Vegetables

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Messysis

New Born Pup
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I this is the first time I have posted on here and I know this question has probably been asked a million times. I have been all over the Internet and there is such conflicting information on what is best to feed piggies.

Is there a staple diet of veg that you can feed piggies on a daily basis? When I look some sites say you can feed something everyday others say occasionally etc.

I'd like to be able to buy the veg to last the week and ideally not mix and match so much as it often goes to waste.

I currently feed my two daily
* celery stick
* 1/4 of green pepper
* romaine lettuce
* cucumber
* spring greens
* Green beans
* coriander/parsley alternate days.

I'm also not sure how much of each I should be giving. They share a bowl but obviously I can't guarantee they both have exactly the same amount

Any guidance would be really appreciated, they have access to hay all day, tho I need to change the type I'm getting as they seem to leave quite a lot and they have a small bowl of pellets each night. They seem happy enough.
 
They should have about one cup/50g each, so if you make up two cups and then scatter it around the cage (rather than use bowls), it means they both have equal opportunity to get some (plus scattering encourages foraging behaviours). If one gets more than the other one day, it doesn’t matter.

One tablespoon of pellets per pig per day is plenty
 
I enjoy hand-feeding and mine have learnt that everybody gets a bit so they run up and then wait their turn in a very cute way then run off with their prize and hide while they scoff it! 😊 Daily we give lettuce, cucumber, bell pepper (various colours) and a heap of fresh pulled grass (and possibly bits of dandelion leaves). Grass is the absolute favourite but it all depends on where you live and whether you can find any that isn't by a road and hasn't been peed on by dogs etc.

I gave up with regular green beans as they like them in season but turn their noses up during the winter months when they come in from Africa or South America - presumably they're a bit older by then. And we don't eat them fresh - the hoomans get frozen ones! We do eat a lot of salads though.

I'm also a bit wary about celery - I used to give a lot more and there's no proven link with stones but I had a vet once tell me that she didn't give it to her old boar with a stone. She said it was just gut instinct but as I had a piggy with a stone (that's why we were talking) I thought again about how much I gave. Mind you, at that point I wasn't filtering water (and our tap water has very high calcium). Now I'll give a few slices per pig but about every 3rd day (and low Ca bottled water!)

They do leave a lot of the hay. I get two different types from PaH for a bit of variety - a soft one for bedding and a stalkier one for out in the open. Mine get the veg portion split between breakfast and teatime and if they fuss for treats at other times I just give another handful of hay which they always seem happy with!

Occasional treats include a carrot slice or a lump of broccoli stem or a bit of cabbage - it all goes down well here although some piggies have to be careful with the brassicas if they are prone to bloat. Mine have also just decided that they really really like the green leafy tops of carrots which are a bit awkward to get unless someone is growing them! They like a bit of spinach if we have some in but that's not often here and they only get two or three leaves each. A little chunk of melon with skin washed and most of the flesh removed (and eaten by me) is very exiting. They have performed daring feats of acrobatics to pull the leaves off my raspberry plants. But in terms of vit C it's most likely covered by the amount in hay, grass and pepper!

Welcome to the forum - you obviously care very much about your piggies and it sounds like they are very lucky 💕
(PS If you want to put up any piggy photos people are just crazy for them on here!)
 
Thank you everyone, you've been very helpful!
Meet Sunny and Thunder!
They seem to be very happy, squeak every morning at veg time and evening for their pellets. Pop corning is definitely a favourite pastime for them while chasing each other around.

We don't have access to grass so I'm thinking I may start pulling it for them and introduce it slowly over time
 

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Messysis said:
Thank you everyone, you've been very helpful!
Meet Sunny and Thunder!
They seem to be very happy, squeak every morning at veg time and evening for their pellets. Pop corning is definitely a favourite pastime for them while chasing each other around.

We don't have access to grass so I'm thinking I may start pulling it for them and introduce it slowly over time
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They’re gorgeous 😍 Thank you for sharing
 
:wel: Your piggies are gorgeous. I can’t see too well but is there bedding of some sort in their cage?

PS please can you also add your location (county/state or country) so that information can be tailored to you where possible.
 
Siikibam said:
:wel: Your piggies are gorgeous. I can’t see too well but is there bedding of some sort in their cage?

PS please can you also add your location (county/state or country) so that information can be tailored to you where possible.
Click to expand...
That's the downstairs. Upstairs they have small closed off area which is lined with layers of fleece blanket and an inner house. They have hay 3 times daily.

I'm in Cornwall in the UK 😁
 
Messysis said:
That's the downstairs. Upstairs they have small closed off area which is lined with layers of fleece blanket and an inner house. They have hay 3 times daily.

I'm in Cornwall in the UK 😁
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They still need some bedding downstairs. Are they indoors or outdoors? And are the closed in the upstairs area? As long as it meets their minimum space needs then that’s fine. Also, if they live outdoors you won’t be able to use fleece in winter. It won’t dry.

More photos? 🙏🏽😁

PS can you add your location to your profile - under account details.
 
irennorth said:
A great diet, but I would reduce the amount of celery.
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I also fed my guinea pig a lot of celery for a long time, but then I read from this article https://pawbility.com/can-guinea-pigs-eat-celery/ that celery contains oxalate. And if you provide your guinea pig with products containing oxalate, then the guinea pig may have kidney problems in the future. So be careful! But do not be afraid. In small doses, oxalates are not terrible for a guinea pig, and a small amount of celery will only benefit this cute creature, haha. I hope someone will need this information, good luck to everyone and I wish everyone a good mood.
 
The rule of thumb is ‘not too much of anything’

You have a basically good diet.
There is always hay wastage as piggies not only eat the hay but love to play in it.
I look at my 3 and sometimes wonder why I bothered buy them fleece tunnels and hidey s when they really love to bury under the hay to snooze.

Sunny and Thunder are gorgeous :luv:
 
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