Very worried about diet for new piggies

[robindabney]

Just got two pigs on Sunday/Monday, I think they are about 2-3 mos., from a pet store (will adopt next time!). I bought two different types of food both with added vit. C and I am mixing them. Also giving them tons of timothy hay. I have offered grapes, apples, carrots and tomatoes, they won't eat any of it!! They just sniff it and chew a little bit but that's it. I am so worried they aren't getting the vitamins they need. They don't eat a lot of the pellets but they do munch on the hay all the time. After reading how many veggies they should be eating I am stressing out. They have a vet appt. in one week. Should I be giving them extra vit. C and if so, how and how much? I already love them so much and I am desperate for info. THANKS!!!!

[Haley0489]

They're probably just trying to settle in. My pigs didn't eat veggies for the first week that I had them.

[Ly&Pigs]

Hi and Welcome to GPC.

What types of food (pellets) did you buy? If you got the pellets at the petstore, I can almost guarantee you that they are crappy garbage brands.

Most pigs in petstores aren't fed any kinds of veggies, therefore they aren't used to them. My advice would be to start with 2 simple things- lettuce (any variety but iceburg) and green bell peppers. Give a small amount to each daily and leave it in the cage for a few hours. If they don't attempt to eat it right away, that's normal, but keep giving those same two things every day. Eventually they will get curious and will start nibbling on it. Sometimes it takes days or weeks to get pigs to eat veggies. Then once they eat those two veggies or at least one of them, then about every 3-4 days add in one new veggie. Right now you are most likely overwhelming them with too many things.

In the meantime, you need to supplement with vitamin C. Not the kind you put in their water though. Either a tablet you can crush and give or liquid C that you would find in a health food store. If you get tablets you need some that are 100mg or less with no added junk. Then just divide them into quarters and give each pig 1/4 of a tablet per day. You may have to crush it and sprinkle it over the pellets to get them to eat it.

[robindabney]

Thanks for the info. I bought Animal Planet fortified guinea pig food by Kaytee at SuperTarget. It is just straight pellets. The package says it is 18% crude protein, 14% crude fiber, 3.5% crude fat and 12% moisture. Also says 100mg/lb of ascorbic acid. The other one I bought at PetCo is Bonanza guinea pig gourmet diet. It has pellets plus peanuts, banana, papaya, vita bits, carrots, pumpkin seeds, apples and raisins. It is 16% crude protein, 4% crude fat, 15% crude fiber, 12% moisture, and 200mg/kg of vit. C. I mixed the two brands together and that is what I have been feeding them. Is either of these good? If not, what type of pellets should I be feeding them and where do I get them? How would I get them to eat part of a vit. c tablet? How would I administer a liquid vitamin? Again, thanks so much for the info!!

[pigsforlife]

Originally Posted by robindabney

Thanks for the info. I bought Animal Planet fortified guinea pig food by Kaytee at SuperTarget. It is just straight pellets. The package says it is 18% crude protein, 14% crude fiber, 3.5% crude fat and 12% moisture. Also says 100mg/lb of ascorbic acid. The other one I bought at PetCo is Bonanza guinea pig gourmet diet. It has pellets plus peanuts, banana, papaya, vita bits, carrots, pumpkin seeds, apples and raisins. It is 16% crude protein, 4% crude fat, 15% crude fiber, 12% moisture, and 200mg/kg of vit. C. I mixed the two brands together and that is what I have been feeding them. Is either of these good? If not, what type of pellets should I be feeding them and where do I get them? How would I get them to eat part of a vit. c tablet? How would I administer a liquid vitamin? Again, thanks so much for the info!!

Both foods are bad. I wouldnt mind betting that the Kaytee pellets have ethoxyquin (the cancer causing chemical) in them, amongst other things. The gourmet mix is awful as well, all the added bits are not only unnecessary but fattening and a choking hazard. The best pellet is Kleenmama's Hayloft :: Fortified Feeds or Oxbow Pet Products | Cavy Cuisine with Mazurri 5664 being acceptable. KM's has to be ordered online, you can order Oxbows products online as well but they do have products in stores and vets (use the store locater). Vitamin c wise, get the 100mg tablets, and cut them into quarters, post it into their mouths. I haven't used the liquid vitamin c.

[rabbitsncavyluv]

Ditto pigsforlife. The Kaytee one is decent but it isn't the best. The Petco one with seeds and nuts is really bad though. Ditch immediately.

Read over the stickies here and Guinea Lynx :: A Medical and Care Guide for Your Guinea Pig

If you got them at a pet store, double check their genders. They often have mites and URI too so keep an eye on them.

[Ly&Pigs]

The Kaytee brand does in fact have ethoxyquin in it. Kaytee is trying this new thing by labeling their old foods under the "Animal Planet" label in hopes to boost sales, or at least that's my take on it. It's the same exact ingredients as the regular Kaytee Forti-Diet.

I don't know if I've ever disagreed with any statement that rabbitsncavyluv has made until tonight. I don't think Kaytee is decent at all but you can use that one until you get a better brand.

[rabbitsncavyluv]

It works in a pinch and until you can get Oxbow or KM. I wouldn't use it forever but Kaytee is unfortunately the more readily available plain pellet on the market. It's "better" than using Hartz or Nutriphase or the Petco mix.

In that way it is decent. Decent doesn't mean good or ideal to me. Sorry for the confusion.

Oxbow or KM are still higher quality and what you should get next time.

I forgot about Mazuri.

[Ly&Pigs]

I agree with those statements Rabbits.

[robindabney]

Just fyi you were right about the food with seeds and corn. One of my precious babies got a piece of the corn or some kind of seed stuck in her front teeth and I about had a heart attack. I thought she was choking. She was clearly struggling to get it off for quite a while, and this happened twice! I picked out all the bad stuff and today just chunked that bag and will give only the pellets. I can not find anywhere near me that sells the good brands, of course. I am going to have to place an order over the internet. Thanks for the good advice and I hope no one else makes the same mistake.

[robindabney]

p.s. One of them has started trying green leaf lettuce. Yea!!

[fourboys4now]

Parsley, cilantro and bell peppers are also veggies they may really enjoy. Those are my boy's favorites. If you order your pellets from Oxbow, you can freeze what won't be used immediately for up to a year. I bought in bulk 50 pounds and with shippping it was right around $53.00.