Picky eaters!

[notgreysong]

Hello all!

I came here because I always see a lot of good advice on here, and even though I'm American, I thought this would be my best bet.
I've got two boys, relatively young. I got them at 6-9 weeks and 12-15 weeks, and I got them in November, so they're still quite young. I've noticed that they're EXTREMELY picky! They always leave behind bell peppers (any color, one of them seems to like red bell pepper more and the other seems to like green), peas (I've given them snow pea and sugar snap peas), and celery. They basically only eat romaine lettuce, kale, carrots and cucumber (and sometimes not even cucumber!)

I know that it's important to change up what veggies they get every day because they get bored, but it's hard to do that when they seem to hate most vegetables I give them! They love parsley and cilantro but I try to give them that in small quantities because I know cilantro is high in calcium and parsley can cause bladder stones and diarrhea. I don't give them broccoli because my vet told me that broccoli isn't good for them... I basically feel like I have no idea what veggies to give them!

Any advice is appreciated!

 

[Piggies&buns]

Just to correct a few things you have incorrect -
Cilantro is perfectly safe to be given every day - a few sprigs per day is absolutely fine.
Its parsley and kale which are high in calcium and only to be given one of them once per week only. Too much calcium can cause bladder problems.
Carrots (and any fruit) are too sugary and should be considered a treat only. Again, one small amount no more than once per week.
Broccoli is fine for them to have, a small piece a time is ok. It can lead to bloating so don’t give much, and certainly not the first few times they have it - their tummies need to get used to any new veg slowly - but they can eat a little now and then. My piggies love a piece of the stem, rather than the florets themselves.

Hay is the most important part of the diet, so as long as they eat plenty of that, and are gaining weight well, then that’s great. Do you have access to dog pee free grass? If so, then you can pick and give them fresh grass each day. Its their natural diet.
Otherwise, keep trying veggies, it’ll take time but they will find something they like.

The guides below give further information on feeding and a list of other safe veggies
Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets
Edible And Forbidden Veg And Fruit List With Vitamin C Grading

 

[Claire W]

with the above advise

 

[stef.trg]

with what‘s been said above! We have 4 picky eaters - one of our boys is SUPER picky so I know exactly how you‘re feeling. I can remember the first time I bought sugar snap peas because I‘d read they like them.. none of them even attempted a nibble! They also don’t particularly like celery (they do love the leaves, though!). They love corn on the cob/baby corn, green beans, spring greens, carrot tops, and the odd piece of beetroot. Just to give you some ideas! With my four, giving them veg again and again even if they don’t eat it at first seems to help - as does leaving uneaten veg in the cage for a few hours after feeding time. Eventually they‘ll eat it.

 

[notgreysong]

Just to correct a few things you have incorrect -
Cilantro is perfectly safe to be given every day - a few sprigs per day is absolutely fine.
Its parsley and kale which are high in calcium and only to be given one of them once per week only. Too much calcium can cause bladder problems.
Carrots (and any fruit) are too sugary and should be considered a treat only. Again, one small amount no more than once per week.
Broccoli is fine for them to have, a small piece a time is ok. It can lead to bloating so don’t give much, and certainly not the first few times they have it - their tummies need to get used to any new veg slowly - but they can eat a little now and then. My piggies love a piece of the stem, rather than the florets themselves.

Ahh, thank you for this. I was told by my vet that carrots were perfectly fine for them to have every day, so that's what I've been doing up till seeing this. Carrots are their favorite, but I don't want to make them sick by giving them carrots every day, so I'll stop that right away! Thank you for all of your tips!

 

[Free Ranger]

I give a bit of carrot every now and again - I used to give every day but then I changed my naughty habit. Mine don't go for sugar-snap... they tried to eat the pod from around the pea then left it. They really love grass more than anything... a bit of fresh grass (make sure no dog pee on it!) is always their first choice and they get so excited it's hilarious! My penned sows stand up against the bars and bounce up and down on hind legs like dancing girls! My free pair could run up to us, but instead run into position so when we dump the grass they are on the 'starting blocks' for the eating race!