Want to switch out pellet food

[rramos]

Hello everyone,

I am currently feeding my guinea pigs Wild Harvest Guinea Pig Advanced Nutrition Diet with Fruit am Formula and Vitamin C because the sale person at PetSmart said the that brand was the best for guinea pigs. However, after reading some of the posts on the forum, I've realized that it has a lot of stuff that should not make up a cavy diet. Also, my cavies are no longer eating most of the hay pellets in contains, but rather the colored pellets, seeds, nuts and beans. Needless to say, they are becoming chubbier even with a lot of floor time and exercise. I want to switch out the hard food I feed them, but I think I read that I can't just change it from one day to the next; I have to wean them off the old food and add the new food more and more.

Does anyone know how long I should do this for, or if I even should do this, and which would be the best pellet hard food to replace it with?

Also, at PetSmart, they are selling Timothy hay bags for cavies, some containing dried rose pellets and mint leaves, other containing dried daffodils and rosemary. There is also a Tropical blend, I think, that contains dried pieces of bananas, pineapple, and orange. Are these okay for cavies or should plain hay be maintained? I also want to start buying hay from places online. I've noticed some references in previous posts that I am looking into. I am just wondering if these are okay because they seem like a nice change for the children.

Thank you!

[bpatters]

I think plain hay is better. Those fruits and other things in the hay have been treated with preservatives, and who know what they do to a guinea pig's digestive system. You also can buy very good hay, even online, at way less than you'd pay at one of the big box pet stores.

You can just switch the pigs over cold turkey to the better pellets. They won't be happy, but if they eat veggies, you can dice the veggies very fine and put them on the pellets -- sort of the reverse of teaching them to eat veggies. I don't if that will work, of course, since mine eat both veggies and pellets, but it seems like a good idea.

KM and Oxbow are the best pellets you can get. Some pigs have problems with Oxbow, but I haven't heard of any having difficulty with KM. I live in Houston, and the two are within pennies of the same price -- depends on what FedEx is charging for shipping when I order.

[rramos]

I think plain hay is better. Those fruits and other things in the hay have been treated with preservatives, and who know what they do to a guinea pig's digestive system. You also can buy very good hay, even online, at way less than you'd pay at one of the big box pet stores.

You can just switch the pigs over cold turkey to the better pellets. They won't be happy, but if they eat veggies, you can dice the veggies very fine and put them on the pellets -- sort of the reverse of teaching them to eat veggies. I don't if that will work, of course, since mine eat both veggies and pellets, but it seems like a good idea.

KM and Oxbow are the best pellets you can get. Some pigs have problems with Oxbow, but I haven't heard of any having difficulty with KM. I live in Houston, and the two are within pennies of the same price -- depends on what FedEx is charging for shipping when I order.

Thank you. I am going grocery shopping tomorrow, so I will check the different feed stores in my area for the KM pellets. That is a good idea, to dice the veggies in with the pellets. My babies might not be the happiest campers, but then again, they eat everything.

[lissie]

I will check the different feed stores in my area for the KM pellets.

KM pellets are only available online. They are not sold in stores.
KMS Hayloft, Grass Hays & Fortified Feeds From the Valleys of the Pacific Northwest

[Delaine]

KMs pellets have to be ordered online. I just e-mailed them to get a quote on shipping to Canada. I have recently changed my guinea pigs over to Oxbow because I can get them in the pet store, but I have heard so many good things about KM pellets. bpatters made a good point about the cost of pellets in another thread. She pointed out that although we have to pay shipping, the cost of KMs pellets are cheaper than Oxbow. I was so focused on the cost of shipping that I didn't take into account that I pay over $16.00 for 5 lbs. of Oxbow Timothy pellets and KMs Timothy choice pellets are $11.00 for 10 lbs. Here is the website KMS Hayloft KMS Hayloft, Grass Hays & Fortified Feeds From the Valleys of the Pacific Northwest

[rramos]

Thank you very much. You just saved me a bunch of gas. I would have been up and down looking for it all day tomorrow. I will check out the site in a bit. $11.00 for 10 lbs plus shipping doesn't sound bad.

