Diet what veggies should by piggies be eating?? overeating?? schedule?

[livichi7]

Hi!! I?ve had my piggies for about 5 months now. They are doing great, but i?m nervous that I may be over feeding them and they are not getting enough/correct veggies they would be getting. I give them himonthy hay 3x a day (morning,lunch,night) and veggies at night. I give them a few slices of romaine lettuce, a few green bell pepper chucks and a small slice of a carrot. I wanted to try to start giving more veggies morning and night, but i?m not sure how to start. My piggies are almost a year old. So here are my questions: am i giving them too much hay? which veggies should they be getting every day and then which just as a treat? what is your guys routine. I?m trying to give them a different variety of veggies but i just don?t know how to do that. Thank you!!

 

[bpatters]

You can't give a pig too much hay. It's the most important thing in their diets, and should be available to them at all times.

The rule of thumb is a cup of veggies per pig per day. You don't want to overdo the veggies, because pigs can come to prefer them to hay. And hay is what keeps their teeth ground down and their guts moving properly. In short, don't overdo the veggies.

Romaine lettuce causes excess urinary calcium in some pigs, and that has been linked to bladder stones. Other pigs are not affected. But red or green leaf lettuces are safer choices.

 

[Janani.R.S]

There is never too much hay, hay makes up 80% of their diet. You can put as much hay as you want, if the hay finishes, put more, guinea pigs need fresh hay all the time and anytime.

 

[spy9doc]

I wanted to try to start giving more veggies morning and night, but i?m not sure how to start.

Why would you want to do that? You are just setting yourself up to be a slave to your cavies! Let me explain.

I had previously always fed my cavies a salad morning and evening and an occasional snack. That was in addition to their pellets and hay. We literally became slaves to our piggies because someone had to be here twice a day to feed them. It was difficult for us to contemplate going away because no one wanted to stop by twice a day. Plus, much as @bpatters says, they came to prefer veggies over hay which wreaked havoc with their teeth and ongoing dental issues.

When we got our current boys as babies, they had never had veggies and didn't expect them. We decided to feed them once a day , usually around 5-6pm. They don't know any different and are perfectly happy with this schedule. Feeding them later in the day definitely gives them something to look forward to, and it keeps them satisfied overnight. And, yes, they eat lots of hay! My boys have 24/7 hay.......and pellets as well. They don't seem to overeat the pellets as evidenced by their steady weight.

I'm sure that you will figure out what works for you, but do consider the ramifications of your decision because cavies don't adapt well to change, and once you get them in the habit of expecting to be fed twice a day, you are stuck with that.