Feeding the guinea pigs at TEAS

SkyPipDotBernie said:
So far I have found that it's literally just grass chopped short with all the water content taken out. That's written on pets at homes Web page
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How does that make it richer though? I’d love to understand this - same principle with dried herbs and fruit - as in fresh is best! Dried - feed sparingly.
 
SkyPipDotBernie said:
Different guinea pigs with I. C seem to have different trigger goods, Dot is fine with mixed leaf lettuce, but kale and dill seemed to trigger her bladder again. But now I'm feeding everything wet under the tap, she's not had a problem since, but this could be that her ic flare has settled. I'm waiting to see if it ever flares again after the wet diet method.

If nothing flares up again il report back here with an update. Il know in a few months time
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How long did it take before you started noticing a difference with the IC?
 
Janey said:
How does that make it richer though? I’d love to understand this - same principle with dried herbs and fruit - as in fresh is best! Dried - feed sparingly.
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Thats what I want to know 🤔 and why it's only meant for rabbits and nothing else on the packet and website.

But the oat version ( blue bag) and Timothy grass version ( pink bag) shows a guinea pig and rabbit, possibly chinchilla aswell
 
SkyPipDotBernie said:
Just purchased some ready grass not half an hour ago, I've seen everywhere that it shouldn't be fed too much, but how is this any different to fresh grass? I don't understand
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I gave up feeding it with bladder pig Rupert as knew it had more calcium and I worried with what I read that it could be adding to his stone issues but have been feeding it again recently. Every other day but may go to daily if others have no problems with it. Pigs love it and it smells so lovely. My chins had it and loved it too (but they need more calcium than piggles).
 
alpacasqueak said:
I gave up feeding it with bladder pig Rupert as knew it had more calcium and I worried with what I read that it could be adding to his stone issues but have been feeding it again recently. Every other day but may go to daily if others have no problems with it. Pigs love it and it smells so lovely. My chins had it and loved it too (but they need more calcium than piggles).
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Fair enough, but what I'm trying to debunk is. How can anyone know if it has anymore calcium than fresh grass? I can see why it should be fed less due to having no water content. But that's all
 
furryfriends (TEAS) said:
Who says it has more calcium?
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Its just something that's been going round for a long time. It could be right, but I wana find out. According to horse forums, it all depends where grass is grown.

The word rich is used when people talk about readigrass
 
I think this comes from calcium per weight. I read something about it years ago so I'm searching the recesses of an elderly brain here! Grass is lighter with the water taken out so there would be more calcium and other minerals per oz. I used to feed it as a treat but found it seemed to be one of the things that triggered thick pee (celery was the other thing) in some of my pigs so I stopped. I can pick fresh grass here for free anyway so there wasn't a lot of point in spending the money.
I think it's the hard stalky ones that are marked only for rabbits, they put that to cover themselves against eye pokes, like Burgess do for some of their stalky hays.
 
piggieminder said:
I think this comes from calcium per weight. I read something about it years ago so I'm searching the recesses of an elderly brain here! Grass is lighter with the water taken out so there would be more calcium and other minerals per oz. I used to feed it as a treat but found it seemed to be one of the things that triggered thick pee (celery was the other thing) in some of my pigs so I stopped. I can pick fresh grass here for free anyway so there wasn't a lot of point in spending the money.
I think it's the hard stalky ones that are marked only for rabbits, they put that to cover themselves against eye pokes, like Burgess do for some of their stalky hays.
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Interesting , my friend has rabbits and they have had a few hay pokes just from soft hay.
 
LOL Yet again I agree with furryfriends! I honestly don't know who she is - I just happen to agree with her all the time (it can't last! ;)) but I also feed masses of the "Readigrass", I prefer to feed it rather than hay as it is more like the haylage I have always used previously, and I got fed up with the poor quality and little visitors I found with the hay!
Calcium/ phosphorus content varies with the type of grass grown, where it is grown, what is 'chucked over' it, what sort of soil it is grown in, etc, But all I am worried about when it comes to ratios is that grass is about 80% water, water is removed by any sort of drying, and I am more worried about their diet replacing that 80% than anything else!
 
