How often should one feed their cavies?

[Patmai]

How many times a day should you feed your cavies their meals?
I used to try and feed them once every 4 or 5 hours because they've such small bodies, so I figured maybe they have a faster metabolism rate. I need this info so I can have a fixed schedule for my housemates to feed them whilst I'm away.

[NarwhalsRock]

By meals, do you mean pellets? Veggies? Pellets AND veggies? Hay should always be available. But, I personally feed my girls 1/4 cup, twice a day. I don't know if what I do is best, but I think that you don't need to have your housemates feed them during the day...

[Catahoula]

Guinea pigs a foragers and would be happy with multiple meals spread out during the day.

I feed my guys half of their veggies (1/2 cup each) in the morning before I go to work. At lunch time I come home and give them their pellets (1/4 cup each). In the evening I give the other half of their veggies (again, 1/2 cup each). And at night, right before bedtime, I freshen up their hay.

The hay lasts all night and throughout the day, I just like to only give one food item at a time. Since hay should be available 24/7 for them to forage on, it doesn't really matter what time of day you give it to them.

Just one opinion...

[ThePigAlchemist]

I make sure they have hay all the time, but I give my pigs their pellets when I get up and when I'm about to go to bed. I give veggies around dinner time usually, but I'm not that picky on my schedule.

[bpatters]

Mine get fed vegetables three times a day, pellets once, and unlimited hay.

[4Marmalade]

Our two have access to hay all day/night. They get fed veggies and pellets once in the morning and once in the evening.

[PrincessAngel]

Morning, veggies, early evening pellets, night more veggies and refill hay. This way they don't bug me for food throughout the night, which happens if I feed pellets or night veggies too late

[NarwhalsRock]

I forgot my veggies schedule! Oops! 1/2 cup in the morning, and 1/2 cup at night, when they get pellets.

[spy9doc]

My feeding regimen differs from many of you. I have observed that my cavies don't overeat, so I'm a bit more lenient with food availability. I'm a grazer by nature, and find nothing wrong in permitting my cavies to do the same.

Of course, they have hay available 24/7, but they also have pellets available as well. How do I know that they're not overeating? Well, a couple of indicators: 1) the cavies' weight isn't constantly increasing (the little one is the exception....I expect her to be gaining a little each week), 2) they don't eat an inordinate amount of pellets even though they are available.

They are fed plenty of fresh veggies morning and evening. I don't limit their veggies to 1/2 cup each, but do remove any remaining food when they are finished. They occasionally will be given a piece of canteloupe rind or some corn husks as a snack midday or before bedtime.

As I said, they don't overeat, and by having something to snack on, they aren't absolutely ravenous by mealtime. They are both extremely healthy and have needed only a well-piggy visit with the vet.

[Paulo]

I m giving them fresh veggies twice a day, before going to work at 6 am and in the evining again at 6 pm. Hay and wild grasses every day. No pellets

I have them for over 2 weeks, andi have noticed more shininy fur (diet or cleaner conditions?) Very active, andbecasuethey are in my bedroom i wonder what they aredoing to produce so much noise!!! They finally accept food frommy hands....I have noticed as well than one is getting bigger, but both of them eat the same, as i can see

[MichelleO]

Mine have hay all the time as a rule. They get fed their mix in the morning with something to chew on like corn cob or small carrot. When I get from work (sometimes a couple of them come to work with me) they get a mix again and a pile of veggies. They get fruit as well in the evening usually tiwce a week as more than that can be too much sugar, I have been told.
My mix consists of pellets, complete horse feed, oaten chaff, and a little of lucerne chaff. I find they tend to leave the pellets but eat the rest. In the evening I tip out what they have left in their bowls and put fresh in. I grow some of my own veggies which helps.