Unsure about forage vs pellets!

[Lisa7845]

Good evening everyone,

First of all, I'd like to thank everyone in advance for any help you may give!

I have recently become a guinea mum to two beautiful young boars, Bertie and Bailey they are currently 7 weeks old. Where they were born, they were being fed on a 'guinea pig mix' -https://lakelandforage6.godaddysites.com/shop/ols/products/new-lakeland-guinea-pig-mix?fbclid=IwVERDUAOi2VtleHRuA2FlbQIxMABzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAwzNTA2ODU1MzE3MjgAAR672KJ1eoMWxYqmACaObecHUrtUaLdCQSnKe52snkd4ao89J_t5Z2vn6Z1yRQ_aem_9PrK9kXKA2XrcSQlt5Af6Q (contents also at the bottom) instead of pellets.

I am a little unsure how to feed this! Currently, the boys have a mix of meadow and Timothy Hay, filtered water (we had a bladder stone pig, one out of nine I've had, but decided to keep filtering) and two tablespoons each of science selective grain free, as well as romaine lettuce, red pepper and cucumber in rotation. We do have some calcium wees, however they are completely powdery.

Any advice is appreciated! They love the guinea pig mix but I'd hate to get the feeding ratios wrong.

Contents of feed - Dried Grass, Wheatfeed, Oat Feed, Peas. Dried Nettle, Dried Green Oat Grass, Fennel,

Guinea Pig Pellet: Oatfeed Pellets, Sunflower Ext, Lucerne Nuts, Limestone, Barley, Green Oat Hay, Nettle, Flaked Peas, Dark Distillers Grains, Molasses, Vegetable Oil, Vit C 500mg/KG.

Analytical Constituents: Crude Protein 12.00%. Crude Oils & Fats 3.00%. Crude Fibre 20.00%. Crude Ash 10.00%. Sodium 0.25%

Vitamins and Mineral; (per KG) Vitamin A (3a672a) 20000 iu, Vitamin D3 (3a671) 4000 iu, Vitamin E 93a700) 85 mg/kg, Vitamin C 500 mg/kg. TRACE ELEMENTS: Iodine (3b202/calcium iodate anhydrous) 2.00 mg, Copper (3b405 copper (II) sulphate pentahydrate) 20.00 mg, Manganese 93b503/manganous sulphate) 60.00 mg, Zinc (3b605/zinc sulphate) 100.00 mg, Iron (3b103/iron sulphate monohydrate) 120.00 mg, Selenium (E8/sodium selenite) 0.40 mg.

 

[hayethusiasts]

Good evening everyone,

First of all, I'd like to thank everyone in advance for any help you may give!

I have recently become a guinea mum to two beautiful young boars, Bertie and Bailey they are currently 7 weeks old. Where they were born, they were being fed on a 'guinea pig mix' -https://lakelandforage6.godaddysites.com/shop/ols/products/new-lakeland-guinea-pig-mix?fbclid=IwVERDUAOi2VtleHRuA2FlbQIxMABzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAwzNTA2ODU1MzE3MjgAAR672KJ1eoMWxYqmACaObecHUrtUaLdCQSnKe52snkd4ao89J_t5Z2vn6Z1yRQ_aem_9PrK9kXKA2XrcSQlt5Af6Q (contents also at the bottom) instead of pellets.

I am a little unsure how to feed this! Currently, the boys have a mix of meadow and Timothy Hay, filtered water (we had a bladder stone pig, one out of nine I've had, but decided to keep filtering) and two tablespoons each of science selective grain free, as well as romaine lettuce, red pepper and cucumber in rotation. We do have some calcium wees, however they are completely powdery.

Any advice is appreciated! They love the guinea pig mix but I'd hate to get the feeding ratios wrong.

Contents of feed - Dried Grass, Wheatfeed, Oat Feed, Peas. Dried Nettle, Dried Green Oat Grass, Fennel,

Guinea Pig Pellet: Oatfeed Pellets, Sunflower Ext, Lucerne Nuts, Limestone, Barley, Green Oat Hay, Nettle, Flaked Peas, Dark Distillers Grains, Molasses, Vegetable Oil, Vit C 500mg/KG.

Analytical Constituents: Crude Protein 12.00%. Crude Oils & Fats 3.00%. Crude Fibre 20.00%. Crude Ash 10.00%. Sodium 0.25%

Vitamins and Mineral; (per KG) Vitamin A (3a672a) 20000 iu, Vitamin D3 (3a671) 4000 iu, Vitamin E 93a700) 85 mg/kg, Vitamin C 500 mg/kg. TRACE ELEMENTS: Iodine (3b202/calcium iodate anhydrous) 2.00 mg, Copper (3b405 copper (II) sulphate pentahydrate) 20.00 mg, Manganese 93b503/manganous sulphate) 60.00 mg, Zinc (3b605/zinc sulphate) 100.00 mg, Iron (3b103/iron sulphate monohydrate) 120.00 mg, Selenium (E8/sodium selenite) 0.40 mg.

Hi. I would just remove the guinea pig mix if I were you as you are already giving them the pellets

 

[hayethusiasts]

Hi. I would just remove the guinea pig mix if I were you as you are already giving them the pellets

Also I would just give 1 tbsp each of the pellets and not 2 tbsp

 

[Lisa7845]

Sorry to add - I give a handful of the green forage mix per day alongside the pellets. Unsure which one to go with or the amounts etc!

 

[Piggies&buns]

Welcome to the forum

Are the ingredients you’ve typed out the ones for the Lakeland mix?
This one: (Contents of feed - Dried Grass, Wheatfeed, Oat Feed, Peas. Dried Nettle, Dried Green Oat Grass, Fennel,
Guinea Pig Pellet: Oatfeed Pellets, Sunflower Ext, Lucerne Nuts, Limestone, Barley, Green Oat Hay, Nettle, Flaked Peas, Dark Distillers Grains, Molasses, Vegetable Oil, Vit C 500mg/KG.)

I would not feed that at all. Lucerne is alfalfa which piggies shouldn’t have and is high calcium. It contains grains. Molasses is sugar which I also wouldn’t let my piggies have.

Just giving them the science selective grain pellets is plenty. However, They can have one tablespoon per pig per day, not two so you’re giving twice the amount they should have which may explain the calcium wees. Even low calcium varieties of pellets contain a lot of calcium so pellets always need to be kept limited.

They can have dried forage leaves (just dried leaves with nothing else added) but forage and pellets make the same part of the diet. Dried being higher calcium than fresh.
They can have one tablespoon each of a dried leaf forage.
But if you’re giving a green leaf forage mix (assuming this isn’t the Lakeland mix you mention) by the handful and two tablespoons each of the ss
Grain free then they’re getting too much.
So I would give one tablespoon of the ss grain free and one tablespoon of the green leaf forage mix and they share that between them.

I personally don’t feed my piggies any commercial guinea pig pellets at all but I do give them forage at times.

Sections 6 and 8 cover pellets and forage

Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets