Vegetables Broading their veggie horizons

[thecuteness]

So they love their hay, especially the "seed heads" they go crazy for, and I feel the most comfortable feeding to those to them regularly because I can trust hay is a regular thing so I am hoping that is an acceptable treat for them on a consistent basis.If i'm wrong please let me know.
However, I keep getting told food will win them over but don't want to overfeed them when sometimes their eating schedule doesn't match up with my inconsistent student life, but then I also want give them more food to associate me with treats when my schedule permits. (Again temporary) :crazy:
Within a couple weeks I'll have a much more consistent schedule which I know is important.
I'e also concerned with over killing it on their favorite foods. I've read all the websites in regards to veggies, and I keep getting mixed reviews. I understand most veggies are good, but I can't stock my fridge with a huge variety of foods of leafy greens that wilt too quickly before these three pound creatures consume huge bunches of lettuce and what not.

They run to my hand for food and trust regardless that it's for them, so I know immediately their dislikes. Cucumbers are out of the question they just drop them (I've been told everywhere Cayvs love them?), celery doesn't get touched, They love bell peppers thankfully , I'm stocked on bell peppers for daily vitamin C, but again I don't want them to get tired of them because it's been a daily thing, and ensures vitamin C. I'm trying to come up with appropriate foods to give them that I know they'll eat.
I've read romaine is good on one website, too much calcium on another website. I've played it safe with green and red leaf lettuce.
I know its a veggies post, but kiwis and blueberry are completely out of the question (I don't understand, I wouldn't exist without regularly consuming sugar), which i guess isn't the worst since I'm not trying to give them too much sugar, but my human brain just don't comprehend that. Haven't tried any other fruits. And while on that note are oranges bad or can they be given sparely? Again mixed reviews.

Any suggestions from personal experience?? Every internet site tells me dark leafy vegetables a day but then will rule out most for having to much oxilic acid, like in spinach which I would assume would be amazing for them, or just too much calcium, and kale is so nutrient dense I could only assume it has not only a ton of calcium but just a ton of other things they shouldn't be eating regularly. And I'm just trying to work on switching up their food but ensuring they'll enjoy it.

One last question, but sweet potatoes if any, served raw or slightly steamed?

All personal suggestions welcome Especially for the picky ones. They know my hand is the giver of food so when they even spit that out I can only assume its not their thing

PS I am in an apartment (again temporary) so I don't trust anything growing outside like dandelion greens and grass.

I'm new to this site, don't know how to work it fully , but I would appreciate even private messages to talk about my quirky baby girls and hear about everyone else experiences since my friends can only listen to me talk about how cute they looked muching on lettuce or doing a full backwards flip when they popcorned :')
If you've made it this far on my post I hope this prenap snack Pistachio is munching hard on into makes it worth it

 

[bpatters]

I think you're way overthinking this. Most of us settle on just a few veggies, and the pigs never complain. Every day mine get red or green leaf lettuce, a chunk of tomato, and chunk of carrot, bell pepper, and cucumber. They get corn husks and silks in season. If I have other veggies that are suitable they get some of those. Mine love radicchio and belgian endive, and if I find them, they get them as a treat.

There's no need to stock up on a huge variety of veggies that will go bad before they eat them. Just settle on a few, and then add another occasionally when you've got it on hand.

Romaine lettuce has no more calcium in it than any of the other lettuces. But it causes some pigs to excrete a lot of urinary calcium, while other pigs are not bothered. Nobody knows why this is the case, but I just think it's better to avoid it.

 

[thecuteness]

Well thanks that gives me some reassurance coming from someone that knows abut guinea pigs.
I'll probably calm down sooner or later but they're still fresh and I'm still figuring out the ins and outs of their eccentric behavior while while still trying make sure they're happy through it all.

 

[thecuteness]

And if its any consolation I just wrote like a 10 page paper so I'm still in typing mode, and was thoroughly embarrassed by the length of this thread once i saw it posted :yawn::yawn:hmy:

 

[thecuteness]

I'm going to have to fully agree with that last statement of yours she's a sweetheart.
The few fruits I've tried they dislike, and I only wondered oranges because the vitamin c content so I just wanted to be sure before I feed them and they cause issues.
I haven't tried tomatoes yet, I'll look into that.
Very much appreciated. just know they've very small and even in small qualities of veggies they can "overdose" of vitamins to their body to the point it can cause health affects, so I just ed to confirm that they can be okay with repeats of the same types of veggies.
Again thank you

 

[spy9doc]

I feed my boys veggies once a day for their dinner. Like @bpatters, I feed them virtually the same thing at every meal and they are always excited when the dinner bell rings. Their normal dinner consists of spring mix, green beans, green peppers and red cabbage. The red cabbage came about as a result of cost cutting.......from radicchio. The cabbage is $0.99 for a large head vs. $5.99 for a small head of radicchio. Nowadays radicchio is fed as a treat.