[beachgurl_1988]

I switched all my pigs over cold turkey to Oxbow pellets. They love them. I didn't have any problems with that at all. I use Oxbow because Its readily available at Petsmart.

As for hay, I have used Oxbow and Kaytee. Between the two, my piggies didn't eat the Oxbow hay as well. We use Kaytee. I have gotten the Kaytee bags with the carrot and the marigold and papaya and what not before. I just use it sparingly and offer it as a treat sometimes when they are out for floor time.

Check at your Petsmart, mine here has Oxbow treats. They are not sugar and fat loaded like most of the treats are. My piggies love them!

[cynpz]

im looking into getting KM pellets as well, but i went to their site and im unsure of which to get- timothy or alfalfa. what's the best or recommended?

[lissie]

How old are your pigs? Alfalfa pellets are for babies up to 6 months.

[cynpz]

one is 4 weeks old and the other is 1 year old. they've both been eating adult oxbow and i still have about 3/4 left of it, but wanted to switch. could the adult stay on the oxbow til its done and then eat the alfalfa? or could i mix it in? i should probably just get alfalfa AND timothy, right?

[Piglicious]

you can just get the timothy pellet if you want and just supplement the baby with calcium rich veggies during lap time

[schavarry]

How old are your pigs? Alfalfa pellets are for babies up to 6 months.

Not to jack the thread but I have a question about this. My piggies are just over 2 months, I've been giving them timothy hay and alfalfa hay sparingly. I've noticed since switching over to fleece bedding that my little girl has white spots in her cage - I know I need to stop feeding her romaine lettuce and start feeding her other dark green/red lettuce... Should I take her off of the alfalfa as well?

[cyndyt]

Schavarry

From what I have heard and read cavies need alfalfa hay and pellets until they are about a year old.

I had mine on alfalfa based until a year and then switched them to Timothy

[cynpz]

you can just get the timothy pellet if you want and just supplement the baby with calcium rich veggies during lap time

Thank you so much. what kind of veggies would you recommend for the baby?

[rramos]

Not to jack the thread but I have a question about this. My piggies are just over 2 months, I've been giving them timothy hay and alfalfa hay sparingly. I've noticed since switching over to fleece bedding that my little girl has white spots in her cage - I know I need to stop feeding her romaine lettuce and start feeding her other dark green/red lettuce... Should I take her off of the alfalfa as well?

Is it the romaine lettuce that causes the white spots, which I always thought was calcium excess, and if so, is it best not to feed this as the main leafy green? I'm asking because my three cavies love romaine lettuce so I always include it in dinner. However, I've noticed the white in their fleece and pee stains and am not sure if it is a normal or even healthy side effect. Any advice/comments greatly appreciated.

[PurplePaws121]

I just changed all of mine over from Oxbow to KMs pellets. I had about a 1/2 bag left of Oxbow so I am starting by sparingly mixing in the new KM pellets. So far they don't seem to like the KM pellets as much, which i'm very shocked by....? Are they just used to the Oxbow and will eventually be ok with the change?

[rramos]

Thank you so much. what kind of veggies would you recommend for the baby?

I was reading the threads and it just hit me that you live in Edinburg. I live in Edinburg too. Glad to know there is another guinea pig lover down here. The odds.

[Piglicious]

@cynpz Turnip, Mustard, and Dandelion Greens, Collards, Kale, parsley...are the ones i know off the top of my head

[cynpz]

Thanks @Pigalicious! @rramos , thats so awesome! i noticed your said south texas and thought we would be close to each other! i thought i was the only one in all of south texas who was so into their piggies!

[rramos]

Thanks @Pigalicious! @rramos , thats so awesome! i noticed your said south texas and thought we would be close to each other! i thought i was the only one in all of south texas who was so into their piggies!

I know! Every time I show people at Pan Am pictures of my Tiny Dancer, Blonde, and Peppy La Pew they are amazed and shocked because they have never seen a guinea pig before. I always thought to myself, "These people don't know what cuteness they are missing!"