Not eating enough?

[PigPig]

My little piggie seems to be very picky. She of course loves carrots and regular red leaf and romaine lettuces. She will also eat celery, parsley and cilantro. So far the only fruits I have offered are Apples, Oranges and bananas(only offered once and she was not interested). She has bowls of pellets and she'll eat it. When I take her outside to play in her playpen she will eat the grass and wild strawberry leaves...but that is the extent of it. I have offered many other 'lettuce' type greens, ratishes, cucumbers, bell peppers...she is simply not interested. Could she not be ready to eat them? Maybe she is still so young and is not sure? How can I make sure my little pig is getting what she needs with the very little she will take. I just don't want her to end up sick.

[MaggieMae]

I left my guinea pig long thin strips of green pepper in her bowl, and waited until she got hungry enough. Obviously I didn't starve her or anything but after a couple of days of realizing what an inconvenience it was to be hungry and only have these weird smelling green things in her cage for food, she at them.

When she did, I gave her her pellets. This went on as I introduced new things. I am pretty sure once your guinea pig learns to eat the veggies they will realize they aren't as creepy.

She still is picky about cilantro but if I give it to her, and leave it for long enough, she will eat it, and then she gets the "good" stuff.

The trick is, don't break down in an hour. Make sure there is plenty of hay and water to tide them over until they break down and give it a try.

Also, be sure to check around the boards for proper diet guidelines depending on the age of your guinea pig. Even going back to old posts on here will give you more ideas of how to introduce them to veggies if they are being picky.

Good luck!

[PiggyKat]

I did the same thing with my pigs MaggieMae. They ate it when the got hungry! They are like little kids, they say they don't like it but haven't tried it yet!

[twilightwheek]

Tabytha Sue also got very, very tired of peppers and took a little break from eating them for about a week. I supplemented with other veggies that she kinda likes, and she was happy. I still gave them to her on the off chance she'd get to eating them again and she even snuck a pepper into her house today.
They'll eat them when they realize thats what they're getting. Like everyone says, they're like kids!

[akstrohm]

You need to stop feeding all fruits and veggies except lettuce and bell pepper. Feed them repeatedly in small amounts until they are eaten. This can take weeks or months--you have to be patient. Then you can slowly add in other veggies. Fruits and carrots should not be fed at all until your pig eats a good variety of other things. They are treats.

You should feed only 1/8-1/4 cup high quality pellets per day to a pig over 6 months. High quality brands include Kleenmama, Oxbow, Sweet Meadow, and Mazuri 5664. If you're feeding something else, there is a good chance it is low quality so please ask.

Do not withhold all pellets and do not withhold hay. Doing so can result in serious medical and dental problems.

Until your pig eats bell peppers, give a 100% vitamin C supplement (not drops in the water).

[MaggieMae]

Do not withhold all pellets and do not withhold hay. Doing so can result in serious medical and dental problems.

Sorry, I just realized I should have made this more clear. I agree 100%. My intent in suggesting to take away pellets was strictly temporary. The point to it was to make the guinea pig hungry while presenting green peppers so they will be more inclined to try them. Pellets should always be given in the end. However, my guinea pig will fill up on pellets in a heart beat if given the chance, so you want to make sure they are not full while the green peppers are being offered.

This also means leaving peppers in the cage at almost all times, keeping them fresh and changing them out. However, my point was also to stress that taking the pellets out for half an hour and leaving peppers does not always equal hungry enough to give in. Watch your guinea pigs eating habits and judge for yourself. Mine eats something every couple of hours so I know that withholding pellets for a couple hours would not cause her harm. Of course she gets a very small amount twice a day after veggies because she is over 6 months so she could go longer without pellets. It varies from pig to pig.

I also agree, this could take a while, but the key is not to give up. Good luck!

[Ly&Pigs]

Do not withhold all pellets and do not withhold hay. Doing so can result in serious medical and dental problems.

Ditto, ditto, DITTO.