When there are other veggies in season, I may add those as well: dandelions, celery leaves, corn husks, etc. It's a shame that all the veggies that are SO good for us have too much calcium in them for cavies. My boys aren't big fans of fruits of any type as they will eat a few bites of apple and be done with it. They have never indicated an interest in any type of citrus fruit which suits me just fine. What all my cavies have loved is melon.......watermelon, canteloupe, etc. and in particular they like the canteloupe rind with very little flesh on it. I had one pair for whom I would put the entire canteloupe in he cage and they would attack it from opposite sides after they learned to work together.

Cavies are as individual as we are and have very distinct tastes. For instance, there are items that other cavy owners feed their animals that mine won't touch: cilantro, tomatoes, cucumbers, blueberries. Over this past winter, my boys decided that they wouldn't eat peppers of any variety. I still put a few in their salad but switched to giving them their Vit. C by syringe. Out of nowhere they are back to eating their peppers.

I will tell you that the little rascals know fresh veggies! I helped my neighbor work his garden last summer and the boys went crazy over the freshness of the veggies. Find what your cavies like and stick to a limited variety of items so that they don't go bad before you use them.

 

[cookiesandcreme]

I may be the outlier, but since I personally love variety and options, I've imparted this onto my girls. It does help that I love cooking and use up whatever that they won't finish or whatever new item I've tried on them that they don't like. In addition, I took up patio gardening (also live in an apartment) and at the beginning stages of growing my own zucchini, tomatoes, pet grass, and tomatoes so there's less waste in that respect since the growth is at different stages.

As a reference, I generally follow the guide that was given to me as part of the adoption packet: https://n.b5z.net/i/u/10116425/f/8-1-2014-Vegetables.pdf and trust Guinea Lynx: https://www.guinealynx.com/fave.html

Everything gets sliced up so that one of the girls doesn't end up hogging all of one item. There's still a lot of things I haven't tried on them yet from the approved lists, but:

• Mornings are usually a base of butterhead, green or red leaf lettuce that gets a handful of pet grass added and/or corn husks and silks since they're in season. I just snagged up two bags of free cornhusks and silks from the market so feeling super happy. They also get a 1/2 or full table of Vitamin C.
• Depending on my schedule, sometimes they'll get a snack of a leaf or two of a green like rainbow chard, mizuna, dandelion green, kale or kohlrabi. Snack time is usually food test time to see if they'll take up on a new item I've bought.
• For dinner, they'll get a butterhead/red/green leaf lettuce/corn husks and silks/grass with one mini bell pepper (yellow or orange, rarely red). Depending on the day, they'll get fruit (blueberries, apples, asian pear, Cuties with skin), vegetables (mix of zucchini, tomatoes, cucumbers, green beans, or 1 baby carrot), or more greens (rainbow chard, mizuna, dandelion green, kale, baby arugula, broccoli leaves, kohlrabi leaves, or a different type of lettuce).

Other fruits have been tried, but no dice (strawberries, raspberries, mango, kiwi sans skin). The Oxbow Strawberry & Banana treats were a fail too. I guess they don't have big sweet tooth's (teeth?). Blueberries and apples are the only items that they'll eat completely with their lettuce mix, the pear and cuties usually last all day.

I haven't tried sweet potatoes on them yet, but generally all fruits/vegetables should be in their raw state. Apparently it's a red listed item (see below for the chart links) so shouldn't be fed often.

As for kale, it's high in both vitamin C and Calcium, so should be fed sparingly (1-2 a week). In terms of the oxalic content, it's pretty low at .02G per 100G (https://www.guinealynx.com/diet_oxalic.html)

I've been using this chart when going to the farmer's market (https://www.happycavy.com/what-can-guinea-pigs-eat/) but the list from Guinea Pig Cages works well, as well (https://www.guineapigcages.com/foru...vy-Nutrition-Charts-amp-Poisonous-Plants-List)

There are a few items that they like (spinach, cilantro, parsley), but I've noticed that it tends to up their calcium deposits in their pee, so as a personal decision don't feed them these items.

 

[cookiesandcreme]

@Kelsie: where have you found radicchio/what season do they pop up in the store? I've been searching for it, but it seems to only show up in the bagged salad mixes

 

[bpatters]

Some stores don't carry radicchio. One near me usually has it, the other one only occasionally. But it is available all year around.

 

[cookiesandcreme]

Some stores don't carry radicchio. One near me usually has it, the other one only occasionally. But it is available all year around.

Thanks! I'll just have to go to different grocery stores and see what they have.

 

[spy9doc]

I took up patio gardening (also live in an apartment) and at the beginning stages of growing my own zucchini, tomatoes, pet grass, and tomatoes so there's less waste in that respect since the growth is at different stages.

Thank you for taking the time to write this very descriptive post! Another example of one of the things I love about this Forum.

I have found that my cavies do like cooked sweet potato...not raw. My dearly departed Chester used to sit on the kitchen counter as I washed and cleaned vegetables and did his taste testing there. He was never shy about expressing his opinion. He either would insert himself into what I was doing, or give the item a wide berth if he didn't like it. For instance, he absolutely loathed cilantro and if I put it in the cage he would walk on the other side of the cage to avoid it!

