Some feeding help please ..

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Mon59

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Hello from Hampshire U.K.,

just got 4 lovely girls from a very good breeder . only 1 week.

kept GPs as a boy and then got some for my sons . They were very distressed and ill from the beginning so I swore no more, but having turned 60 this year took the plunge again.

I think they are 2 sisters and two older from different parents, all rather spoiled so far . Lovely big enclosure and my wife thinks I am mad.

a question ?

both younger ones are in very good condition but I am keen to get some weight on as they seem a bit scrawny. All have had too many treats . Lettuce in this hot weather etc. also most goes to the older ones am I’m trying not to interfere. The baby did get her ears nibbled first night..so a bit picked upon . Ok after that .. I have good quality pellets.

i don’t want to interfere too much but how can I focus on the younger ones ? Or just let nature take its course.?

All day today..all the carrots etc go to the older two.
or just cut back on carrots etc.”? And make them all eat pellets and hay ?

many thanks for any help…

all kept together…….
 
ps. I’m not being silly . Bombarded by carrots etc. all day as I don’t want to make them ill.
few bits in the morning and afternoon.
 
:wel:
You just need to feed a good quality and unlimited hay based diet. They can each have one cup of leafy veg per day, ( including herbs and something high in vitamin c such as bell peppers) and one tablespoon of pellets per pig per day. The youngsters will put weight on in their own time. You should not try to artificially put weight on them if they are healthy.

Hay is the thing they need to eat most of - it’s 80% of their daily food intake. It’s a good hay based diet which will set them up for a good healthy life and keep their weight on.

Pellets are the least important and actually expendable part of the diet. Ensure you never overfeed pellets and that they never have constant access to pellets - just give them their one tablespoon per day and that’s it - as they contribute a lot of calcium to the diet which can have negative health effects (bladder stone formation).

Make sure you have hay in four areas around the cage (so there is a pile for each piggy if they don’t want to share) and that veg and pellets are either scatter fed around the cage or in piles of hay so all get opportunity to forage and get their share. Foraging is also enrichment.

Make sure carrots are kept very limited. One very tiny piece and only give once per week. They are too high in sugar and vitamin A and should not be regularly in the diet.

Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets

Make sure they have plenty of space - four piggies together need a 7ft X 2ft cage to have enough room.
 
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Many thanks for a very comprehensive reply.

They have been kept together from whenever they were weaned which was one of my criteria. I think that is why the ear attack was so distressing. Looked like arterial blood up the sides of the enclosure. It’s been treated and all well now but was watching for bullying and there is definitely a hierarchy.
currently in 6 x2 enclusure.

hence the feeding question But keeping enough hay answers that perfectly.

any general suggestions on healthy Vit C additions . This recent weather has been so extreme that I was giving cucumber but I’m not a fan of cucumber as I know several humans with quite bad allergic reactions to cucumber .
 
If you read the diet guide linked about then that will give you all the info you need for a healthy balanced diet.
Cucumber is fine to give - please do bear in mind that just because humans may struggle with allergies, this is not the case for most guinea pigs.
Bell pepper is another good source of vitamin C.

Do keep an eye on their weights (they should be having a weekly weight check) as sustained weight loss can be the first sign of bullying.

As you have 4 pigs in the absolute minimum size enclosure, please make sure you have multiple feeding places and piles of hay available at all times, as this makes up the bulk of their diet.

It is also worth knowing that just because guinea pigs have lived together as babies is not a guarantee that they will get on once they reach their teenage years.
Being related is also not important - it all comes down to character compatibility.
 
I'm sorry to hear the ear was such a nasty incident. It read from your first post that it was just a bit nibbled but it sounds worse than that. I’m glad she is ok now.
Make sure you weigh all piggies every week as part of routine care. One of the signs of bullying can be weight loss. Weighing ensures you can monitor hay intake (you cannot judge hay intake by eye) and as hay is the majority of their diet, any issues with eating are reflected mosf by hay intake and consequently weight loss.

How To Pick Up And Weigh Your Guinea Pigs Safely (videos)

Bell pepper, coriander (both safe for daily feeding) contain good amounts of vitamin c.
This guide lists safe veggies and their vit c content - Edible And Forbidden Veg And Fruit List With Vitamin C Grading

A slice of cucumber is absolutely fine for daily use. It can be refreshing in hot weather and can help with their water intake but it’s important to not suddenly overfeed watery veg during the heat - doing so can cause digestive problems, piggies simply don’t need lots of watery veg to keep cool. Feed them as normal but make sure the room is kept cool and that water bottles or bowls are refreshed regularly throughout the day. Doing so can cause digestive problems.

Safe veggies they can have a basis every day is lettuce, cucumber, coriander, bell pepper and a green bean. Everything else add in in moderation and rotation.

Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets
 
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I’m a new piggy keeper but I’ve followed the advice from the good piggy folk on the forum and my girls are doing well - here’s my feeding regime that I’m happy with:

Per piggy (I have two):

Unlimited Timothy hay (loving Hay Box!). They love the soft cut one). I put bundles of it wherever they sit - usually ends up all over the pen after a day or so, but that’s good because it encourages them to munch hay wherever they stop.

1 large romane or cos leaf
About a cm chunk of cucumber
Roughly same amount of belll pepper
Occasional same amount of celery (but they get tired of celery for some reason)

One table spoon of pellets

Then I fling in the odd dandelion leaf, fresh grass, or chickweed that I find in the garden.

For treats….. and this may not be best advice….. I give them (shhhhhh whispers….) pea flakes- but very limited. Or I keep telling myself I need to limit them.

