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Reducing Calcium Intake?
- Thread starter xxaimeexx
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helen105281
Senior Guinea Pig
What veg do you feed each day?
biscandmatt
Senior Guinea Pig
i'd start with the pellets. how many do you feed and which one? our vet told me that these are the main cause of calcium issues, more so than if you fed small amounts of leafy greens per day which are usually always medium-high calcium. it's very easy to quickly over-feed calcium with a bowl full of pellets for example.
i'd just be sensible with the fresh foods and feed a wide variety and rotate as often as possible so they're having small amounts of each. if small amounts are fed, and the rest of the diet is good (lots of hay and/or grass, and very limited pellets) then you'll only have issues if that particular piggy's body cannot handle too much calcium for some reason - my mollie is an example of this.
i was told aswell that one of the best foods you can feed is actually a variety of lettuces and other leafy greens, rotated as often as you can, with either no other non-leafy foods, or very small amounts. basically he said be as concerned, if not more concerned, with sugary things, and pellets especially. and be careful not to go too far the other way as too little calcium can also be damaging.
i think it's all about balance but i'd definitely start with the pellets
i'd just be sensible with the fresh foods and feed a wide variety and rotate as often as possible so they're having small amounts of each. if small amounts are fed, and the rest of the diet is good (lots of hay and/or grass, and very limited pellets) then you'll only have issues if that particular piggy's body cannot handle too much calcium for some reason - my mollie is an example of this.
i was told aswell that one of the best foods you can feed is actually a variety of lettuces and other leafy greens, rotated as often as you can, with either no other non-leafy foods, or very small amounts. basically he said be as concerned, if not more concerned, with sugary things, and pellets especially. and be careful not to go too far the other way as too little calcium can also be damaging.
i think it's all about balance but i'd definitely start with the pellets
biscandmatt
Senior Guinea Pig
this thread just popped into my head and i remembered what i was originally going to say before i started rambling again 
it's normal to see white stains around after feeding anything higher in calcium, but only an issue if it happens alot, or if it's gritty in texture. so i'd adjust pellets perhaps and see if that helps first
most leafy things are medium-high calcium really but things like parsley, spinach and kale are higher than others
it's normal to see white stains around after feeding anything higher in calcium, but only an issue if it happens alot, or if it's gritty in texture. so i'd adjust pellets perhaps and see if that helps first
most leafy things are medium-high calcium really but things like parsley, spinach and kale are higher than others
gizzy
Adult Guinea Pig
my vet recons reducing to much calcium is not benifisial
small amounts of calcium deposits are the norm for many pigs, as all pigs have a
naturaly alcaline bladder.
l wouldent cut out to much calsium veg though, as apparentaly veg that is hi in calcium,
is also hi in magnesium, and the two need to be balanced ,(2 to 1 rasio) as the two work in
combernation with each other!
l dont understand the science but apparentaly the two minarals are resonible for keeping over 300 other
minerals in the body balanced
small amounts of calcium deposits are the norm for many pigs, as all pigs have a
naturaly alcaline bladder.
l wouldent cut out to much calsium veg though, as apparentaly veg that is hi in calcium,
is also hi in magnesium, and the two need to be balanced ,(2 to 1 rasio) as the two work in
combernation with each other!
l dont understand the science but apparentaly the two minarals are resonible for keeping over 300 other
minerals in the body balanced
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Veggies Galore
Senior Guinea Pig
as above posters have said , white deposits from wee are normal . And , as Gizzy has said , guinea pigs need some calcium in their diet .
As long as the deposits are powdery and not gritty
and
as long as you are not overfeeding high calcium veg , I wouldn't get too concerned.
I never harms to do a bit of revision - and the best thread I have found is Wiebke's
Recommendations For A Balanced General Guinea Pig Diet
Wiebke has listed some veg that are safe to give daily ...
1 slice of bell or sweet pepper/capsicum of any colour; 1 slice of cucumber; 1-2 chunks of celery; 1 French bean; 1 sprig of coriander/cilantro; 1 one inch strip of spring greens
( above portions are for 1 pig )
Gizzy has mentioned calcium / phosphorus balance. I have never got my head round this. If you want to do some reading up about it , here is a link ...
Guinea Lynx :: Ca:P Ratio Chart
As long as the deposits are powdery and not gritty
and
as long as you are not overfeeding high calcium veg , I wouldn't get too concerned.
I never harms to do a bit of revision - and the best thread I have found is Wiebke's
Recommendations For A Balanced General Guinea Pig Diet
Wiebke has listed some veg that are safe to give daily ...
1 slice of bell or sweet pepper/capsicum of any colour; 1 slice of cucumber; 1-2 chunks of celery; 1 French bean; 1 sprig of coriander/cilantro; 1 one inch strip of spring greens
( above portions are for 1 pig )
Gizzy has mentioned calcium / phosphorus balance. I have never got my head round this. If you want to do some reading up about it , here is a link ...
