General How to get rid of calcium deposits

[CavyTV]

On every cage liner, bed, and pillow there is at least one calcium deposit. Just a small white spot on the fabric. No blood, no discomfort when the pigs are peeing. I used to think that calcium deposits weren't anything to worry about unless they had specks of blood or if the pig was crying/shrieking while going to the bathroom. However, I recently heard somebody say that it is a problem and it has to be fixed. I also heard someone say (can't remember who) that some pigs will always produce calcium deposits no matter what their diet consists of. Could this be the case with my boys? When I see them pee, both of them excrete a yellow/white liquid. Not all of their pee leaves a stain. A lot of people have also said that white pee is normal..I'm confused.

This is what they get everyday:

Breakfast:
-Green leaf lettuce and a few small pieces of celery. Sometimes, if we have it, I also like to include things like tomato, red cabbage, carrots, bell pepper, broccoli, or cucumber. I kind of stopped feeding the red cabbage and broccoli now, as I'm afraid that my pigs will eventually get bladder stones. The celery is just temporary; normally their breakfast would consist of a lettuce leaf and a baby tomato each, but we have a lot of celery and no tomatoes for the pigs. I know celery is a bit high in calcium, so I only feed 4-5 small pieces for the both of them to share.

Snack:
-Carrot or cucumber. I like to feed cucumber instead when it's humid. They usually get a chunk of carrot each.

Dinner:
-1/8 of a bell pepper, if not more. Sometimes they get red or orange, but I mostly feed green.

-Unlimited 3rd cut Timothy hay is also fed
-1/4 of a cup of SPS Timothy pellets for them to share. I only feed pellets in the winter. Planning to go off of pellets completely once I run out. This was the first time I've tried pellets (daily) for my pigs. 20 lb. of pellets lasted me this whole winter, and we're still going. This first time is gonna be the last. I decided my boys don't really need pellets.


This is what they get occasionally (meaning a few times a month):

-Apple or banana.



To me, it seems like their diet is low in calcium. The only thing that has a fair amount of calcium is the celery. As I said before, my boys receive very little. Would 4-5 pieces of celery really cause these calcium deposits? Even when I didn't feed celery daily, they would still produce a lot of calcium deposits. Should I be concerned? Should I change something? Or are they just those pigs who will always do this no matter what?

 

[bpatters]

Some pigs can have calcium deposits even on a very low calcium diet, while others will never have them. I know one boar that lived to be over seven years old who ate kale, parsley, and Critical Care every day and never had a calcium problem.

The best you can do is feed either KMS Hayloft or the new Oxbow pellets, low calcium veggies, and keep the pigs moving. You'll never get rid of all the calcium spots.

 

[jaycriae]

The celery doesn't really have enough nutritional value to be worth the calcium in it, in my opinion, and if you feed big pieces I've heard the strings can irritate some piggies' guts. I'd nix it, myself.

You can also get a Brita filter for their water, if you don't have one already, it'll get rid of any added calcium in your tap water, which, depending where you live, could be huge. The kind that comes as a pitcher is generally cheaper.