Carrots

[x.n.d.x]

Can guinea pigs eat carrots?
~x.n.d.x

[HowietheGreat]

Yes. I would suggest no more the one baby carrot per pig per day-maximum.

[cavy-cool-crazy]

They can have carrot, but once you sort out a balanced veggie diet you will probably find that carrots become more of a treat than a regular. Personally, where carrot used to be one of my pigs' main veggies each day, it now comes into a salad once a month, or even less. They don't miss it and really don't care much for it.

See the sticky thread Common Misconceptions about Guinea Pigs and their Care, post #3 for a detailed list of a nutritionally balanced veggie diet.

No more than one baby carrot per day is advised, due to the high Vitamin A and calcium content.

[Levin]

If carrots aren't good for piggys mine would be very sick. It's my piggy's favorite veggie an gets one everyday during play time.

[cavy-cool-crazy]

Levin that's not the idea. It also depends on what you think of when you think of a sick guinea pig. Don't forget pigs hide many signs of illness; you just need to know the early symptoms and then you begin to see the full picture and change your view.

Carrots are high in calcium;excess calcium builds up in the bladder (excess meaning too much to eliminate through urination) and form into a sludge. With the help of other components of carrots - if you don't take action to cut the calcium intake - then you may be looking at bladder stones forming.

I believe excess Vitamin A can contribute to liver or kidney damage.

I'm also pretty sure that carrots contain Oxalic Acid; I don't know much about this aspect of it yet but I know it's not a good thing to OD on.

All those mixed together doesn't make for a great vegetable nutritionally.

Pigs won't miss carrot once the diet is altered - mine used to get a full carrot daily and I altered the veggie plan and they really don't care much for those veggies, such as carrots, which are not so nutritionally balanced.

Once you notice that white pee you realise that you are giving too much calcium. One baby carrot at most per day, plus lots of other more balanced veggies can reduce the likelihood of this, along with reduction or elimination of other high calcium veggies - spinach, kale and parsley especially - and not feeding alfalfa hay and products.

[Coopdog]

I could never stop giving Louise her carrot...it is her absolute favorite thing in the world. She only gets one baby carrot at night, right before I go to bed, but she knows it's coming and stands up at the side of the cage waiting for it. Then she yoinks it out of my hand and runs purring all around the cage, banging it into things before she settles down somewhere in a corner to scarf it down. After that whole show is over, only then will she come and see what other veggies I have put in her cage. But the carrot rules supreme!