Slimming down obese pig

[3piggymomma]

Do you have any advice I can pass onto my partner for slimming down our very obese piggy? I keep telling her to switch his pellets to Oxbow and to be persistent with the staple veggies (he is a very very picky eater). She doesn't have a scale but we have estimated him at around 4lbs, he is HUGE! Is there any other advice I can offer besides what I have already told her?

[akstrohm]

How big is your cage? Does your pig get daily floor time?

What veggies are you feeding and how much? What pellets are you feeding and how much?

It is very important to weigh your pig weekly. Weight loss is often the first and sometimes the only sign of illness. Pigs go downhill very quickly if they get sick. A kitchen scale from somewhere like Target won't cost much and will work just fine.

[3piggymomma]

Next time I go to visit her I will bring mine. He gets lettuce, carrots and clover - supposedly won't eat anything else. He gets pellets from the pet store but its not even the brown pellet kind, they are orange red and green shaped things, not sure what they are called... he supposedly won't eat regular pellets. He lives in a pet store cage.

[akstrohm]

Clearly a better diet and exercise would go a long way toward solving the weight problem. He needs few or no carrots, a lot more other veggies, a plain and high-quality pellet in limited amounts, a large cage, and daily floor time. There's nothing that can take the place of diet and exercise, so I would focus your attention on educating your friend rather than looking for new ideas to help a pig lose weight.

[heartpiggies]

He needs few or no carrots, a lot more other veggies, a plain and high-quality pellet in limited amounts, a large cage, and daily floor time.

I agree. I adopted an obese piggy and he is slimming down nicely after some simple diet and lifestyle changes. Basically, I moved him into a much larger cage, switched him to timothy hay pellets (Oxbow Cavy Cuisine) rather than alfalfa and offer him low-sugar veggies like green bell pepper, cilantro and romaine lettuce daily-no carrots or pet store treats. He is so much happier and more active than he was when he first came home with me. He used to do nothing but lie around and eat. Now he runs laps, squeals and popcorns like crazy whenever I walk in the room.