Guinea Pig Pee

[Irisandivysmommy]

Hi! Just wanna make sure my two piggies have normal pee. Behavior wise they are happy & fine but I’m new to the Guinea world. This was one spot & the other was clear.

 

[Irisandivysmommy]

Hi! Just wanna make sure my two piggies have normal pee. Behavior wise they are happy & fine but I’m new to the Guinea world. This was one spot & the other was clear.

 

[Popcorns & Wheeks]

Hi, I know some piggies do pass urine that is of a chalky white consistency, this is how calcium leaves the body. Two of my piggies often have a chalky pee however, not quite as white as your first picture so I can't say for sure if this is normal.

 

[Gem789]

Do you filter their water?I'd say the odd pee looking like like that is ok depending on what they've eaten etc but if this is a common occurrence then you may need to look at their diet or water if it's not filtered.

 

[Irisandivysmommy]

Do you filter their water?I'd say the odd pee looking like like that is ok depending on what they've eaten etc but if this is a common occurrence then you may need to look at their diet or water if it's not filtered.

I do filter their water. They get filtered Brita water. I give them romaine lettuce daily. & pellets

 

[Piggies&buns]

I do filter their water. They get filtered Brita water. I give them romaine lettuce daily. & pellets

Milky white pee is normal and it is excess calcium being excreted. If it is happening a lot or the urine feels gritty when dried, then they are likely getting too much calcium. However, a diet too low in calcium can also cause problems.

Can you tell us a bit more about their diets. You say they get lettuce and pellets.
Do they get lots of hay? Hay needs to be their main food source.

Lettuce on its own does not provide enough nutrition. Do they get other veggies each day?
Safe daily veggies include lettuce, cucumber, bell pepper and coriander. Giving all these every day provides a balance of daily nutrition including the essential vitamin c.

Pellets - how many are you giving? Pellets should just be one tablespoon per pig per day only. Pellets contain a lot of calcium (more than kale which is the highest calcium veg), so they must be kept limited to not risk introducing too much calcium and therefore risking bladder issues.
If you give more than one tablespoon of pellets, please do cut them down.

Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets

 

[Irisandivysmommy]

Milky white pee is normal and it is excess calcium being excreted. If it is happening a lot or the urine feels gritty when dried, then they are likely getting too much calcium. However, a diet too low in calcium can also cause problems.

Can you tell us a bit more about their diets. You say they get lettuce and pellets.
Do they get lots of hay? Hay needs to be their main food source.

Lettuce on its own does not provide enough nutrition. Do they get other veggies each day?
Safe daily veggies include lettuce, cucumber, bell pepper and coriander. Giving all these every day provides a balance of daily nutrition including the essential vitamin c.

Pellets - how many are you giving? Pellets should just be one tablespoon per pig per day only. Pellets contain a lot of calcium (more than kale which is the highest calcium veg), so they must be kept limited to not risk introducing too much calcium and therefore risking bladder issues.
If you give more than one tablespoon of pellets, please do cut them down.

Long Term Balanced General And Special Needs Guinea Pig Diets

I feel them 1 cup of veggies per piggy. I have two girls. Mainly romaine lettuce, cucumber & green pepper. Orginally I was giving them spinach but learned they shouldn’t have too much. So is two cups spread out through out the day good? I just had a food bowl out with pellets but I’m learning it’s 1 table spoon of pellets per Guinea pig twice a day. I’ve been trying to figure out how to feed them pellets without them tipping the bowl over Lol.

 

[Piggies&buns]

I feel them 1 cup of veggies per piggy. I have two girls. Mainly romaine lettuce, cucumber & green pepper. Orginally I was giving them spinach but learned they shouldn’t have too much. So is two cups spread out through out the day good? I just had a food bowl out with pellets but I’m learning it’s 1 table spoon of pellets per Guinea pig twice a day. I’ve been trying to figure out how to feed them pellets without them tipping the bowl over Lol.

As you have two piggies then yes two cups of veg is fine (one cup each).

You are right spinach is too high in calcium to be fed often.

It is not one tablespoon per pig twice a day. That means they are getting two tablespoons each per day which is too much (it’s double the amount they should have).

It is one tablespoon per pig once a day.
If you want to give pellets twice a day that’s fine but make sure you only give half a tablespoon at each serving to total one tablespoon.

So as you have been giving a lot of pellets which tribute a lot of calcium to the diet, this can explain why you are seeing white pees.
Please do cut the pellets down as per my comments above. It will take several weeks for changes to the diet to have any effect on calcium levels in the body.

You don’t need to use bowls. If you scatter feed the pellets in amongst their hay, then that encourages natural foraging.

 

[Irisandivysmommy]

As you have two piggies then yes two cups of veg is fine (one cup each).

You are right spinach is too high in calcium to be fed often.

It is not one tablespoon per pig twice a day. That means they are getting two tablespoons each per day which is too much (it’s double the amount they should have).

It is one tablespoon per pig once a day.
If you want to give pellets twice a day that’s fine but make sure you only give half a tablespoon at each serving to total one tablespoon.

So as you have been giving a lot of pellets which tribute a lot of calcium to the diet, this can explain why you are seeing white pees.
Please do cut the pellets down as per my comments above. It will take several weeks for changes to the diet to have any effect on calcium levels in the body.

You don’t need to use bowls. If you scatter feed the pellets in amongst their hay, then that encourages natural foraging.

Thank you. I appreciate all your help!