Smoothies !

[-Emma-]

This might be a silly question but can guinea pigs have smoothies ?

I had innocent smoothie (Its just complete squished fruit and NOTHING else) on my finger and my piggys liked it and they kept coming up for more and more !

In the smoothie there is apple orange bananna strawberrys and raspberrys thats all !

I wouldnt give them loads just a wee lick off my finger every so often ! Is that ok for them ?

Thanks Emma

[Sammy and Peanut]

Actually, no. To make a smoothie you need milk or ice cream. Guinea pigs can't have dairy products. And I don't think you can make a smoothie just out of fruit.

[Sammy and Peanut]

If you do find a way to make them without dairy products I guess they would be Ok.

[-Emma-]

yeah it says on the back its made with no e numnbers no sweetners no added sugar no concentrates no doughnuts(dont have a clue what they are) ! And then it says 100% fruit !

[Ally has U's]

You can make one of your own. The only thi8ng I put in my smoothies is fresh fruit of any sort and ice. Then I blend it all together. No milk no diary at all. So it depends on how you make the smoothie I guess.

[Sammy and Peanut]

I guess that would be OK then. Just try it out with a little at a time. Then wait a day. The next day if they are still OK, give them some more.

[Ly&Pigs]

Personally, I wouldn't give smoothies no matter how it's made. Too much sugar isn't good for pigs. Fruits should be limited in small portions only a couple of times per week.

[socal805]

I would definitly not give them a smoothie, the sugar levels in a smoothie are way higher than if you just gave them a small bite of a single piece of fruit. Even a few licks will have more sugar than a small bite of apple or other fruit.

[steve_and_pigs]

Seems like a good product:
innocent drinks : our drinks - smoothies, thickies, really lovely juices

They list the ingredients of all their flavors. Pasteurization will reduce the nutritional value some, but I'm spitting hairs.

For homemade "creamy" smoothies without dairy, just include bananna and/or mango. I like them thick, so I include frozen berries instead of ice. I don't add any water either. They are really good! Maybe they are not technically smoothies. Whatever they are, they are good!

It is fun to give some to my piggies. They lick my fingers to get every bit!

[wickedrodent]

You can make one of your own. The only thi8ng I put in my smoothies is fresh fruit of any sort and ice. Then I blend it all together. No milk no diary at all. So it depends on how you make the smoothie I guess.

I made myself a banana/strawberry smoothie today with just ice added.. I did let the girls lick a bit off my finger, but more than that would be too much. How about making a veggie smoothie? That would be better. They should still be getting regular veggies as well, of course.

The 'blender' I use is called the Magic Bullet. That thing is amazing!

[newpiggiemommy]

Part of them eating fruits and veggies is that they are nibbling at it and working their teeth down. Just like eating hay, they need to nibble on it and keep their teeth filed down.

[PhoenixFeather]

If you make your own smoothie, from fresh (not frozen) fruits and no dairy products, then allowing a few licks should be fine. Fruits should be served in limited quantities, and it is better for them to eat a small chunk of real fruit than a few licks of smoothie, but for an occasional replacement for their chunk of fruit, I think it is fine, as long as they are still getting plenty of fresh veggies and hay. (It may also be a good way to introduce new flavors of fruits that they don't prefer plain.)

I would not use any commercial product. The fruits may be pasteurized or frozen treated in other ways that would make them harder for the piggies to digest. Apparently even freezing changes the enzyme structure of fruits and vegetables in a way that makes them harder for piggies to digest. So... nothing frozen, nothing processed, etc....

[clotho]

After reading some stories about piggies having bad reactions to banana, I decided never to give my piggies banana again. I'm not sure if it was because a large amount of banana was given, but I won't give them anything with banana in it. I figure better safe than sorry.

[krittercrazy]

I have been making a veggie smoothie for Pepper, who is having problems with her teeth. I put in her greens and peppers in the blender with a little water. She absolutely loves it. It has to be fresh and not left down very long to prevent fermentation. For all my other piggies, they only get an occasional lick as I want them to keep their teeth worn down.

[Feylin]

Kritterkrazy- that's a great thing to remember for pigs who are having teeth problems.

But, I think that it's better for healthy pigs to have just fresh veggies and a few fruits.