What food is best?

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KT1975

KT1975

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I haven't yet got any guinea pigs but my daughter is getting 2 in the next couple of months! I have been looking at different foods you can get and just don't know which to use!

Being a horse person I used to think of mix foods as looking nice for the owners more than what is good for the animal is this the same for GP's!:{ I used to feed nuts with the horses as they gave them all the nutrients they needed do I take it it is the same for GP's!

What brands do other people use and what do you think are the best brands? :{
 
I use burgess excell. This is great. It is a complete food so it does not encourage select feeding. The mixed foods are not as good as the complete ones. Guinea pigs cannot eat nuts. They need access to hay at all times. They also need fresh vegetables twice a day. If you have any questions feel free to ask. :)
 
One more thing, i would really recomend you and your daughter visit a rescue centre and adopt from their. A rescue gives you a complete services, and you come home with happy healthy piggies, who are definatly not pregnant, unlike with pet shops who often sell sick, pregnant piggies.
 
I feed mine Burgess Supa Guinea Excel too, they're all looking really well on it. I get mine from my local equine feed shop, you could see if the place you get your horse food from can order you some in if they don't already stock it. You're right about the selective feeding too, piggies tend to pick out the bits they like and leave the rest (usually the fattest bits :(|)) so it is better to get a pellet food x
 
i use science selective guinea,but today i bought the orange bag of burgess excel guinea food.
could someone tell me if the excel gives guineas the runs?
its just a friend of mine used to feed her rabbits excel food and there rabbits had the runs.
can piggies get the runs on excel?
my friends vet said although its a good food its too rich!?

i was going to mix the excel in with the rest of there science selective is this a good idea?
 
Thanks guys this helps a lot!
and yes I am planning on getting the guinea pigs from a rescue place as soon as we are ready and find one near us if anyone knows of any near Rotherham can you let me know that would be great! x
 
I have my piggies on burgess exell and have never had a problem. Ofcourse, it should be introduced slowly, so first they have a mix of the two, then gradually more of the orange bag. :)

HTH
 
A good rescue will usually give you a bit of the pellets their piggies are on to make the settling in easier. Perhaps you ask what the rescue you are planning to rehome from use and try that first?

Up to 80% of a piggy's diet should be hay, followed by a cup/ca. 50g full of mixed veg (ideally including one high vitamin C veg every day) and only then pellets.
What veg you can feed you can find in this thread - it is quite a variety:
http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=42
 
That is brilliant advice and thanks for the links to the rescue places the one in leeds looks good and has some lovely ones that my daughter will love!

another question about food!

The hay they need can it be baled hay that I would feed the horses (obviously good quality hay) or does it need to be this stuff you get in packs. I was looking at the stuff burgess sells along with the food is this ok as well! ;)
 
Hi there!

I just wanted to add that rehoming through a rescue is a great way of finding the best pigs for a new owner, as the rescue can tell you about each animal's personality, likes and dislikes, which comes in very handy when you get them home!

In answer to your questions, I usually use Burgess Excel nuggets mixed in with Burgess blackcurrant and oregano and a bit of Wagg muesli (mainly because each of my pigs seems to like something different and that keeps them all happy!). Complete foods are considered nutritionally best (i.e. they can't selectively feed), but muesli does add a bit of variety! But they'll let you know soon enough what they prefer :))

I use bales of meadow hay from my local horse supplies shop - it's so much cheaper than buying the bagged hay from the pet shop (£7 bale lasts my 8 guinea pigs around a month). It's brilliant if you've got the space to store it! Again, though, I sometimes buy the bagged stuff too, just for variety!

HTH :)

Best of luck in your piggie search!
 
i live in rotherham , dont know any rescue centres . as far as food, otleys at ranskill do a very good guinea pig food , £11 for a 20kg bag . my piggies are doin well on it .
 
KT1975 said:
That is brilliant advice and thanks for the links to the rescue places the one in leeds looks good and has some lovely ones that my daughter will love!

another question about food!

The hay they need can it be baled hay that I would feed the horses (obviously good quality hay) or does it need to be this stuff you get in packs. I was looking at the stuff burgess sells along with the food is this ok as well! ;)
Click to expand...

Hi, I have horses too and have always fed my (14) pigs and rabbits baled hay, they love it. I sometimes give them haylage (from massive bales) too which they also love :)

Ps the OP didn't mean nuts as in peanuts, horse feed is called nuts but is a pellet not very different from guinea pellets in principle ;) x
 
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