Worried about our new piggies Part 2 - Food

[dean&steven]

Hello all.. Thank you all so much for your advice yesterday. As per your comments we have given our 2 boys their shelter back. We have put the cage in another room, which is quieter... We have put their food bowl nearer to their bed and put some water in a bowl. We gave them fresh baby carrots last night that they seem to be loving but don't seem to be eating their other food. We are feeding them the same food as they were getting in the shop amd we have given them plenty of hay. We are glad they are eating the carrots so we know that they do have an appetite but still a little worried. They are venturing out now, we had a peak at them last night and the shyer one, Leo was up on the shelf scouting for carrots. Are carrots enough for them?

 

[Doghouse135]

Carrots alone are not sufficient but it's very very early days. The likelihood is that they weren't getting much, if any, fresh fruit and veg at the pet shop and piggies will always (IMO) choose fresh over dry food anyday.

Don't worry about them - they will be fine. If they're eating, they're OK.

Over time, you will notice that they will develop their own little eating habits. I tend to give mine fresh in the morning and then their nuggets at night. They always have a big bundle of hay to munch on too.

It's good that you care about them but they will honestly settle down into their own little routine over the next week or so and you'll wonder why you were so concerned. Glad that you are though - nice to hear

 

[flips]

Hi again,

This is a good reference for knowing what kinds of food your guinea pigs can eat.
http://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=37030

As your pigs aren't used to fresh food, I would stick to carrots for a couple of days, then add another food- perhaps broccoli (tops and stalks) or bell pepper. You need to add new foods slowly so as not to upset their tummies and so you can monitor any effects they have.
The bulk of a guinea pigs diet is hay so make sure they have unlimited access to good, fresh hay. I had the same hay rack as you and found my girls didn't use it very well. You could try pulling the hay through the bars a bit to encourage them to use it.