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Is Ricky eating way to much?

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Annie59

I was just wondering, do all of your guinea pigs eat constantly? Ricky is now 10 months old. Not full grown yet, but getting big. I can not keep up with his food anymore. I have to fill his veggie bowl at least 5 times a day! Everytime I walk in the room, he's up on his back legs, holding on to the bars, wheeking his brains out. Even if I've fed him a half our earlier! Every day he eats like a whole cumcumber, a whole green pepper, a few carrots (against the vets wishes) tons of parsley and basil. Not to mention, I'm constantly filling his bowl of pellets. And he's loaded with Timothy Hay. Is this normal for 10 months? He never ate this much before. I don't want to go to the vets because he's very perky and happy and not sick at all. His poops are normal, although, he does not poop as much as when he was little. He used to make at least 60 poops a day, all in a corner of the cage. Now, maybe 20, and they are scattered all over. But he's doing fantastic. No health problems anymore. I'm just concerned about his non stop eating. Is this normal or should I be concerned? He just wheeks constantly to eat. We can hear him clear down the hall around the turn in the kitchen! (a bit of a distance) He is really loud! Is this the same with a lot of your little piggies? I was just a little concerned. Thanks for any advice!
 
To be honest the amounts you've listed are quite a lot, guineas are instinctively greedy and will squeak for food if they know you'll come a running, could you maybe pull up handfuls of grass as substitute for the other things you are giving him and try and limit fruit and veg to morning and evening. This usually quietens my lot since they love grass anyway
 
Wow, it does sound like your little boy has a big appitite. As I understand, I think that the recommended amount of veggies is a cupful per day per pig and an unlimited supply of hay and dry food (e.g. pellets). I fill my girls food bowl up each morning with dry food accompanied with a small handful of veg e.g a cabbage leaf each and then late afternoon / evening they have a large bowlful of veggies between them. They also have lots of fresh grass and dandelion leaves as they adore them and its free. Guinea pigs should only have limited amounts of parsley because it is high in calcium
 
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Wow 5 times a day that is a lot. Mine get veggies in the morning and evening. Hay in morning and pellets and hay of an evening to give them something to do of a night. The hay is most important it makes up 80% of their diet so I would substitute the veggies with the hay and give him 2 half bowls a day.

:)
 
i am the same with mine, the more they eat the more they want. my OH is always telling me not to feed them when they wheek, but i cannot help it they always look so hungry!
 
Nutmeg and Doughball used to wheek everytime I went near them, or they heard me in the kitchen. They would climb the bars, and almost fall/climb out when I opened it up, looking for food. I used to scissor cut grass and give them that, if it was too wet to play out, they seem to love it. Oh, and is there a right number of poops? I have never counted!
 
Nice to see you back Annie59! I would probably do what Sunshine and Twinkle said and put a lot more hay in for him to munch on.
 
You need to get a bit tougher with little Ricky....by the sounds of it, he's got you wrapped around his little paw and each time he wheeks he'll get food.
I know it's hard to resist those cute button eyes and that earpiercing wheek but give him a cuddle instead and supply plenty of hay.
 
How big is his food bowel? maybe his is teenytiny compared to the rest of ours! My girls have two big bowls and two of those teeny edible bowls between four and they don't empty them on a daily basis! http://www.petplanet.co.uk/product.asp?dept_id=387&pf_id=6030
http://www.petplanet.co.uk/product.asp?dept_id=446&pf_id=6732
Those are the links to their bowls so you can compare sizes. Are you sure he's eating the food and not just tipping it out? I only ask as Pheobe digs to the bottom of the bowl and the contents end up on the floor! I'd hold back on the vegies and fruit a bit and make up with hay. Veggies and fruit have a high water content. Try not to give carrots or corn on the cob/sweetcorn too often, they're fattening and full of sugar. x
 
Hi all! Thank you all for your advice! You know Stargrllclaire, I just realized. Ricky always tips his bowl and I find pieces of green peppers and cucumbers buried under the bedding. And the bowl is not one of the big ones. It's about 5 inches round. I do overflow it though. Maybe I'm just being paranoid. I never seen any living thing cry so much to eat. And mackpossum, your right! When I look at his eyes and how cute he is, I just give into his wishes. I am starting to cut down on the carrots. I know they are high in suger. He loves them so much. I'm trying to give him less and less. I do give him plenty of Timothy Hay. He loves it. He buries himself underneath the hay and then sticks his head out, covered with hay. I can watch him for hours! All your suggestions were wonderful. Do you just give them grass from the front lawn? I have to be careful because the lawncutters sometimes put chemicals down. I know their are some things that are harmful to guineas, so I don't always try new things. But if he likes grass, that would save me a lot of money! I'm constantly buying cucumbers and green peppers. We grow basil and parsley. He loves basil and will rip my hand off when I give it to him. I usually sprinkle some on top of his food bowl. I don't know how good for him basil is. I'm going to follow the advice of all you guys and not fill his bowl so many times a day. He won't starve. He always has hay and dry pellets. If he hears my voice down the hall he just starts to wheek! I think I may be overfeeding him, although he does not seem chubby at all! Well, thanks again all! Your advice really does mean a lot to me!
 
