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Diet Are my girls under weight?

piggielover200

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Hello!!!! I weighed Maezie and Squeaks today and compared to other Guinea pigs ive met and seen my girls are just so small!!!
They will be 2 on September 17.
Todays weights
Squeaks=750g 1.65347lbs
Maezie=950g 2.09439lbs
Im more worried about Squeaks as she is very small IMO. But I thought I would get some people on this sights opinion. If Squeaks need to gain weight what can I do? They both eat their hay and pellets but they are not huge fans of veggies they eat them just not as fast as most pigs do it usually takes them a whole day to eat all of it.
 

Starthecavy123

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Really it depends on the individual pig. Some will be small, some will be larger. Im not an expert on this I'm only telling you what I've heard. Maybe someone else can be a little more helpful.
 

Princess_Piggie

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Weight is an individual thing for pigs, some will be small but weigh a lot, some will be large and weigh less, and either way they're healthy. The only way to know if a pig has lost weight/become underweight is to look back at their previously recorded weighings, they should be weighed every week as weight loss is often the first sign of illness.

Squeaks may just be a petite pig, does she feel particularly underweight? Any bones sticking out, visibly or to the touch?
 

HoneyBadger

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What veggies are you feeding them and how much? I've never heard of piggies who are not huge fans of veg.
 

Princess_Piggie

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What veggies are you feeding them and how much? I've never heard of piggies who are not huge fans of veg.

Ditto that! It's often that they aren't fans of the way the veg is cut, not the veg it's self. For example my girl Minnie won't eat tomato unless it's in thin strips.
 

HoneyBadger

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My girls hate seeds for some reason. Anything with seeds has to have them removed first otherwise they stay clear of them (i.e. cucumber, tomato, pepper...)
 

piggielover200

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I feed them a wide variety of veggies, Bell peppers (all colors) Lettuce (all kinds, but mostly romain) cucumber, green beans, carrots, cilantro, parsley, apples, oranges, and probably other stuff i cant remeber they get about either a cup each a day or 1 1/2 each every other day because if they don't eat them they dont get veggies until the others are gone. They get 1/3 cup pellets each day of small pet select pellets
 

piggielover200

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wow haha picky pigs they will only eat green beans if i chop them very small
.
 

Princess_Piggie

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My girls hate seeds for some reason. Anything with seeds has to have them removed first otherwise they stay clear of them (i.e. cucumber, tomato, pepper...)

It's a good job they're picky though, the seeds pose a choking hazard! Especially pepper seeds, since they're spicy (the seeds are) I imagine pigs wouldn't react well to that. I de-seed everything when I feed my girls too.
 

bpatters

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@piggielover200, that diet is too high in calcium for adult pigs. Romaine itself will cause some pigs to excrete excess calcium in their urine, and so will cilantro. Parsley is high in calcium and shouldn't be fed daily. If they each get 1/3 cup of pellets, that's way too many -- adult pigs should get 1/8 cup each.

Some pigs are small, some are large. If you can't feel the sharp bones in their spines, they probably weigh enough. But if you can, or if you can easily feel their individual ribs, they could stand to weigh more.
 

piggielover200

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Oh I'm sorry they don't get cilantro and parsley ever day and the romain lettuce hasn't caused them any white spots. I was just naming all the vegetables they have ever had. I feed them 1/3 cup each day for the two of them so 1/8 each sorry if I was confusing
 

HoneyBadger

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1/8 + 1/8 = 2/8, which is the same as 1/4
 

CavyMama

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My girls hate seeds for some reason. Anything with seeds has to have them removed first otherwise they stay clear of them (i.e. cucumber, tomato, pepper...)

That's a good thing. Seeds are not good for guinea pigs. They are fatty and can be choking hazards. Any fruits or vege with seeds should have the seeds removed before feeding.
 

Rywen

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Try green and red leaf lettuce instead of romaine. Ferb is an adult male who weighs around 750g, his vet says that's right for his frame (small). She said if you can feel a pig's hip bones sticking out he's too thin. To try and get them to eat different veggies chop them up really small and sprinkle them in their pellets (one new veggie per day) and they will eat them with their pellets and get used to the taste.
 
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