Guinea Lynx :: Ca:P Ratio Chart
Tomsmum
Junior Guinea Pig
are calcium free (or low) pellets available? I am having difficulties keeping the girls in lettuce at this time of year, it's so expensive 
Veggies Galore
Senior Guinea Pig
are calcium free (or low) pellets available? I am having difficulties keeping the girls in lettuce at this time of year, it's so expensive
@helen105281 is our expert on pellets.
As stated above, Guinea Pigs need calcium in their diet so calcium free is not necessarily a good idea.
I'm afraid, keeping fresh veg in is part of owning a guinea pig. I rarely give mine lettuce - it's not got a lot of nutrition in it . I tend to give the
" daily veg " as listed in Wiebke's thread.
Recommendations For A Balanced General Guinea Pig Diet
1 slice of bell or sweet pepper/capsicum of any colour; 1 slice of cucumber; 1-2 chunks of celery; 1 French bean; 1 sprig of coriander/cilantro; 1 one inch strip of spring greens
The added bonus being, these are veg that my husband and I eat too - so , we can keep the stock rotation going.
Tomsmum
Junior Guinea Pig
I give mine lettuce partly because they are they not big drinkers
helen105281
Senior Guinea Pig
Like Piggyowner has said, it is all about the right balance. The diet I follow (which is similar to the one in the link) has been carefully put together taking all the nutrients etc into account, and the calcium in hay has also been taken into account. For pellets, I recommend the grainless ones, which though the calcium percentage may not seem that different to Burgess etc, the calcium is not from calcium carbonate which is one of the things that can contribute to stones.
I recommend these:
Bunny GuineaPigDream BASIC | Free P&P on orders £29+ at zooplus!
Vitakraft Emotion Professional Prebiotic Guinea Pig
JR Farm Grainless Complete Guinea Pig | Free P&P £29+ at zooplus!
it can be a challenge getting them to transition as the pellets are much bigger and take more effort to eat. Even my 2 newbies are on Burgess aswell at the moment, as little Robyn is only a baby and needs to be on unlimited pellets but I am hoping they will accept these at some point over the next few months.
xxaimeexx
Teenage Guinea Pig
Thanks guys!I think I have managed to pinpoint the issue after reading Wiebke's feeding thread! During the last few weeks they had been getting more readigrass than usual, with me oblivious to the fact that it was pretty high in calcium. I would love to change their pellets but I can't really get any other than Harringtons, Tesco own or Burgess(which they currently eat). If there is a better one out of those three then please let me know. Also thanks for the info on veg etc I will keep that in mind! I usually have them on pepper, celery, cucumber, french beans and sometimes lettuce/kale I'm glad these are good veggies as they are their faves!
. I would love to change their pellets but I can't really get any other than Harringtons, Tesco own or Burgess(which they currently eat). If there is a better one out of those three then please let me know. Also thanks for the info on veg etc I will keep that in mind! I usually have them on pepper, celery, cucumber, french beans and sometimes lettuce/kale I'm glad these are good veggies as they are their faves!
xxaimeexx
Teenage Guinea Pig
If someone could list those three pellets mentioned in order of what ones are "best" that would be great! They don't get much, an egg cup each per day if that, nost days its only half an egg cup each!
Tomsmum
Junior Guinea Pig
Darn, have just bought a huge bag of PaH pellets.. Will they take them back?
xxaimeexx
Teenage Guinea Pig
I'm not sure if they would take them back if there isn't a fault with them. I don't know how pah pellets are for nutrients etc! They may be okay!
Tomsmum
Junior Guinea Pig
They are grain based though
Veggies Galore
Senior Guinea Pig
Helen has listed them in order of preference i.e. Bunny are the best nutritionally - but I will warn you - not all guinea pigs like them (mine don't). Vitakraft are the next best and JR the next best.
xxaimeexx
Teenage Guinea Pig
Sorry I meant the ones I mentioned! Tesco, Harringtons and Burgess. I know they are all grain based but they are my options at the moment.
Veggies Galore
Senior Guinea Pig
Sorry !
biscandmatt
Senior Guinea Pig
are calcium free (or low) pellets available? I am having difficulties keeping the girls in lettuce at this time of year, it's so expensive
yes, the bunny and vitakraft are the best ones for that. mollie and benjie have small amounts of vitakraft and love them.
lettuce is a nightmare this time of year. it's all such poor quality. most veg is actually but lettuce is the worst! we have got sort of lucky and found that morrisons near us stock one called 'o so sweet' which is generally good most of the time. it's a good colour and crunchy aswell. they love it. but i'm struggling with the leafy stuff lately aswell.
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