SkyPipDotBernie said:
That is what I was thinking, does it matter if the diet is wet... Not really
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I think it's so sad how everyone is worried about whether they're doing things right with their guinea pigs. There isn't just one way to do things. We should just do what works for us, in the same way that people parent differently! Why, oh why can't people just enjoy their piggies and stop getting so hung up with ratios and checking pees, and looking at shapes of poos! I have a lot of piggies who have various issues, but I enjoy them for who they are and I don't go looking for problems!
 
furryfriends (TEAS) said:
I think it's so sad how everyone is worried about whether they're doing things right with their guinea pigs. There isn't just one way to do things. We should just do what works for us, in the same way that people parent differently! Why, oh why can't people just enjoy their piggies and stop getting so hung up with ratios and checking pees, and looking at shapes of poos! I have a lot of piggies who have various issues, but I enjoy them for who they are and I don't go looking for problems!
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I feel the same way as you and have for a long time, and this thread has made me feel much better.
 
furryfriends (TEAS) said:
Why, oh why can't people just enjoy their piggies and stop getting so hung up with ratios and checking pees, and looking at shapes of poos!
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I agree with you there!

I just let my piggies get on with their lives. I don't pick them up much cos it stresses them out. They go in the run in the garage every other day and in the summer they will be outside every day in separate runs. I give them veg which I haven't cleaned off first, hay from the farm, a tablespoon per piggy per day of pellets and filtered water. I never poop pick in the hutch as all the poops fall through the hay and I have better things to do with my life. If I had a C&C cage I would probably feel different about it but I don't have a C&C cage. I clean the hutch thoroughly every week and deep clean it every 4-6 weeks. They know their names and I know their different personalities and what they do and don't like. I don't worry about them except when I have to. I enjoy them for who they are. I know if they are having an off day or if they feel unwell. I enjoy all 4 of them for who they are.
 
Betsy said:
I agree with you there!

I just let my piggies get on with their lives. I don't pick them up much cos it stresses them out. They go in the run in the garage every other day and in the summer they will be outside every day in separate runs. I give them veg which I haven't cleaned off first, hay from the farm, a tablespoon per piggy per day of pellets and filtered water. I never poop pick in the hutch as all the poops fall through the hay and I have better things to do with my life. If I had a C&C cage I would probably feel different about it but I don't have a C&C cage. I clean the hutch thoroughly every week and deep clean it every 4-6 weeks. They know their names and I know their different personalities and what they do and don't like. I don't worry about them except when I have to. I enjoy them for who they are. I know if they are having an off day or if they feel unwell. I enjoy all 4 of them for who they are.
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I love this!
 
furryfriends (TEAS) said:
I love this!
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Thanks! Until I read your thread about how stress causes bladder stones I felt bad about not picking up my piggies and giving them a cuddle every day. Now I don't feel bad. Betsy has Dennis and Christian has Meg and they are all very happy, well adjusted and healthy piggies. They trust me implicitly and I can do almost anything from eyedrops to syringe feeds and medicating to nail clipping without too much bother. They are very laid back piggies.
 
Betsy said:
Thanks! Until I read your thread about how stress causes bladder stones I felt bad about not picking up my piggies and giving them a cuddle every day. Now I don't feel bad. Betsy has Dennis and Christian has Meg and they are all very happy, well adjusted and healthy piggies. They trust me implicitly and I can do almost anything from eyedrops to syringe feeds and medicating to nail clipping without too much bother. They are very laid back piggies.
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I have felt so guilty up until now about not handling them as much as I thought I should! I thought it was my fault that they are so timid - but I'm starting to think, nope - that's just who they are! All I feel terrible about now, is the fact it's probably partly my fault that Meryn is struggling with bladder issues right now and I'm trying not to beat myself up about it, because I'm now, after reading this thread, trying to change what I feed them and hopefully she will improve. At least I don't have to stop handling her to reduce stress - one way to look at it.

