Tessa's Delivery Ward!

Shawna Driggers · Jan 25, 2016

Pregnant Sow Diet?

Hey all!
I've been reading through the forum most of yesterday and through today, but have some questions about diet for a pregnant sow. I think I have our little sow and our big boy's diet pretty much handled for the most part, but does anyone have a sample diet I could follow for our pregnant girl? I am feeding her my young sow's Oxbow young guinea pig pellets along with alfalfa and timothy hay. I have that pretty much stocked in her cage at all times.
The fruits/veggies is where I get a bit overwhelmed!

We just recently adopted her and her mate (who was a 'female' according to previous owner.). They were being fed a bird seed type diet along with several baby carrots daily. No hay, no other veggies.

I gave her 1/2 of a green bell pepper (no seeds), a strawberry and a small amount of celery this morning. Is there any 'must' have veggies that I should be feeding her daily? I know the list had a lot of great foods to feed on an almost daily basis, so should I just stick with that and mix it up each day, or with her being pregnant and having a pretty horrible diet up until two days ago should i be adding anything else in to help? I am able to feel babies moving, so we definitely know she is pregnant, and she is quite large, so I would guess she is set to have babies pretty soon. Also, should I be feeding her more since she is expecting?

Any tips for what to feed babies or any fruits/veggies that would be recommended over another?

I'm sorry if this has been posted before and I missed it! I just want to make sure we are well informed with what to give her!

On a side note, the pregnant sow and the boar are said to be approx one year of age, and the former owner said she got them as a pair from the owner before her. With that being said I think its safe to say she's had babies before, but now i'm kind of freaking out about her being pregnant because of her being older than recommended for having babies for a first time, if this is in fact the first time she's had babies. Ugh!

peachyteen · Jan 25, 2016

Re: Pregnant Sow Diet?

Daily veggies should be Lettuce (red or green leaf) and bell peppers. I also give broccoli and cucumber pretty much every day. Fruit should only be given as a treat because guinea pigs can't process sugar. You should also give her some alfalfa hay (in addition to unlimited grass hay) or parsley every day to give her a bit extra calcium for the babies.

bpatters · Jan 25, 2016

Re: Pregnant Sow Diet?

Same diet as for a young pig. Strictly limit the amount of fruit she gets -- she doesn't need the sugar.

She is older than a sow should ever be bred. She may be able to deliver normally, depending on the size of the pups and how much her pelvic ligaments have stiffened. I'd find a good exotic vet to have on call, and maybe ask them to recommend a good emergency vet in case you need one in the middle of the night or on a weekend.

Also read https://www.guinealynx.info/reproduction.html and https://www.guinealynx.info/labor.html. What you particularly want to watch for is her laboring but not delivering pups. That's a medical emergency, and you'll need to get her to someone who can do an emergency spay.

Shawna Driggers · Jan 25, 2016

Re: Pregnant Sow Diet?

Ok, perfect. We found an exotic vet this morning, but they are booked until next week and she feels the babies may come before we get them in. She gave me the name of another vet for emergency purposes. So we at least have that covered. Would she need more sugar than a young one to help offset toxemia? or am I getting my facts wrong lol I think everything i've read is starting to go together. I've been researching like crazy here lately and need to make lists haha
I read that keeping her in her original cage would be best, but its like a rabbit cage on wheels and barely fits the food/hay dishes and her house that i made her...with her already going through so much stress because we just brought her home, would it be terrible of me to move her to a bigger place? Putting a smaller house is out of the question because she is so big she just fits in this one.

And of course I JUST found the pregnancy thread, so I probably should've posted this in that place.

bpatters · Jan 25, 2016

Re: Pregnant Sow Diet?

No, no more sugar than for a young one. Guinea pigs really don't need sugar at all, ever, but can tolerate a little now and then.

It would be fine to put her in a larger cage. In fact, it would be better to do it before the pups come, because if they're all really crowded after the pups are born, their ears may get chewed. Just put the same cage furniture in the new one so it smells something like her old place.

Glad you've found vet care. What signs is she showing that makes you think the pups may come so soon?

Shawna Driggers · Jan 25, 2016

Re: Pregnant Sow Diet?

We can hear the teeth chatter, and a lady from a local guinea pig rescue said that once you feel them and hear their teeth it would be within two weeks....but that could've been bad info. Is there really any definitive signs other than the pelvic spacing that would tell us?
I'll have to make a new post (or keep posting here) for baby watch progress! haha

bpatters · Jan 25, 2016

Re: Pregnant Sow Diet?

Sorry, you should have been given this link: https://www.guineapigcages.com/foru...inea-pig-is-pregnant-And-how-far-along-is-she.

Just remember, the pups can't read, and may not know that schedule.

Shawna Driggers · Jan 26, 2016

So, I figured it would be easier to keep a thread going for updates on Tessa, the upcoming babies, and our adventure with having these piggies. ( and my many..many..questions.)
I built her a cage last night so she had enough room for her and the babies. Its a 2.5x4ft temp cage until we figure out what exactly we are going to do with our newfound family and how we are going to introduce them all.

Tessa has been eating her veggies like crazy, but hasn't really touched the hay or pellets the past day and a half. Magnus, the boy that came with her, eats like a dang pig haha. I am constantly refilling his hay manger!

I guess we are officially on baby watch until she delivers (with hopefully no complications!)

