Picky Guinea Pigs?

Question

I have the two pickiest piggies! I've had piggies all my life (swore I wouldn't get more, but these guys needed to be rescued from a bad situation) and they are picky! I give them pineapple, carrots, lettuce, cabbage, spinach, brocolli, apples, oranges, strawberries, cucumbers, you name it, they've tried it. They only eat carrots. I've never had pigs like this! They eat their pellets, but I want them to get lots of natural food and fiber and get a healthy variety. What else can I try? They always have a piggy granola bar and piggy pellets that have seeds and corns and things in it (they leave the corn kernels in the bowl for me), as well as berry yogurt drops and of course fresh water, unlimited timothy hay, toys, chew blocks, a tunnel to run in and two piggy igloos, all contained in a 6' x 3' "c&c" cage. Are they over stimulated? Or will they just be picky kids their whole lives?

Answer 1

I agree with everything the first answer says. I also wanted to add my two cents on picky guinea pigs.

When I first got my girls they wouldn't eat anything but carrots either. What I did was put a small piece of lettuce in their cage in the morning before I left. When I got back in the evening I'd take out whatever they didn't eat and put in a fresh piece. The next morning I'd start over again, taking out what they didn't eat and replacing it with a fresh piece. Eventually they started eating it, and now they eat just about everything I give them.

I wouldn't give them much cabbage or brocolli, since they can cause bloat, I also wouldn't give them much pineapple or oranges since they are acidic. Really fruits should only be given as a treat, since they are so high in sugar. Lastly limit the amount of spinich, as well, as it can cause bladder sludge.

I give my girls a mixture of red and green leaf lettuce every morning and evening, as well as just a couple pieces of kale. They also get either a baby carrot, some cilantro or some cucumber, but I rotate each through, so they only get a baby carrot every other night, and they get cilantro or cucumber the next night, and so on.

For some really good info on guinea pig diets check out www.guinealynx.com.

Good luck!

Answer 2

Alrighty, a few things:

Cut down on the carrots. When they have less to eat, they'll go for their greens. 1 baby carrot per day per pig is more than enough. I also wouldn't let them get unlimited pellets, if that's what you're doing. Those should be supplemental, not staple. They also shouldn't have seeds in there. Their mouths are designed to chew, not chop, and that leaves shard seed shards travelling into a digestive track that's designed to handle soft bits of cellulose (which a seed has very little of).

Take out the granola bars and yogurt drops. These are unecessary and, more to the point, unhealthy.

Once you take out the treats, they'll be more prone to seeing the fruits and veggies as treats.

Also, I commend you on the large cage for only 2 pigs. Good work. :)

Answer 3

Some of the foods you mentioned are NOT good for them. Cabbage, Lettuce, and Spinach especially.

Some guinea pigs just don't like certain things. They all have different personalities.

Answer 4

Hello :] I find this in my guinea pig a lot too. You have to try a lot of different things and figure out what one she likes. I recommend giving them Romaine Lettuce, Tomatoes, Cucumber, Carrots, Bell peppers, Parsley, Kale, Broccoli, Strawberry, Cauliflower, Oranges, Cantaloupe, Kiwi and Mustard greens. Also later on just to let you know, You need to avoid giving these to your guinea pig. < Iceberg lettuce

Answer 5

My guinea pig only eats grapes, apples, melon (all the sweet fruits) and occasionally salad + carrots.

She's waay too spoiled. So we're in the painfull process of unspoiling her.

If they won't eat it, theres no way to really force her. Just make sure they stay healthy and eat enough i suppose.

Answer 6

Guinea pigs are like people in their taste of food. Some like different things. It also might be because of how they where treated before you rescued them.