My two are both happy in their cage and pen, both know their names, usually come to me when I call them, so I guess I'm not such a terrible piggy mum! lol
 
Janey said:
I have felt so guilty up until now about not handling them as much as I thought I should! I thought it was my fault that they are so timid - but I'm starting to think, nope - that's just who they are! All I feel terrible about now, is the fact it's probably partly my fault that Meryn is struggling with bladder issues right now and I'm trying not to beat myself up about it, because I'm now, after reading this thread, trying to change what I feed them and hopefully she will improve. At least I don't have to stop handling her to reduce stress - one way to look at it.

My two are both happy in their cage and pen, both know their names, usually come to me when I call them, so I guess I'm not such a terrible piggy mum! lol
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Problems can happen, no matter what we do! It's about reducing the chances of these things happening. Advice changes all the time. When I had my first daughter, the recommendation was that you lay them down to sleep on their tummy and I felt guilty because Hannah didn't like being on her tummy and wouldn't settle unless she was lay on her back. Two years later, it had all changed! You were supposed to lay them to sleep on their back or side and most definitely not the tummy! Ellie loved sleeping on her tummy and by then, as a second time Mum, I did what worked for my baby and for me! How I feed the piggies here really works for us and it is very noticeable, that despite having so many guinea pigs pass through here, we've had no incidence of bladder problems. This can't be a coincidence! I enjoy every day with our 'extra special' piggies and I couldn't do what I do, if I listened to every bit of 'advice' that the internet throws at us. I do what works for us and I'm happy and our piggies are happy! xx
 
furryfriends (TEAS) said:
I think it's so sad how everyone is worried about whether they're doing things right with their guinea pigs. There isn't just one way to do things. We should just do what works for us, in the same way that people parent differently! Why, oh why can't people just enjoy their piggies and stop getting so hung up with ratios and checking pees, and looking at shapes of poos! I have a lot of piggies who have various issues, but I enjoy them for who they are and I don't go looking for problems!
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I think after being told things from vets in the past (with Rupert’s first stone - don’t feed too much in the way of spinach, broccoli, rich greens etc) the worry sort of stayed with me! But he still got another small stone after that despite me changing his diet so should have probably taken that on board! Just hated seeing him so poorly with 0% urine output and the stone blocking everything so I was trying everything to prevent it!
I’m trying to be more relaxed these days (I am, really! :))) and your piggy diet is definitely helping with that, knowing your piggies do so well on it with no stones! x
 
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SkyPipDotBernie said:
Fair enough, but what I'm trying to debunk is. How can anyone know if it has anymore calcium than fresh grass? I can see why it should be fed less due to having no water content. But that's all
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I asked the same question on here years ago when I started drying my own grass for Rupert and Jess. Think we don’t need to worry too much by the looks of it!
 
I truly believe that for a lot of people, the fun of pet keeping has gone! It has become all about doing it a particular way and the repercussions of not doing it that way! Life is short and although bad things happen, we need to look at what is good today and be thankful for that! I wasn't allowed pets as a child and my first experience of death, was losing my Dad when I was 21! I love the fact that I spend my days surrounded by animals, both in my paid work and my charity work and I feel very privileged to do this!
 
My pets are my life and I absolutely love them, but definitely stress at times about what ‘could’ happen/be happening with them with illnesses etc. You read so much it’s hard not to at times! My beloved Pedro definitely taught me more to live for each day than I did before though, things just happen sometimes!
 
alpacasqueak said:
My pets are my life and I absolutely love them, but definitely stress at times about what ‘could’ happen/be happening with them with illnesses etc. You read so much it’s hard not to at times! My beloved Pedro definitely taught me more to live for each day than I did before though, things just happen sometimes!
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Exactly! Why waste the time we have them, worrying about what might happen! xx
 
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