Pellet Predicament

al34ex

al34ex

New Born Pup
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Hi y’all! I’m in a bit of a pellet predicament (lol). I’ve been feeding my 3 ladies Oxbow Garden Select Adult Pellets for about a month and a half now. They will all eat them (served in 3 separate bowls), but will just nibble bit by bit at them all day, rather than eating their full tablespoon all at once. Leaving the pellet bowls in the cage all day means it’s hard for me to know how much each pig is eating (1 might be eating more than the others). I love the ingredient list for the Garden Select (no soy, wheat, or molasses, though max calcium could be a bit lower at min/max 0.35%/0.75%), but obviously they need to eat them, and I can’t really monitor pellet intake the way they are eating now. I know if I switch to KMS or Oxbow Essentials, they will probably like them more, but some of the first ingredients are wheat/soy/molasses.

Basically, my guinea pig diet philosophy has been to limit soy, wheat, and added sugars as much as possible, but I also want to make sure that each piggy is getting what they need in terms of pellet quantity and nutrients every day.

Any tips on how to get them to “look forward” to eating their current Oxbow Garden Select pellets and eat them more quickly? Are my concerns about soy, wheat, and molases in pellets valid? Should I just switch to a pellets that they will probably eat in one go to better monitor intake?

I appreciate any responses/guidance!
 
Hello and welcome to the forum.
I too try to avoid soy, wheat and molasses as advised by a vet. We are mainly a UK based Forum so the pellets you mention are not commonly known here. I don't know how you can get them to eat their pellets more quickly, it's not something I have a problem with as my boars clear theirs as quick as they can.
Good luck!
 
piggieminder said:
Hello and welcome to the forum.
I too try to avoid soy, wheat and molasses as advised by a vet. We are mainly a UK based Forum so the pellets you mention are not commonly known here. I don't know how you can get them to eat their pellets more quickly, it's not something I have a problem with as my boars clear theirs as quick as they can.
Good luck!
Click to expand...
Amazing - thank you! What pellets do you feed? (If you feed pellets)
 
I usually feed JRFarm or Verselle Laga Cavia Complete. Both these are imported and I have to buy on line so can't always get them. If I have to buy over the counter I try to get Burgess Mint, they contain soy and a few other not so good ingredients but a vet who has done some piggy research told me they are better balanced than most of the other cheaper shop ones. It's so difficult to know what to do. I feed about a desert spoon full each a day split into two lots so they get cleared quickly and everyone gets a share.
 
Personally I wouldn't worry about your ladies taking their time over eating their pellets.
As long as their weights are stable and one piggy isn't getting huge I think they probably eat what they need when they are hungry.
I don't think it rigidly needs to be 1 tablespoon per pig per day - as long as they aren't being given heaping bowls of unlimited pellets 24/7 then they can't really over indulge.
 
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