I got mine at 8 months and they are 11 months now. Their weight has slowly but steadily increased on this. (It was also increasing before I discovered the (shhhhhhh) pea flakes. 😜

All the best with the girls - we do like pictures …. Hint hint.
 
Excellent. Many thanks .
I wondered about coriander because I love it and always have loads in the fridge.

just a bit nervous about the wrong food.

sorry about the graphic description but it was quite alarming and did wonder if I had done the right thing?

emphasise no repeat . it was the day I picked them up so 40 min drive also.

I'm quite happy with all this advice.

a quick further question.
in a big cage how do you catch them ? I’ve been checking them once a day .especially the ear wound but haven’t found a good way to corner them safely.
 
Welcome to the forum. Can’t wait to meet your gorgeous girlies.
 
You can have photos if I ever catch them 😂

the funny thing is they are all very light coloured which I didn’t want . 3 smooth and a teddy who is adorable .

he got the ear attack and already the favourite. He is the smallest.

many thanks..
 
Yes coriander is definitely a favourite for a lot of piggies!
The only herb you need to really keep limited is parsley because of ifs higher calcium content.
You would also want to avoid or at least strictly limit Mediterranean herbs such as rosemary as they are high in oils.

The guide I linked in earlier explains how to herd them into a carrier, but I’ll add it again now - How To Pick Up And Weigh Your Guinea Pigs Safely (videos)

You say he in the reply above, that may just be a slip but to double check, are all four of them definitely all female?
 
He ? You’ve got 4 girls?

I use a pigloo to catch them and weigh them.
 

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I’ve attached my set up to explain how catching works for me… Those rainbow things are their separate rooms… when they know I’m coming to lift them, they automatically run into one of them . I then put the door of a cat carrier in the entrance so they have nowhere to go, but through the door of it into the carrier. When I lift the tent, they just run into the carrier.

Last thing you want to do is be chasing them around getting them all terrified. Once in the carrier they are easy to lift out. You could lift them then into something that cocoons them on your lap. I don’t - mine seem pretty happy once I’m holding them to brush and check etc.

For weighing - I put the scales on the floor and put the piggy in a large loaf tin on the scales.

(Pic won’t upload for some reason)
 
The coriander worked !

the other 3 not keen but my teddy Girl loves it . The others leaving her alone .

all in Amazon boxes . And will get a catcher. Got a lovely big cardboard roll from inside Lino which I cut up to make lovely tunnels. They haven’t knawed yet !

just moved from central London to Hampshire countryside and Amazon is essential even if they have dodgy tax practices.
 
Not sure if anyone said it or not - the other thing that works well for my two is - separate feeding bowls and I chop the veg up small. That way if my dominant girl finishes quick and decides to pinch some food - the other piggie has eaten a variety anyway and has nearly finished.

Brown paper bags stuffed with hay are also a big hit, again - one each. If you order hay from hay box it comes in a big box - that’s good fun too! And always have at least one entrance and one exit in any hideout, so no piggy gets trapped - avoid fighting and hurt piggies.
 
Piggies&buns said:
:wel:
You just need to feed a good quality and unlimited hay based diet. They can each have one cup of leafy veg per day, ( including herbs and something high in vitamin c such as bell peppers) and one tablespoon of pellets per pig per day. The youngsters will put weight on in their own time. You should not try to artificially put weight on them if they are healthy.

Hay is the thing they need to eat most of - it’s 80% of their daily food intake. It’s a good hay based diet which will set them up for a good healthy life and keep their weight on.

Pellets are the least important and actually expendable part of the diet. Ensure you never overfeed pellets and that they never have constant access to pellets - just give them their one tablespoon per day and that’s it - as they contribute a lot of calcium to the diet which can have negative health effects (bladder stone formation).

Make sure you have hay in four areas around the cage (so there is a pile for each piggy if they don’t want to share) and that veg and pellets are either scatter fed around the cage or in piles of hay so all get opportunity to forage and get their share. Foraging is also enrichment.

Make sure carrots are kept very limited. One very tiny piece and only give once per week. They are too high in sugar and vitamin A and should not be regularly in the diet.

Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets

Make sure they have plenty of space - four piggies together need a 7ft X 2ft cage to have enough room.
Click to expand...
Hello, hope you don't mind me starting up this thread again, but when you say "one cup" of leafy greens, how much is that? I have a cup measure, but is that ramming it full? Or placing leaves gently in it (which would have air gaps compared with ramming it full)? Or how much in grams is that?

Thanks in advance 😊
 
joanneswift813 said:
Hello, hope you don't mind me starting up this thread again, but when you say "one cup" of leafy greens, how much is that? I have a cup measure, but is that ramming it full? Or placing leaves gently in it (which would have air gaps compared with ramming it full)? Or how much in grams is that?

Thanks in advance 😊
Click to expand...

It’s not an exact science because it’s going to depend if the veggies are chopped or just put in. We are talking roughly a cup.
I don’t measure it , I just chuck it into a container to take it out to them. I gauge it mostly by eye and I tend to feed a little more than a cup anyway as my piggies don’t get pellets very often.

The feeding guide has a sample plate showing amounts so you may find it useful to look at the picture and get an idea of how much to give of each item.

You can’t really go by weight though because the differing densities of veg would make it tricky

Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets
 
Yes, that makes sense with the density of different piggie - I had wondered why I had never found a weight guidance on veggies but hadn't connected the dots! I will check out that page properly - have a had a brief read but I'll be honest, not that much!

Thank you 😊
 
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