Guinea pig nutrition and why is hay so important, explains Andrea Kroftová
Are you wondering how to create the perfect meal plan for your guinea pig? What is crucial for larger rodents and what is better to avoid? Everything about guinea pig nutritional requirements can be found in the following interview with the breeder Andrea Kroftová.
Let's start with a more general and basic question. Why is hay so important for guinea pigs?
Guinea pigs are herbivores, therefore hay is an essential building block of their diet. Hay has two main functions. First, it's used to grind the ever-growing teeth - they grow up to 1.5 mm a week. Second, it's a source of fibre, which is important for fermentation processes during digestion. In case of deficiency in fibre, the movement in a guinea pig's bowels slows down and the peristalsis comes to a stop.
What about the dosage?
In order for the fluff ball to thrive, there must be constant access to loose hay. It's best to keep it in a hay rack. To give you an idea, an adult guinea pig eats up to 150 grams of hay for every kilogram of its weight a day.
So what should an ideal diet plan for the small furry ball look like?
Apart from good-quality hay, there should be fresh water, which we mustn't forget about. Water in a bowl gets dirty quite quickly, therefore we use water bottles, which we refill every day.
Guinea pigs also need fresh grass and vegetables. We don't have to force them to eat it as they love both of them. However, do be careful what vegetables you give them. They definitely mustn't be spoiled or frozen and always wash them before serving. Root vegetables such as carrots, celeriac, parsnips or beet are ideal. Unsuitable ones are those that are too watery or cause bloating.
During the green season, vegetables can be fully replaced by grass. The amount is important as well and it shouldn't replace the amount of consumed hay. Everything that the animal is offered should follow the golden hygiene rule: whatever they don't eat in one day should be thrown out.
What, besides vegetables, can the owner treat his pet with?
Fruit can also be used as a treat. To make the diet more varied we can also add a small amount of fresh or dried herbs such as dill, basil or mint. I don't recommend overdoing it with feed mixes in the form of pellets. One teaspoon a day is ideal. Guinea pigs are quite picky and can end up eating too much starch and protein, and not enough fibre, and suddenly we have a problem. When choosing a mix, it's important to read the ingredients, and other than fibre and protein we should also look at the content of calcium, phosphorus and natural (stabilised) vitamin C. Packaging in a protective atmosphere and transparent foil goes without saying. Also woody branches such as apple, pear or currents I can only recommend as a treat.
Is it necessary to adapt the nutrition to the guinea pig's life stages?
Every animal has its specific needs in different stages of its life and they also change according to the environment in which we keep it. Outdoor guinea pigs require more food than their friends who are of the same age but live indoors. A growing individual needs more protein and calcium than an adult one. Also pregnant or lactating females need to gain more weight. In this case, however, we must monitor the pellet intake and the content of protein and sugar. They increase the risk of toxaemia.
Can I use food supplements as an extra treat for my pet?
Vitamin C intake in feed is essential for guinea pigs as they cannot synthetize it. In order for its body to work correctly, a guinea pig needs approx. 10-20 milligrams for every kilogram of its weight. Guinea pigs in stressful situations, growing, sick or lactating females need an increased dosage of vitamin C. If necessary, we can use multivitamin drops for guinea pigs as a supplement. If the guinea pig doesn't have the possibility of an outdoor enclosure and natural sunlight, adding vitamin D is recommended.
This summer, same as last year, favoured domestic travels thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. And while for holidays abroad pet owners arranged dog sitting, here in Czech they learnt to take them along. This group of dog owners was targeted by...
Crates or transport boxes provide your pet with safety and comfort not only during car journeys. You can see them more and more often in households with dogs. What can be the reasons for buying a crate for a dog living in a flat? What doesn't belong...
Recent estimates indicate that every third dog in the world is homeless. Some estimates go even further and state that it's half of all dogs. It is a relatively high number but the situation varies in different continents. This is one of the reasons...
Many of us are under the influence of the need to fulfill a dream of getting an unconventional pet, which the minipig certainly is. This trend has been present in the Czech Republic for about ten years. But don’t be fooled by those cute snouts, taking...
Pseudogravidity, also known as false pregnancy. The condition in which the female dog’s body is preparing for giving birth, even though the dog is not pregnant. False pregnancy occurs after heat and can last up to several months. What causes it, how...
Summer is a time of joy. The warm weather encourages trips and having fun in the water. However, summer may not be as great for our dogs as it may seem. We fur may sometimes do more harm than good. How to take care of wet fur and how to prevent any...
Cats scratch, everybody knows that. But have you ever wondered why that is? If you have a feline companion at home, you might have thought it would be a good idea to break her habit of scratching. Especially if your cat has ruined your furniture with...
Some love it, some hardly tolerate it. We are, of course, talking about summer and the hot weather that comes with it. Hot weather can become rather unpleasant for our canine companions. While cats usually tolerate heat without any major problems,...
Pet owners know that summer doesn't only bring warmth, sunshine and late sunsets. It's also the time of ticks, who know how to torment our four-legged friends. Unfortunately, it's very difficult, or even almost impossible, to prevent our pet from...
The summer season calls for hair cuts. And not only yours but also your pets'. But a shorter coat doesn't always mean lower body temperature. On the contrary, sometimes it could be the other way round. How and when to clip our four-legged friends'...
The fact that our mental well-being benefits from the presence of animals - namely dogs - has been mentioned here several times. Canis therapy is a highly effective therapeutic process where, to a certain degree, a dog interacts with a patient or...