Heee heee I agree with the others, that is a spoilt little piggy you have there! Mine get veg morning and night and sometimes grass during the day but if they hear a bag rustling or I open the fridge in the kitchen, it sets them off wheeking :))

Lots of hay to munch on between meals is the way to go and I refill their pellet bowl every evening.
 
Just a thought, is he a lone piggy? Could he be a bit bored ? and thats why he's eating so much
 
Everything has been said already, but I agree: The more they want and the cuter they look, the more you are tempted to give them x)
Anyway, they don't need such a big amount of pellets, but it is important they have enough hay and veg. And maybe he is growing a lot and that's why he is so hungry (like human teenagers are), or he is indeed lonely?
I have the opposite problem: my Pauline (an elderly piggie) is constantly losing weight although she eats plenty and I syringe feed her as well. I hope she would weigh more.

Once I had a piggie (Emily) who was also crying for food the whole time and I gave her a lot of pellets (in addition to veg). My vet said she is likely to become overweight so she was only oallowed one spoonfull of pellets, but was allowed to eat as much veg and hay as she liked.

Greetings, Rachel

PS: By the way: Ricky is REALLY cute! :-)
 
My two little piggies and rabbit get fresh veg etc. three times a day, breakfast, tea time and supper to keep them going through the night. Little Buttercup always bites the bars when it is feeding time lol, they are so cute it is hard to deny them.

Joy xx:))
 
No, you shouldn't be worried at all about him eating a lot because guinea pigs have to eat constantly because they are herbivores. It's also good that he's eating lots of hay as it is good for they're digestive system, but I don't think you should fill up his fresh food dish when it becomes empty because if you give them too much fresh food it could give him diarhoreha so when fill it once whn you feed him then feed him the next day, not 5 minutes later! You may also find that he leaves bits of half eaten food lying about the cage because pigs are quite stupid and think they've lost the peice of food they were eating even when it's right in front of them so go take another peice! (Mine do it all the time!)
Hope this post helps!
Lot's of Love Cookie,Biscuit&Taz. x
 
Yes, your post has definitely helped! Thank you all for your responses and sorry it's taken me so long to reply. It seems harder and harder to get on line these days! Thanks for the Ricky compliment RachaelW! Your little guinea in your avatar is just as adorable! I feel better knowing that it seems normal for a growing guinea to eat so much! I bought him a bigger dry food bowl and keep it filled (which he empties almost every day!) And I decided not to fill the veggie bowl all day. It seems to be fine with him, but he still wheeks his brains out when I get near the room! Oh, and as you guys asked...yes Ricky is an only guinea pig! Sadly, last week I came home with a guinea pig who has been in the local pet shop for over a year (no one wants her). I couldn't take her being alone anymore. I kind of just went and got her and figured on getting a cage with a separation because they are male and female. But I live with my husband and daughter in my mom's house and my mom totally freaked out and walked out and said it had to go. She wouldn't even talk to me. She wants no more animals in this house. (keep in mind I have 2 cats also). Her house is like a museum. Neat as a pin. She didn't even want me to bring in Ricky, but she said ok for my daughters sake. We plan on leaving in a year or so until we can get our finances in order. But I didn't expect that kind of reaction, and I know now that I should have checked with her first. I had to bring her back to the pet shop. I did it in tears. The manager was so nice and said she will probably be there a long time since she is full grown. My heart breaks for her and I go in there every few days to take her out and give her some hugs. I have fallen in love with her. If she is still there when we finally move, I will be there to take her home. She is all red in color so we named her Lucy (Lucy and Ricky) just like Lucy's hair. (from I Love Lucy) I have vowed that when we move, I will get as many guinea pigs as I can take in from a local shelter. If only I could move now. Unfortunatly, the time is not right. Well, that's why Ricky has to be an only guinea pig for now! Thanks again guys for all your advice!
 
What a sad story! I cannot understand you mom. I mean, if you already have one gp, why is she so much against the second one? Guinea pigs should not be alone. If the one you set your heart on, Lucy, is a girl, you can have Ricky neutered and then they can live together happily ever after! Ben is neutered as well and lives with Pauline. This would only take one cage and I mean, if you have to clean one cage anyway, there can as well be two gps in it :p Did your mom say right from the start that she is against a second guinea pig? In that case, I think it would have been better (also for Ricky's sake) to wait until you move out and then get two at the same time. However, now Ricky is with you (and don't get me wrong, I don't want you to bring him back as well!), and you are allowed to keep him at least, but maybe you can try talking to your mother again, when she is not upset anymore, and you two have a quiet minute?

Well, I could not imagine living with MY mom (I love her, but when we are together for a longer period of time we really go on each other's nerves, so I am glad we don't live together), so I can imagine how hard it must be when you don't feel you can do what you want - especially when you have your own small family already.
 
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