I may have to resort to "patio gardening" as well this year since my back won't permit me to do much work in a traditional garden. Would you describe how you have created your garden? Are you growing plants in pots? If so, what type and how large? My patio garden would probably be a corner of our back deck, and I haven't figured out a way to avoid the drainage from the pots damaging the paint on the deck.

After a brutal winter, we think that Spring has finally arrived here in CT and it is definitely time to plant.....but what and where? If you think that others may not be interested in this discussion, by all means feel free to PM me with information. Any helpful links will be welcomed.

Thanks again for taking the time!

 

[thecuteness]

I may be the outlier, but since I personally love variety and options, I've imparted this onto my girls. It does help that I love cooking and use up whatever that they won't finish or whatever new item I've tried on them that they don't like. In addition, I took up patio gardening (also live in an apartment) and at the beginning stages of growing my own zucchini, tomatoes, pet grass, and tomatoes so there's less waste in that respect since the growth is at different stages.

As a reference, I generally follow the guide that was given to me as part of the adoption packet: https://n.b5z.net/i/u/10116425/f/8-1-2014-Vegetables.pdf and trust Guinea Lynx: https://www.guinealynx.com/fave.html

Everything gets sliced up so that one of the girls doesn't end up hogging all of one item. There's still a lot of things I haven't tried on them yet from the approved lists, but:

• Mornings are usually a base of butterhead, green or red leaf lettuce that gets a handful of pet grass added and/or corn husks and silks since they're in season. I just snagged up two bags of free cornhusks and silks from the market so feeling super happy. They also get a 1/2 or full table of Vitamin C.
• Depending on my schedule, sometimes they'll get a snack of a leaf or two of a green like rainbow chard, mizuna, dandelion green, kale or kohlrabi. Snack time is usually food test time to see if they'll take up on a new item I've bought.
• For dinner, they'll get a butterhead/red/green leaf lettuce/corn husks and silks/grass with one mini bell pepper (yellow or orange, rarely red). Depending on the day, they'll get fruit (blueberries, apples, asian pear, Cuties with skin), vegetables (mix of zucchini, tomatoes, cucumbers, green beans, or 1 baby carrot), or more greens (rainbow chard, mizuna, dandelion green, kale, baby arugula, broccoli leaves, kohlrabi leaves, or a different type of lettuce).

Other fruits have been tried, but no dice (strawberries, raspberries, mango, kiwi sans skin). The Oxbow Strawberry & Banana treats were a fail too. I guess they don't have big sweet tooth's (teeth?). Blueberries and apples are the only items that they'll eat completely with their lettuce mix, the pear and cuties usually last all day.

I haven't tried sweet potatoes on them yet, but generally all fruits/vegetables should be in their raw state. Apparently it's a red listed item (see below for the chart links) so shouldn't be fed often.

As for kale, it's high in both vitamin C and Calcium, so should be fed sparingly (1-2 a week). In terms of the oxalic content, it's pretty low at .02G per 100G (https://www.guinealynx.com/diet_oxalic.html)

I've been using this chart when going to the farmer's market (https://www.happycavy.com/what-can-guinea-pigs-eat/) but the list from Guinea Pig Cages works well, as well (https://www.guineapigcages.com/foru...vy-Nutrition-Charts-amp-Poisonous-Plants-List)

There are a few items that they like (spinach, cilantro, parsley), but I've noticed that it tends to up their calcium deposits in their pee, so as a personal decision don't feed them these items.

I'll try zucchini and corn leaves next Dark green anything they love so I'm sure different types of lettuce won't be much of an issue as I introduce them.

 

[wheekermommy]

@Kelsie: where have you found radicchio/what season do they pop up in the store? I've been searching for it, but it seems to only show up in the bagged salad mixes

I am able to find it at all grocery stores here. I am on the East Coast so I get it at Price Chopper, Stop and Shop or Whole Foods. I am able to find in all year round. My sister is in Cali, Ill ask where she sees it at (she used to have guinea pigs).

 

[Artista]

Safeway has radicchio. For endive i get the pack of 3 at trader joes.

I do same thing every day. They aren't like us to know what else is out there. Everything organic except endive and radicchio.

Am- green pepper and red butter leaf lettuce ( I have found butter leaf lettuce lasts longer than red and green).

Afternoon- another leaf of lettuce.

Dinner- chunk of zucchini, chunk of english cucumber, 2 small grape tomatoes, and piece of red or orange or yellow pepper.

Desert- either radicchio or endive and maybe another piece of lettuce.

 

[thecuteness]

Safeway has radicchio. For endive i get the pack of 3 at trader joes.

I do same thing every day. They aren't like us to know what else is out there. Everything organic except endive and radicchio.

Am- green pepper and red butter leaf lettuce ( I have found butter leaf lettuce lasts longer than red and green).

Afternoon- another leaf of lettuce.

Dinner- chunk of zucchini, chunk of english cucumber, 2 small grape tomatoes, and piece of red or orange or yellow pepper.

Desert- either radicchio or endive and maybe another piece of lettuce.

Very helpful and straight to the point Thank you