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Post by shades on Oct 4, 2015 7:26:11 GMT
Hi,
As you know I've got two boys. Their diet is the usual including dry food. The dry food comes in many shapes and these boys are just like kids - they eat the nice looking ones first and leave the pellets till last.
Last night I gave them 40g each and they still haven't finished it 18 hours later. I'm thinking that's quite slow especially as the packet suggests they should be eating more every day. How much dry food would you expect two-month-old boars to eat daily?
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Post by shades on Oct 4, 2015 8:07:43 GMT
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cavylady
Bronze Member
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Posts: 254
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Post by cavylady on Oct 4, 2015 16:38:24 GMT
I've never heard of or seen that type of guinea pig food I would try a plain pellet only that way they don't only select nutrients and miss out on others. Some high quality pellets are oxbow and kms hayloft! Both my pigs absolutely love oxbow pellets!
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Post by 3piggles on Oct 4, 2015 20:25:39 GMT
You live in China, where the pellets we like probably aren't available. Do you know what the non pellets items are? Are they actual veggies, or are they flavored/dyed cereal things and seeds? My suggestion, not knowing what else is in the mix, is to separate the pellets from the rest of the mix, give the pigs the pellets only, and give them a small bowl of the extra bits as treats. Even if the other bits are the vitamin/nutrient sources, unless you know what they are, I would restrict them. Also, since I can't do the cups/grams conversion in my head, they should have 1/8-1/4 cup of pellets per pig, per day. It might be better to give them 1/8 cup per pig, and work you way up to 1/4 cup per pig, and see how much they eat.
The pellets available in Europe/US/Canada, that we recommend, are only pellets, no added bits. There are pellets with added bits, and we do not recommend those, as the added bits are dyed/flavored cereal bits and seeds. But we have the option of a good pellet, mostly Timothy hay, with lots of vitamins and nutrients added. Hay should be 80% of their diet, and pellets should be the other 20% of their diets, veggies and fruits should be treats only.
That name, Crispy Guinea Pig, made me cringe!!!
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cavylady
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Post by cavylady on Oct 4, 2015 21:26:49 GMT
I didn't realize that till you pointed that out and ew, that is a cringe worthy name.
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Post by shades on Oct 5, 2015 2:29:24 GMT
last night This morning
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Post by 3piggles on Oct 5, 2015 20:38:38 GMT
Wow, I've never seen food like that. I have no idea what to tell you. I do see what look like seeds with sharp ends, and I would definitely remove all of those from the mix. Unless those yellow things are actually dried fruit/veg., I would also remove those from the mix. If you knew what was in the different types of pellets, you'd know what else, if anything, to remove. Since we don't know, I'd just remove the seeds and yellow things, and leave the rest of it. It doesn't seem that the Chinese put ingredients lists on their packaging, and that's the only way you can really tell what's in the pellets.
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cavylady
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Post by cavylady on Oct 5, 2015 21:32:31 GMT
That is unique kinda looks like a mix of pellets,dry catfood, and dried vegetables.
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Post by gitabooks on Oct 5, 2015 22:39:02 GMT
Do your guinea pigs get anything besides the dry food mixture? If they are eating other food that may be why they haven't eaten all their dry food.
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Post by shades on Oct 6, 2015 3:09:39 GMT
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cavylady
Bronze Member
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Post by cavylady on Oct 6, 2015 19:07:07 GMT
I find it odd that popcorns an ingredient.
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Post by 3piggles on Oct 6, 2015 20:41:03 GMT
Ah, maybe those seed-like things are popcorn kernels. Definitely remove them, as they are a choking hazard. It doesn't break down the ingredients per items, and you have two types of pellets/multicolored and regular, plus the yellow things and the popcorn. I would remove the yellow things and the popcorn, definitely. Let them eat the pellets, and try giving them a bit less. Maybe they just get full. Those multicolored pellets are cool looking, but I can't figure out why they have so many colors in them.
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cavylady
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Post by cavylady on Oct 7, 2015 3:32:37 GMT
Maybe artificial coloring?
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Post by 3piggles on Oct 7, 2015 20:15:24 GMT
I hope not,cavylady. I hope it's veggie juice or pulp. No way of telling, which is why I wouldn't remove all those pellets. The plain pellets are basically alfalfa, and it's possible that's all that's sold in China. As for the rest of it, other than the popcorn, there's no way to tell if it's part of the nutritional make up of the pellet mix.
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cavylady
Bronze Member
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Posts: 254
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Post by cavylady on Oct 7, 2015 20:21:33 GMT
Is that the only food option in China oxbow isn't in any of my petstores here where I live so I purchase almost all care item online.
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Post by shades on Oct 8, 2015 9:51:23 GMT
I've seen imported Oxbow young guinea pig food online but it's four times the cost of all the other available foods.
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Post by shades on Oct 8, 2015 12:42:47 GMT
Out and about on the sofa
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Post by 3piggles on Oct 8, 2015 15:37:08 GMT
They are so cute Totally adorable Yes, Oxbow is very pricey out of the US and Canada. It's even pricey in the US compared to lesser brands, but it's worth the money. It's one of the best pellets available. Years ago, I did a comparison of the ingredients in the major brands. Oxbow came out on top. It's possible to google the nutritional content or ingredients lists of any US-made pellets. I also found this, and since it's doing all the work, I figured why google everything separately: albatross3300.hubpages.com/hub/guineapigdryfoods
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Post by jolovespiggies on Oct 8, 2015 19:40:18 GMT
I have gone all gooey, they are just gorgeous and I want a cuddle. That is handy piggles love, thank you very much.
Hugs Jo xx
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cavylady
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Post by cavylady on Oct 8, 2015 20:17:26 GMT
They look so soft and little. Major cuties!
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