Is it ok to feed Guinea Pig's?

Question

Is it ok to feed Guinea Pig's Carrots and lettuce ever night? or maybe just lettuce?

Thanks..but what about hamster food would it be ok?

Answer 1

Please be warned - if you follow some of the DANGEROUS advice given to you here, you could end up with a guinea pig with obesity, overgrown teeth and serious malnutrition!

Guinea pigs are natural grazers - their entire digestive system is designed for this. The most important part of their diet in captivity is therefore grass hay. The long fibre is vital for good digestion, it wears down teeth ad helps prevent boredom.

The second most important part of a GPs diet is fresh foods. Guinea pigs need a variety of fresh veggies every single day!

Lettuce (eg romaine/cos) is fine for every day. (NEVER feed iceberg it can cause diarrhoea and has no nutritional value).

Carrots are ok - they can have a small piece daily.

Other good everyday foods include bell peppers (very good for vitamin C) and corriander (cilantro).

Fruit can be given in small amounts up to twice a week (they are high in sugar). Oranges can be too acidic - better fruits include apples, strawberries and kiwi.

Dark green veg (eg cabbage, broccoli leaves etc) are best limited to once a week.

Try to give your guinea pig a variety, so not the exact same stuff every day.

Finally, guinea pigs should receive a limited amount of guinea pig pellets every day. These must be good quality pellets (not a mix). Beware that many GP foods are appaling quality - they are often made up mainly from cheap "fillers", with loads of artifical colours etc and have little nutritional value. When buying food, the first ingrediant should be timothy, it should contain a stabilised form of vitamin C, and should not contain ethoxyquin (known to be carcinogenic). I use Oxbow cavy cuisine - it is excellent!

Do NOT feed hamster food! It is fattening, can be a choking hazard, and does not meet their nutritional requirements.

Cavylove... listed some great websites. Also visit:
http://www.guineapigcages.com/

Answer 2

I am very annoyed with the incorrect answers given by people! Guinea pigs NEED to be fed 1 cup of a variety of veggies daily, including leafy greens.
They can have all kinds of lettuce, except iceberg, as it causes diarhea and has no nutritional value. Carrots are also more of a treat veggie, there isn't much nutritional value in them. Don't give more than one baby carrot daily.
They can also occassionally have fruit, but not too often as if can cause serious mouth sores.
This website will explain further on the importance of daily vegetables for guinea pigs, and other foods in their diet:
http://www.guinealynx.com/diet.html

Guinealynx is the best care website for guinea pigs. Read around on it, it's very helpful. There's also a message board with extremely knowledgable people(unlike here on Y! where only a handful of people actually know what they're talking about) who will be able to help you out on anymore questions.

Are you asking if it's ok to feed hamster food to guinea pigs? This is a big NO. Guinea pigs need to eat a plain pellet Oxbow and Kleenmama's are the best pellets in the world. Guinea pigs cannot have seeds or nuts.
www.oxbowhay.com
www.kmshayloft.com

Answer 3

On the hamster food, I would stick with food meant for the guinea pig. I feed my guinea pigs carrots and lettuce, but not all the time. Maybe twice-three times a week and not a huge amount. Only feed them carrots one night, lettuce the other.

Answer 4

Hi , i am a guinea pig breeder, and carrots and lettuce is healthy for guinea pigs, and should be given for treats every week or twice every week. It is not a good idea to give them hamster food, it could make them very sick. Just stick with the guinea pig food and an occasional carrot and lettuce treat. You can also feed you guinea pig timothy hay every night for a healthy, happy guinea pig.I prefer the kaytee brand for timothy hay.

Answer 5

First do not feed guinea pigs anything other than guinea pig pellets, rabbits and other rodents have diffrent nutritional needs.
Secondly guinea pigs need a large size cup of veg a day as guinea pigs can't make their own vit c.
Thirdly look up on the web for a list of veggies to give them as there a loads of varied veg you can give.
Lastly do not give them iceberg lettuce as this can give them colic and it's better to be safe than sorry.

Answer 6

No I would just feed it hamster food. A little bit of carrots or lettuce as a treat shouldn't hurt. Just be sure that their diet is primarily hamster food.

Answer 7

You should not feed your guinea pig hamster food, but it is very healthy to give your guinea pig vegetables on a daily basis. Oranges are actually the best thing you can give your guinea pig. Guinea pigs actually cannot produce vitamin C on their own so it's very important that you supplement their diet with it.

Answer 8

Wow, I don't get all the no answers. Whats wrong with getting your piggie back to natural foods? The processed gunk is not near as healthy as real foods. Its cooked and mashed, and may have added vitamins to replace lost ones, but they love real foods!
I raised piggies for years, they love carrots!
Iceburg lettuce has NO nutritional value at all, it only has water value, but piggies drink LOTS of water anyway. I still gave it to them when making salads and such, it just 'didn't count' as food. I hated wasting foods in the trash that I knew the piggies would love.
Start slowly, give some every night, it will become habit for your piggie to expect the natural foods.
Cabbage, green pepper, some potato peels, scrubbed clean of course. Apples, they love apples!! Vitamin C! Collard greens, those little yellow squash at the grocery, they love those! Raw Yams, make little 'french fries' out of them, dandelion greens, grass from the yard... make sure NO chemicals ever get on it, not even fertilizers.
Speaking of fertilizers... vegetarian critters like guinea pigs, like rabbits, make great fertilizer for your garden, grass, outdoor potted plants!!

Answer 9

Stay with regular guinea pig food, but veggies are OK for treats now and then. Stay away from Iceberg lettuce, only Romain.

Answer 10

Main diet should be a good timothy based pellet (like Oxbow) and timothy or other grass hay (not alfalfa). Treats can include a small piece of carrot, apple, tomato, green or red pepper, orange slice or a dark leafy green like mustard or turnip green. Lettuce will cause diarrhea and is a useless food.