At what age do you start giving your guinea pig vitamin c drops ?

Question

i just got my guinea pig and he is 8 weeks old .

i just wanted to know at what age do you start giving them vitamin c drops in there water .

the man at the pet store said something about giving him drops starting on october or February .

should i start giving them to him now ?

pleaseee help .

Answer 1

I Don't think it matters i don't give my guinea pig vitamin c drops just fruits and veggies that they can have

but i think you could prolly start now!

yea i probably wouldnt give them the drops just give them healthy fruits and veggies and PLAIN pellets that have vitamin C in them

Answer 2

Piggies don't really need to have vitamin c drops if it is fed adequate food. People at pet store try  to up sell items to new pet owners that are not even necessary. If you are concerned about your pig then throw a piece of orange in his cage every few days. Do not waste your money on something that you can give them in your home. Plus they will like that better than some nasty tasting water.

Answer 3

Never. If guinea pigs are on a proper diet of Oxbow timothy hay & pellets, and a good mixture of fresh vegetables daily, they get enough Vitamin C. Vitamin C drops evaporate too quickly in water to be useful, and actually have sugar in them which makes guinea pigs thirstier. Some guinea pigs will even stop drinking water because of the taste, making it actually harmful to use vitamin C drops.

Answer 4

If you feed them a good food (Oxbow is a good one) and give them fresh veggies and fruit regularly, you don't need the vitamin C drops.  I have 5 piggies, don't give them drops, and they're all really healthy.

Answer 5

1) Vitamin C is a water soluble vitamin, meaning it can not be stored in the body (excess is passed out in urine) so the guinea pig needs to get adequate vitamin C every day.

(No idea why a piggie would only need it for part of the year that is insane!)

2) There is no set age that guinea pigs start needing vitamin C. From the time they are eating solid food (piggies are weaned at around 3 weeks) they need vit C in their diet.

3) There is no need to give vitamin C supplements if your piggie is eating a proper diet.

A guinea pig's diet should include:

Unlimited grass hay available at all times.

A variety of fresh veggies every day (bell pepper is one of the best for vit C!). About one cup per pig.

Good quality pellets (eg Oxbow or Kleenmama's). These contain a stabilised form of vit C.

4) Even if for some reason you guinea pig did need extra vit C supplements - adding drops to the water does NOT work!

Vit C is rapidly degraded by light and contact with metals.

A guinea pig water bottle is made from clear plastic with a metal spout - so the Vit C is broken down before the guinea pig can benefit from it.

Many drops also contain other ingrediants, eg sugar, which are bad for piggies.

They also affect the taste of the water - if your piggie doesn't like it he may drink less and become dehydrated.

Answer 6

You can give him Vitamin C drops at this age.  They are so important in a guinea pigs diet because if they don't get enough Vitamin C they can develop Scurvy which is a Vitamin C deficiency.  I also give my guinea pigs Nutriphase pellets which have vitamin C in them.  Give yor piggy an unlimited amount of timothy hay daily.  You can give fruit and/or veggies two to three times a week.  Not more than that because of diarrhea.  Never give lettuce because that will cause diarrhea.  Sometimes people at pet stores don't know what they are talking about.  You can give them the drops now.  They need them even more when they are younger.  You can give them the drops in their water.  It doesn't cause the drops to disintegrate.  My piggies drink from their bottles.  The taste doesn't bother them.  I have owned guinea pigs for eight years so I know what I am talking about.

Answer 7

Your piggie should be eating high quality pellets containing stabilised Vitamin C like Oxbow or Kleenmama's.

http://www.oxbowhay.com/index.sp

http://www.kmshayloft.com/

In addition, your piggie should receive unlimited hay and one cup of fresh veggies each day. Feeding veggies high in Vitamin C are good.

http://www.guinealynx.info/diet.html

If you feed good pellets, fresh veggies, and hay, your piggie will not need the Vitamin C drops. These drops are a way for the pet store to make money & really, do nothing for the piggie except make the water taste bad. Vitamin C is very unstable and once it is exposed to light and/or water, it degrades rapidly. Its worthless in about 20 minutes.

Save your money & feed your piggie a good diet instead!

Good luck!

Answer 8

You shouldn't give him vitamin c drops in his water ever.  As long as you are feeding him a high quality diet, he will get all te vitamin c he needs from his food.  You need to feed a high quality pellet food (oxbow is the best), unlimited hay, and appropriate veggies.  Putting vitamin c drops in the water can actually make the water taste bad and the guinea pig will stop drinking it.  You don't want this so don't put anything in the water.

Answer 9

NEVER give them vitamin c drops in their water.

as soon as light hits it it will disintegrate and make the water horrible tasting. Just make sure you give it plenty of veggies that are high in vitamin c such as romaine lettuce, broccoli, green leaf lettuce, parsley(not italian), and give them pellets that have vitamin c in it.

www.guineapigcages.com