Pellets Brown Nutrition Plus Supreme Diet Guinea Pig or C.P Diet 086 for Rodents?

[fridzalone]

Three years ago I asked Ly about the pellets in Indonesia that acceptable for guinea pig because there are not many varieties of pellets in here. Ly said that C.P Diets is okay (it's poor but better than the other options). And today, I just got another pellets that available in here : Brown Nutrition Plus Supreme Diet Guinea Pig. So I want to know should I change my piggies pellet to Brown's or stick with C.P Diets. Here's the ingredients for both products :

C.P Diets 086 for Rodents :
Ingredients :
Soybean meal, ground corn, wheat grain, wheat milling by-products,Ipil-ipil, Alfalfa, Dried Whey, Vegetable Oil, Vitamins, Minerals.
Guaranteed Analysis :
Crude Protein Min 18%,Moisture Max 13%, Fat Min 3%, Crude Fiber Min 9%, Ash Max 10%, Vitamin A Min 9,000 IU/kg, Vit D3 Min 1,800 IU/kg, Vit E Min 80 IU/kg, Ascorbic Acid 800 mg/kg

Brown Nutrition Plus Supreme Diet Guinea Pig :
Ingredients :
Alfalfa Hay Meal, Timothy Hay Meal, Timothy Hay, Cranberries, Strawberries, Rose Hips, Kiwi, Wheat Flour by-product less than 9.5-percent fiber, Maize Grain Ground, Oat Groats, Dehulled Soybean Meal, Maize Gluten Meal, Soybean Oil, Calcium Carbonate, Dicalcium Phosphate, Dried Beet Sugar Molasses, Yeast Brewers Dehydrated, Salt, Whey Solids, Vitamin A Palmitate, Cholecalciferol (Source of Vitamin D3), Alpha Tocopherols (Source of Vitamin E), Ascorbic Acid (Source of Vitamin C), Thiamine Mononitrate, Menadione Sodium Bisulfate (Source of Vitamin K Activity), Biotin, Choline Chloride, Calcium Pantothenate, Riboflavin, Niacin Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Folic Acid, Copper Proteinate, Calcium Iodate, Cobalt Chloride, Manganese Proteinate, Iron Methionine, Zinc Proteinate, Sodium Selenite, Dried Bacillus Subtilis Fermentation Product, Dried Aspergillus Oryzae Fermentation Product, Dried Lactobacillus Acidophilus Product, Dried Lactobacillus Bulgaricus Fermentation Product, Dried Lactobacillus Lactis Fermentation Product, Lecithin, Natural Mixed Tocopherols, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Rosemary Extract, Titanium Dioxide, Artificial Colors and Flavors Added.
Guaranteed Analysis :
Crude Protein (min)17.25%, Crude Fat (min)2.25%, Crude Fiber (max)16.50%

Should I change my pellets?

 

[foggycreekcavy]

I like the Brown's because the first two ingredients are hay. I don't like the artificial colore and flavors, though.

I would go with the Brown's, but let's wait to see what others think.

 

[sdpiggylvr]

Guinea Lynx says that you should avoid the following ingredients in pellets (this page):

Ingredients to AVOID in cavy pellets:

- Animal products (including but not limited to animal fat, meat, tallow, animal digest, sterols, bone meal, and eggs)
- Beet pulp (controversial even with dogs and cats. Considered low-quality fiber that can clog the villi of the intestine. Common in all animal feed since it is a byproduct of many human products.)
- Corn products (including corn bran, corn germ, corn gluten, ground corn, etc. There is no legal definition of "corn" alone in animal feed, so it may be any combination of products. Corn is not a normal feed for cavies, may contribute to allergies, and can be high in fat and certain sugars/starch depending on the product. Additionally, some corn is contaminated with deadly aflatoxin which can cause liver failure and death.)
- Seeds, Nuts, or Oils (too high in fat and protein, not a natural food source, often present in animal feeds in seed byproducts that have little to no nutrient value)
- Rice Bran or Rice Flour (more byproducts, no nutrient value in forms defined by the AAFCO)
- Vegetable Fiber (any and every byproduct, can include sawdust)

Sweeteners, Colorings, and Preservatives to avoid:

- Corn syrup
- High fructose corn syrup (HFCS)
- Sucrose
- Propylene glycol (causes premature RBC death)
- Food colorings (include FD&C reds, blues, and yellows)
- Propyl gallate
- Potassium sorbate
- Sodium nitrate, sodium nitrite, or sodium metabisulfate
- Ethoxyquin
- Butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA)/Butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT)

Based on those guidelines, I would agree with foggycreekcavy that Brown's is probably the better of the two.

 

[SurfingPigs]

Like FCC, Brown's looks better to me because of the hay listed as the first ingredients of the pellet.

 

[longlostcurls]

I have seen Brown's here in my country but because it had seeds in it and I was told not to give them seeds. At the moment I am giving them Kaytee but found a place that has Brown's. Should I give them Brown's instead of Kaytee?

 

[foggycreekcavy]

Oh, it has seeds? Do you mean sunflower seeds with hulls still on?

 

[longlostcurls]

They were white and kinda skinny. Not sure what they were. I will go there tomorrow to see what they have.

 

[foggycreekcavy]

Maybe safflower seeds.

It would be best not to feed anything with actual seeds in it. It would be very time consuming to pick all the seeds out! But if you are willing and have the time...

 

[Ly&Pigs]

I personally don't like the ingredients list for the Brown's stuff. Too many fruits, beet products, dried bacterias, wheat flour, a lot of fillers and corn products. Plus artificial colors and flavors. I would stick to what you have.

Hay meal is a bit different than actual hay. The Brown's pellet does have hay vs. the other one not having hay but you have to take into consideration ALL of the ingredients in the pellets.

Kaytee is not a good pellet either. longlostcurls, do you have any other choices for pellets?

 

[longlostcurls]

The only choices I have for pellets are Kaytee and Browns. There are two different Brown types: one has fruits (the ingredient list above) or the one with safflower seeds.

 

[foggycreekcavy]

I usually don't recommend this, but if your choices of pellets are not acceptable, it is possible to go without feeding pellets. You need to be diligent in making sure your pigs have a wide variety of good veggies, greens, and fruits, and constant hay and even grass if it's available. I know of one person that feeds corn husks year round as well. It's not easy to go pelletless, but it may be preferable to really crappy pellet mixes.

 

[SweetiePig]

I would feed at least some pellets even if they arnt the best at least its something. Now, I dont know a whole lot about diet but from what Im reading, I like the browns better.

 

[longlostcurls]

As I am only workin part time I can't really afford to feed them all vegetables. While I do want to give them the best I can't really afford to buy them a whole days worth of veggies. I am trying to get either oxbow or sweet meadow soon

 

[SweetiePig]

Im going with sweet meadow. They seam cheaper and so is the shipping :cheerful:

 

[longlostcurls]

Sweeting I really love your avatar. That piggy is just too cute. I love the piggy lips. Back to the subject. I will have to check out all of the places and compare shipping cost

 

[longlostcurls]

I meant Sweetpig