guineapig wont eat pellets

[kim]

Hi everyone,

My female guineapig ( cookie) will not eat her pellet food. but will eat hay, veggies & fruits.

is there anything that I can do to get her to eat the pellets?

I just dont wont her to be hungery.

[newpig]

have you tried putting her fruit and veg in the same bowl with a few pellets?

[3piggles]

As long as she's eating her hay, unlimited, she's fine. She seems to like the fruits and veggies, and may get enough from those and the hay, to not need many pellets.

Also, there are many brands of pellets, and some are much better than others. If you're not using a premium brand, give that a try. I agree with Newpig's suggestion about putting the fruits and veggies in with the pellets.

[kim]

I do place the veggies & fruit in the same bowl as her pellet food.

[3piggles]

I would try a different brand of pellet. Buy the smallest amount of the best pellet possible, and just give her 1/4 cup to start. Again, she may not need the pellets, if she's getting all the food she needs from the hay and the fresh foods, she just doesn't need the pellets.

[yodelpig]

How much veg are you feeding? Perhaps you are giving her too much other food.
Alternatively, you can try another brand of good quality pellets.

A good diet should consist of:
- up tp 80% of hay to keep the all important guts in top condition, the fur shiny and the crucial back teeth ground down well.

- 1 cupful (ca. 50g) of mixed veg per piggy per day, preferably including one high vitamin C veg like a slice of (sweet) pepper of any colour, a bit of broccoli (any part) or a sprig of fresh cilantro/coriander, parsley, dill, mint or basil. Please vary between these.
Do not feed fruit and tomato (too much acidity can cause sores in mouth and lips), carrots and lettuce (high in vitamin A which builds up in the liver if fed in excess), spinach and kale (very high in calcium) daily.
Here is a list of veg they can eat: www.guinealynx.info/chart.html

- unlimited pellets until the weekly growth rate slows down between 4-9 months old, then very gradually reduced to the handful or half that a mute piggy needs after 12-15 months old. Pellets should make about 10% of a piggy diet, but in some countries like Germany, piggies are kept without pellets, and they equally live to a healthy old age!

- fresh water without additives daily. Most piggies will drink less if there is stuff in their water.

Has your girl a companion or is she a single piggy?

[Jeannine]

can you weigh her to see if she is gaining or loosing weight...