Soft Stool

[Bigsize9fot]

Hi
I have noticed the last few days my Guineas (one or both, can’t tell) are having soft poo. I’ve not changed anything in their diet.

I am aware I should cut out fruit and veg but for how long? And should they still get nuggets?

Thanks.

 

[Mother Hubbard]

my advice is to keep the fresh food away until their poops return to normal to be honest. Nuggets yes keep feeding and encourage their hay intake by giving them the loveliest green hay as possible.

 

[sport_billy]

Try and increase the hay intake as @Mother Hubbard has said above. Is it sloppy or still have form?

 

[Bigsize9fot]

Try and increase the hay intake as @Mother Hubbard has said above. Is it sloppy or still have form?

It still has form. Slight improvement today so will keep fresh food away. Am inclined to keep nuggets away too so they eat more hay.

 

[Bigsize9fot]

Much improvement today thankfully!

 

[Wiebke]

It still has form. Slight improvement today so will keep fresh food away. Am inclined to keep nuggets away too so they eat more hay.

Stay off any fresh food (fruit should only be fed as an occasional treat)) and grass until 24-48 after the poos have firmed up again. See a vet if problems return or persist.

 

[Bigsize9fot]

All good now folks- thank you. Transpires we were feeding them far too much veg.

 

[Bigsize9fot]

Stay off any fresh food (fruit should only be fed as an occasional treat)) and grass until 24-48 after the poos have firmed up again. See a vet if problems return or persist.

Woe me, I’ve been looking at your feeding guide and feeding my Guineas what you show on your example plate. But earlier in your notes it says 50-60g. But what’s on your plate wouldn’t be that would it? I think we’ve been feeding our girls way too much veg....

 

[Wiebke]

Woe me, I’ve been looking at your feeding guide and feeding my Guineas what you show on your example plate. But earlier in your notes it says 50-60g. But what’s on your plate wouldn’t be that would it? I think we’ve been feeding our girls way too much veg....

Recommendations of amounts of fresh food are coming down all the time; I only feed the sample diet once a day with one daily changing extra veg for interest once a day instead of twice as when I wrote the guide.

I would aim at rather less veg than too much; but look for a good mix. The same goes for pellets - feed less, but look for good quality ones if you can; there are new products coming on the market all the time as pellet producers react to the growing demand for better quality dry food.
If you feed less calcium in pellets, you have got a bit more leeway in the veg you feed and can for instance feed kale a bit more often. It is all about the balance. The more hay your piggies eat, the better. That is the one factor that is really connected to longevity.

Things are still very much in flux and change all the time as we learn more and are better able to build up a wider range of longer term experiences through exchange on social media. But there has been a trend by pet owners to overfeed on veg, especially on high sugar and fat veg in years gone by, and we need to come away from this!