I need a feeding plan for a guinea pig??

Question

I bought a 10 wk old guinea pig 3 days ago, and i need a daily feeding plan

I CANNOT buy stuff like kale and all these different herbs and plants, i only have the 'normal' veggies and fruit; carrots, apples banana, orange and mandarin, celery, bell peppers, broccoli, mint, coriander and that sort of stuff. i also have guinea pig seeds/pellet mix, lucerne, and grass.

The grass is there at all times and i always top it up,the lucerne too. But how much pellets and vegies daily?? And what vegies go togethr good to get the vit C?? and if i cant have one vegie, what are some other gd ones??

also,whenIpickup piggy, she squeaks. isthiswheekingcoz shes happy?? It sounds happy, but she does it when i pick her up aswell as when i stroke her,and wouldntayoungpigbe scared by being picked up?? and when i strokeher inoneplace, shepurrs, is it a purr or a growl?? she seems happy when i do it, she sretches out and stuffi saw a video on youtube with pigs doin thesamething.

plz answer all questions

Answer 1

OK try this

Monday 7:00 between 9:00 cabbage and celery

in between this you can give him some appl, and carrots, pear and grass.

3:00 to 5:00 normal guinea pig food  

7:00 to 9:00 all the greens

change her water every night

never feed her citrus!



Tuesday 7:00 to 9:00 uncooked oatmeal and broccoli stems

same in between treats

3:00 to 5:00 sugar free cereals and pellets

7:00 to 9:00 peppers and celery

Wednsday same as Monday and thursday same as Tuesday and so on so forth

and the other question try www.jackiesguineapiggies/guineapigsounds... (this is not a link)

Answer 2

First of all, slow down the typing and put spaces between words, its really annoying otherwise!

To answer your questions;

She should have guinea pig pellets/mix available at all times

For her vitamin C she should have a supplement that you put in her water

She shouldn't have too much grass at first, this must be gradually introduced

She must have meadow hay available at all times

Veggies/Fruit shouldn't make up more than 10% of her daily intake. She can have carrots, apples, strawberries, rasberries, orange, celery, bell peppers (SEEDS REMOVED) and broccoli. Feed broccoli sparingly as it causes gas, I just avoid it with my pigs but they shouldn't have more than a tiny bit once every week or two. NEVER feed iceberg lettuce, it causes bloat and this can kill your pig. Banana can also cause this so only feed a tiny bit once a fortnight at most. NEVER feed potatoes. She can have dandelion leaves if you have them in your garden but never pick them from the roadside etc. as you don't know if they have  been treated with anything. Also, don't feed grass from your garden if you use pesticides in there etc. NEVER feed grass clippings from a lawnmower.

When you pick her up and she squeaks, is it like a sort of squealing? If it is, she's scared. Guinea pigs are very timid animals, don't overdo it on the handling for now. I'll find a link to a question I answered about handling animals and add it in a minute. The purring you describe is her way of telling her fellow pigs that she may be in danger, this is how they communicate. I will find a link to back this up as it may not be what you are describing.

As for your daily "plan":

Give hay and pellets on the morning, ensure water is available (with vit c drops)

Give a few small pieces of veg (eg a small slice of carrot and a slice of bell pepper)

Lunchtime, check hay/water/pellets and refill if necessary. Give a little bit of grass

Evening, check hay/water/pellets and refill if necessary. Give more veg (as for morning)

Night time - as lunchtime

Don't overfeed fruit as pigs can't digest sugar well. I'd say no more than one small piece of fruit a day (ie a small strawberry, or a rasberry)

I hope this helps, feel free to email me :-)

Jen

ADD: http://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question/ind... (check out this for fruit and veg)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guinea_pig (scroll down to "Behaviour" for the noises)

For handling:

You need to get her to trust you.

Get in her run with her and sit down. Just sit there, don't approach her or anything, if she comes to you, ignore her. Read a book or something to pass the time. Do this for a week (or longer if necessary), enticing her with food. Once she is comfortable eating with you, go to stroke her. Remember to move slowly and gently or you'll frighten her. Don't pick her up, just stroke her gently. Once she is happy with you doing this, then pick her up. Be very gentle but don't drop her, only hold her for a few seconds but gradually build it up. It could take a month or longer, but if you do this every day, eventually she will be happy to be handled by you. Don't rush things with her though, take things at her pace or you'll just make things worse. Feel free to email me :-) Good luck