Baby spinach? - Guinea Pig Cages, Care, Store, Photos of Guinea Pigs and More Forum!

**Piggies&Kinz** · #1 08-13-07, 08:01 pm

Can piggies eat baby romaine and baby spinach leaves I think? we are out of pellets and hay so I have been giving them fruits and veggies...mostly the above 2 in one of those fresh salad bags. they came as mixed is that ok?

**Piggies&Kinz** · #2 08-13-07, 08:06 pm

Hello??? Anyone care?

**aqh88** · #3 08-13-07, 08:12 pm

Patience. It's night time here. Only insane people who just got home like me are on.

Romaine is fine. Spinach should be fed sparingly. I actually prefer not to feed it at all. Too high in oxalic acid and calcium. It can easily contribute to bladderstones.

Actually the best thing to do is to go pick grass from an unsprayed yard. Make sure it has had no chemicals or fertilizers aside from possibly natural fertilizers like composted manure and feed them that. Veggies and fruits have little to no fiber and fiber is what they need.

**Piggies&Kinz** · #4 08-13-07, 08:13 pm

Sorry to repost this, but I had it in the wrong spot last time. We bought a bag of mixed lettuce, and it includes baby romaine and "baby spinach". I know romaine is ok, but I wasn't sure about baby spinach. Is that ok?

**Piggies&Kinz** · #5 08-13-07, 08:15 pm

ooops. I have been taking a handful of those leafs from the bag and feeding for about 2 days but they've only have out 4 handfuls. Should I stop? Its not like spinach spinach, its leaves.

**rabbitsncavyluv** · #6 08-13-07, 08:16 pm

You can feed it but you need to get them at least hay asap. They should never be without hay. Veggies isn't enough fiber and unless you have veggies for them at all times, not enough to sustain them. (Which is more costly than hay)

They need to have something to eat at all times so they can graze and keep their digestive system going. It's ok to run out of pellets but they should always have grass hay.

**aqh88** · #7 08-13-07, 08:17 pm

Isn't spinach normally just leaves? I've never seen anything but leaves or leaves with stems attached. The entire spinach plant should be the same anyway. If possible I'd quit feeding it and just feed the romaine. Several days in a row is too much and if they get bladderstones it can require surgery to remove.

**Piggies&Kinz** · #8 08-13-07, 08:17 pm

It's only been a few days. We just moved so we haven't had alot of money. But we are going to get hay and pellets in the morning.

**Piggies&Kinz** · #9 08-13-07, 08:18 pm

How do you know if they have bladderstones?

**aqh88** · #10 08-13-07, 08:19 pm

More than 4 hours without food can cause the digestive tract to shut down. If they've already been days without high fiber foods I wouldn't even leave them an hour. I'd go try to find some grass or stop by a 24hour store like walmart and grab whatever they have even if it's stemmy alfalfa just so the pigs have something for tonight.

Calcium buildup starts as gritty white deposits when they pee. Smooth white is ok but rough and especially sand like is bad. Those deposits can turn into a larger stone which will be painful. They may end up peeing some blood, squeaking in pain when urinating, or even an entire blockage where they can't pee. It doesn't usually happen quickly though so a couple days should be fine but if you keep feeding it they may be at risk of developing stones over the next few weeks.

**Piggies&Kinz** · #11 08-13-07, 08:21 pm

What;s high in fiber? we have lots of fruits and veggies.

**Piggies&Kinz** · #12 08-13-07, 08:22 pm

Ok so if they get hay tomorrow they will be fine? Our shops are prolly closed.

**aqh88** · #13 08-13-07, 08:22 pm

Hay and grass is high fiber. Even hay cubes would be better than nothing although they can't eat them indefinitely.

Veggies and especially fruits are low fiber.

**Piggies&Kinz** · #14 08-13-07, 08:24 pm

Will they be fine overnight?

**Piggies&Kinz** · #15 08-13-07, 08:28 pm

is water like from a frigde dispenser built in ok for them or should they have tap?

**rabbitsncavyluv** · #16 08-13-07, 08:30 pm

Hopefully they will be fine but they have likely lost weight already due to being without hay and pellets. If it's been nearly a week, you need to get them both hay and plain pellets asap.

If you cannot afford to properly care for them anymore, please consider rehoming them.

**Piggies&Kinz** · #17 08-13-07, 08:34 pm

My dad just left to get hay I told him to get hay ASAP and he just left. He doesn't have enough for pellets right now, but we have fruits and veggies for them and hay its more important than pellets right now, right?

**aqh88** · #18 08-13-07, 08:43 pm

Water from the fridge is fine. Usually it's just run through a basic sediment filter and some carbon to remove chemicals and improve flavor. It's usually healthier than tapwater.

They need hay for sure. They can't survive without a source of fiber. The veggies will give them the vitamins and minerals they would get from pellets but you need to pay more attention to what you feed them. A pellet free diet can be tricky if you do it for more than a very short period of time. The balance of nutrients, like feeding way too much calcium with the spinach, can really get thrown off. Check out the info at the top of the nutrition section of the forum for some basic info. Especially the nutrition charts.

**Piggies&Kinz** · #19 08-13-07, 08:44 pm

ok so getting them hay tonight and pellets in a few days is ok?

**Piggies&Kinz** · #20 08-13-07, 08:45 pm

Wahoo Ihes Getting Both