and the winters are long so I think they really enjoy the few months that they get to go outside, where food actually grows right out of the ground!

 

[bsjlmb]

while the weather has been so hot, my 11 pigs have been out from about 9am until about 6pm. they live in huge hutches in what i call my 'catservatory'. this is a room built off the back of my house to keep my cats safe after the neighbours viciously attacked them. it has a polycarbonate roof (like conservatories) and it gets hot in there so they go in the garden with sheets placed over the runs to keep them shaded annd cool. they eat when they first go in for about 30 minutes but then play or sleep, then repeat. it hasn't done them any harm being out there so long.

 

[Emmaclay95]

Mine never run around either. They essentially graze until they nod off. I have a large pen and supervise them when they're out and generally take them in once the 'food coma' stage hits. They love being outdoors... I'm in Canada and the winters are long so I think they really enjoy the few months that they get to go outside, where food actually grows right out of the ground!

Haha aw 'food coma' made me giggle! Aw bet they get real excited when it's the nicer weather then as my piggies loveee being out and on the grass! :-)

while the weather has been so hot, my 11 pigs have been out from about 9am until about 6pm. they live in huge hutches in what i call my 'catservatory'. this is a room built off the back of my house to keep my cats safe after the neighbours viciously attacked them. it has a polycarbonate roof (like conservatories) and it gets hot in there so they go in the garden with sheets placed over the runs to keep them shaded annd cool. they eat when they first go in for about 30 minutes but then play or sleep, then repeat. it hasn't done them any harm being out there so long.

Oh my gosh sorry to hear about your cats then. Good to know they don't just eat all day long.
My piggies live outside but they aren't just stook in their cages they have a massive run attached to their cages where they can go in and out whenever they wish, it leads out onto the concrete so it's great for their nails :-)

 

[ChrisU]

My piggies are outside in runs on the grass from 9 till 9 every day at the moment.
They are in secure, covered runs with boxes to hide in. The grass isn't mown very often as the piggies eat all day!
I don't usually buy any veg for the piggies in the summer as they have plenty of grass and dandelions.

 

[Pound Shilling & Pig]

My two boars get full run of our grass in the back garden more or less every day when the weather is nice, however for no longer than 30 minutes as they don't run around much they just eat! They also have constant access to an exercise run on concrete which is where they do their running and popcorning about all day long, along with this I get them out for a mix of floor and lap time each day too usually more than once. So I know they're getting plenty of exercise and attention, I'm just wondering if other piggy owners think grass time is beneficial? And is every day too much? I don't want over weight piggies! They're 5 month old and weigh 950-970g so I don't think they're overweight as it stands :-) x

Yes, grass time is beneficial. Guinea pigs evolved running round on the slopes of the Andes eating grass. It is the most natural thing in the world for them. The only thing to be careful about is introducing them to grass in the spring when it is very rich and they have not been eating any over winter. Any sudden changes in diet are not good for guineas.

if they are eating lots of grass and you are worried about them gaining wieght, just stop feeding pellets for the summer. Fresh grass is rich in vitamin c and the sun will provide their vit D. pellets contain a large amount of grain which is high in protien and carbs and not something they have evolved to eat regularly or in large quantities so they will be fine without it.

You will find during the middle of the day they will be snoozy and not very active but are much more busy in the early morning and the evening, when it is cooler.