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Pellets Nutritional Guinea Pig Pellets?

Easefirst

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Kms is definitely better than other brands, but they still have ingredients, that are not healthy for the pigs (like grain and oil), and they do not disclose of specific forms of supplements they include (like what kind of vit. C). I wish there would be a quality supplement for guinea pigs without all the junk in it.
KMS pellet ingredients
: Timothy hay, whole wheat, soybean meal, whole oats, Pacific wheat, vegetable oil, molasses, Brewers yeast, salt, Vitamin C supplement, Vitamin A supplement, Vitamin D3 supplement, Vitamin E supplement, Vitamin B12 supplement, Tiboflavin, Niacin, d-Calcium pantothenate, Choline Chloride, Folic Acid, Potassium Sulfate, Manganese Oxide, Zinc, Ferrous sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Lingon Sulfate
 

Agrimony

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It is pricier to go pelletless. I am generally pelletless but occasionally give kms brand pellets due to one of my boars having bladder stone issues. This was recommended by my vet. They had pellets for the first time in about a month yesterday, and it'll be a while until they get more. They need more variety of fresh veggies, and I still give an oxbow urinary health supplement as well. I also am more careful to track their weight to make sure it stays stable, and keep an eye on their overall health. High quality pellets are not expensive for how little of them they will be eating. Certainly nothing compared to vet bills.
 

Easefirst

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I actually found a multivitamin supplement for guinea pigs:
https://www.amazon.com/Kordon-Noval...230685&sr=8-2&keywords=oasis+guinea+pig+drops
Not sure, about supplement forms in this one, but at least they are listed and can be researched:
Ingredients: Water, ascorbic acid, vitamin A (palmitate), vitamin E (dl-alpha tocopheryl acetate), niacinamide, choline chloride, dl-pantothenic acid, vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol), potassium sorbate (preservative), sodium benzoate (preservative), riboflavin, thiamine hydrochloride, pyridoxine hydrochloride, folic acid, biotin, vitamin B12 (cyanocobalamin), menadione (k3).
I think I will go this route. Get the supplement, so I don't have to feed they soy, wheat, and oils.
 

Easefirst

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It might be pricier to feed them pelletless (less so, if we can grow lots of them ourselves), but considering, that most likely they will be much healthier, we could save on vet bills. Not to mention, have happier and healthier pigs. Feeding them grain and soy is definitely asking for the trouble. Especially genetically modified soy, which most of the soy now is (some people avoid even organic soy as they believe it is all contaminated). My friend was feeding their rat with commercial food, that includes corn, and she got giant cancerous growths, exactly like the ones I saw in the anti-GMO photos. For small critters effects can be seen much quicker than on humans, especially so on something they eat daily.
 

bpatters

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You have to be very careful about multi-vitamins with pigs. Since they're just little balls of fat and fur, they can accumulate toxic doses of oil-soluble vitamins.
 

Agrimony

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It might be pricier to feed them pelletless (less so, if we can grow lots of them ourselves), but considering, that most likely they will be much healthier, we could save on vet bills. Not to mention, have happier and healthier pigs. Feeding them grain and soy is definitely asking for the trouble. Especially genetically modified soy, which most of the soy now is (some people avoid even organic soy as they believe it is all contaminated). My friend was feeding their rat with commercial food, that includes corn, and she got giant cancerous growths, exactly like the ones I saw in the anti-GMO photos. For small critters effects can be seen much quicker than on humans, especially so on something they eat daily.


My boar Pickle had bladder stones and went to the vet twice for it within a few months the first year of his life. I put him on pelletless completely for about 6 months and now he gets them a couple times a month. He just turned three years old and has not had another stone. But his day to day diet is pricier.
 

Easefirst

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That is great. So you don't give him any supplements except pellets couple of times a month? I see, what you are saying on overdosing. The one I linked to is formulated for guinea pigs, but of course, nobody knows exact reguirements enither for pigs nor for humans, really. They keep changing them. Maybe I could give those once week or so as to not overdo. I think oil soluable vitamins are stored in the body and do not need to be had very often. My biggest question is vit. D, as they live inside.
 

Agrimony

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I give an oxbow urinary health tab daily. Other than that its pellets maybe a couple times a month but i have had him completely pellet free for 6+ months
 

AnnikasMommy

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Since it's Great Value I'm going to assume you purchased it at Wal-Mart, if that is the case take it back and get your money back. If you have your receipt it shouldn't be a problem they pretty much take back anything. Take your money you get back and go to a pet store that sells Oxbow or order KMS online. You can also order Oxbow online and get it within a couple days. Pigs under 6 months old need an alfalfa based pellet and over 6 months need a timothy based pellet. Pellets aren't that much and a 5 lb bag will last you for a couple months depending on how many pigs you have. Those should not be fed unlimited, only long grass hay is unlimited.
 

Popcorn321

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@bpatters is OXBOW ESSENTIALS ADULT GUINEA PIG FOOD what you recommend?
 

bpatters

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No, my preference is KMS Hayloft, available from (broken link removed). Don't be freaked out by the shipping costs -- the pellets themselves are very cheap. You'll pay about the same for them as you would for Oxbow.

Oxbow uses calcium carbonate for its calcium source, and a lot of people have pigs with urinary calcium problems when eating Oxbow. Pigs on KMS Hayloft can also have calcium problems, but they're far fewer.
 

Nazgul

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Just wanted to chime in and say I definitely agree with the KMS pellet recommendations. I was originally going to go with Oxbow (thinking it was more or less the same quality as KMS) but after reading about their high calcium levels, I decided to go for KMS' pellets instead. the shipping costs really aren't as bad as they seem, and my piggies absolutely LOVE them.
 

Agrimony

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I used to use Oxbow and it was fine until one of my pigs developed stones. If you cannot order online at all then go with Oxbow over the other brands mentioned. However if at all possible go for the KMS, it is worth it and can potentially help save you on outrageous vet bills if your pig ends up being one of the many who develop stones.
 

CavieGuy

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I agree. I'm another KMS user. I converted from Oxbow to KMS pellets.
 

Popcorn321

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ok i calculated the price by pound and Oxbow is very unexpensive so I'll use that from now on, thanks everyone!
 
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