Can ya'll help me determine the sex when they are born?!

bpatters · Jan 26, 2016

It's easier for everyone if we keep everything on one thread -- makes the history of your pigs MUCH easier to follow. I've merged these threads, but gave it the name of your newest one.

Just a comment -- in the picture, the color of that wood looks like it's treated. If that's the case, it's not safe for the guinea pigs.

Shawna Driggers · Jan 26, 2016

Thanks!! That does make it much easier!

I'll have to check with my husband about the wood! I just grabbed out of his scrap wood stack and didn't even think to take notice or research the wood! I'm pretty sure its just old and has been sitting, and i sanded almost all of it down and used the Clean Cage spray to wipe it out. I'm hoping to have her in a more permanent place with our current sow once babies are here and older. My next project is finding Magnus a bigger place. I'm hoping she has at least one baby boar that we can put in with Magnus so he isn't in a cage by himself, because then we are basically back to square one. We adopted these two because Piggy was by herself. Its seeming to be a never ending cycle haha Pretty soon we will need a dedicated piggy room!

This is Magnus. He is the most personable guinea pig i have ever come across. He has no fear of the kids or dogs and gets SO loud when I walk past his cage and do not pay attention to him.

pinky · Jan 26, 2016

I thought the same thing as @bpatters. It looks like it's been treated or could be cedar; neither of which are safe. Cedar contains aromatic oils that can lead to kidney and liver disease. Treated wood contains arsenic. Sanding won't make a difference if it's either of those woods.

Shawna Driggers · Jan 26, 2016

Its treated, so that cage didn't last long. I'm glad I have you to help!

pinky · Jan 26, 2016

You're a good pet owner. Some people wouldn't think twice of using the cage.

Shawna Driggers · Jan 26, 2016

I'm just trying to learn as we go! I need to find a good, sturdy plan for cages though. C&C isn't going to be a good idea because of the huskies, but I can build just about anything. I'm thinking maybe a wall unit type, with the cages 3x7 and on on top of one another (one for Magnus and the other for the ladies.) and having a storage cabinet on bottom.... but that's going to depend on how much space we will need after we figure out how many babies/how many we will actually keep, etc.
I kind of feel responsible for all the pups now that they are coming from Tessa since we took her on, but how feasible is it to have multiples in a cage? I definitely don't want a house full of piggies, but would be a nervous wreck finding homes for them.

bpatters · Jan 26, 2016

Closet shelving makes a very sturdy cage that will be dog proof if you use heavy-duty zip-ties to hold it together.

Pigs prefer to have multiples in the cage. You just have to not put males and females together, and must make sure that the cage has adequate space for them. Click on the Main tab at the top of the page for recommended cage sizes, but remember that those are recommended minimums, and that bigger is always better. The sizes on the Main page are in grids, which are 14 inches, not 12.

Shawna Driggers · Jan 28, 2016

No babies yet. I think I'm starting to get impatient!
Tessa is eating well and we've learned she doesn't care much for Timothy Hay, but Orchard with a little Alfalfa is devoured so I think we will stick with those!

Magnus and Tessa have successfully taught our little sow how to wheek when they hear the fridge open...mainly because Magnus gets LOUD every time we open the fridge then the other two follow suite, so theres an echo throughout the house haha
I'm pretty sure Magnus is going to eat us out of the house. On the back of the oxbow bag of hay it says Only offer small amounts to adult pigs, but then I see where everyone else says always keep hay available. We've literally gone through 6 small bags of the oxbow timothy/alfalfa/orchard hay in the past four days. This can't be normal, right?

Also, from what we have read Oxbow is a pretty good brand, but to be honest, hay is hay, or so I thought? So would I be a bad owner if I went to my feed store and bought a huge bag of timothy hay for significantly less $$?

pinky · Jan 28, 2016

You're going to need a lot of hay for multiple guinea pigs. They should have unlimited hay.... mounds.... at all times. It's their primary food source, keeps their digestive tracts moving and their teeth ground down. I buy 50 lb at a time for my 4 and store it in yard waste bags that I cover with a sheet in my garage. I keep the bags up on a table. 25 lbs or a bale would be fine. Don't give the male alfalfa but the female can have it now and when she's nursing. The pups can have it up to 6 months of age since they need added calcium to build strong bones.

Shawna Driggers · Jan 29, 2016

Thanks! Magnus will literally sit at his manger and eat hay all day. Everytime I look at him he is eating haha

Still no babies from Tessa.

Shawna Driggers · Feb 5, 2016

We woke up this morning and Piggy, our first Guinea Pig, passed away overnight. She didn't eat as much as she usually does yesterday and had a fit when my husband picked her up last night but she had no other issues that we were aware of...I have no clue what could've happened! Now i'm freaking out hoping nothing happens with Tessa or Magnus. Any advice? :sad:

Shawna Driggers · Feb 6, 2016

Well, its been three weeks since we brought Tessa and Magnus home and we are still waiting for Tess to have babies. She's getting ginormous. Poor thing just looks miserable and does not like to be picked up (who can blame her), so cleaning her cage has been fun lately. ha.
I went ahead and added in some smaller huts and another water bottle in her cage for when the babies arrive.

After losing Piggy yesterday we are getting stressed out about her making it through labor..

Heres some pictures of the day we brought her home compared to this morning when I cleaned her cage out.

Today:

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Tessa's Delivery Ward!

Shawna Driggers

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peachyteen

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bpatters

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