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Post by Bean on Nov 5, 2021 8:12:10 GMT
I've never really thought about what too much weight gain would be for a young pig, but while they're growing I think it's unlikely you'd have cause to worry about that. Their diet is good, so if they're healthy and active, it'd have to be a pretty massive hike to make me think something may be amiss.
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Post by 3piggles on Nov 5, 2021 20:03:45 GMT
I googled it, and while few sites answered the question, one said baby guinea pigs should gain 30-50 grams per week until they're 12-14 months old. Then it should level off and stay within the 30g gain/loss of just having eaten, or just having gone to the bathroom. I guess that means gaining more than 50g per week is worth watching, just to make sure the pig's okay.
Weight loss is usually considered more critical than weight gain, in guinea pigs, but a continued, excessive weight gain, unless the pig is being fed a lot of fattening junk food, is cause for a vet visit. It could be a tumor.
The article also stressed the need to only give pigs hay and pellets, none of the junk food pellets with yellow, orange and green bits added, as those bits are fattening, without having any food or digestive value.
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Post by rustypete on Nov 5, 2021 22:38:39 GMT
I googled it, and while few sites answered the question, one said baby guinea pigs should gain 30-50 grams per week until they're 12-14 months old. Then it should level off and stay within the 30g gain/loss of just having eaten, or just having gone to the bathroom. I guess that means gaining more than 50g per week is worth watching, just to make sure the pig's okay. Weight loss is usually considered more critical than weight gain, in guinea pigs, but a continued, excessive weight gain, unless the pig is being fed a lot of fattening junk food, is cause for a vet visit. It could be a tumor. The article also stressed the need to only give pigs hay and pellets, none of the junk food pellets with yellow, orange and green bits added, as those bits are fattening, without having any food or digestive value. Thanks At the moment with veg they get given : Monday kale, bell pepper, basil Tuesday bell peppers, carrots, Savoy cabbage Wednesday kale, bell peppers, radishes, mint Thursday, kale, fennel, spinach Friday kale, courgette, lettuce Saturday lettuce,courgette and bell peppers Sunday kale, bell pepper & fennel So they get: kale 5 times a week, bell pepper 5 times a week Courgette 2 times a week Basil 1 time a week Carrots 1 time q week Cabbage- 1 time a week Radishes- 1 time a week Mint- 1 time a week Fennel- 2 times a week Spinach- 1 time a week Lettuce (romaine): 2 times a week They get this majority of times unless were low on veg. They get fruit occasionally like grapes. They also got a bit of pumpkin last Sunday. Hay is usually meadow hay and pellets I don’t use a muesli type. I use a brand where it looks the same with each pellets. It prevents selective feeding.
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Post by Bean on Nov 6, 2021 8:56:32 GMT
It sounds like a really good diet to me, and while it's getting colder, I certainly wouldn't worry about a bit of extra weight gain as that weight will help them stay warm - all those figures are averages, so if the diet is good and they seem healthy, I doubt you will have any reason to worry about their weight.
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Post by rustypete on Nov 6, 2021 9:16:01 GMT
It sounds like a really good diet to me, and while it's getting colder, I certainly wouldn't worry about a bit of extra weight gain as that weight will help them stay warm - all those figures are averages, so if the diet is good and they seem healthy, I doubt you will have any reason to worry about their weight. Thanks and yeah they are definitely healthy. They’ve also started recently doing the full way of popcorning after I let them out into run part of the hutch. They definitely are enjoying themselves and arent scared by the neighbours cat anymore
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Post by Bean on Nov 6, 2021 9:33:15 GMT
Oh I bet that's fun to watch! And good that they know they're safe around the cat too, it's so nice to see them relax in their new surroundings.
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Post by rustypete on Nov 9, 2021 9:00:47 GMT
Oh I bet that's fun to watch! And good that they know they're safe around the cat too, it's so nice to see them relax in their new surroundings. Exactly, the only thing is the hutch tends to get slugs in overnight. When I see them I pick them up with dustpan and put them in another part of the garden away from hutch. Is there a way to stop slugs getting into hutches?
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Post by Bean on Nov 10, 2021 8:04:48 GMT
When we were fostering rabbits (who lived outdoors), I sometimes found a slug draped over the food bowl, devouring any leftover pellets!
I don't think there's a guaranteed way to get rid of them (I grow veg and they're an annual challenge!) and of course you'll need to be careful that anything you use to deter them wouldn't be harmful to the pigs if it got into the run. Copper is supposed to deter them, maybe some copper tape on the outside of the hutch? They also tend not to like sharp gravel/ sand/ egg shells, if it's practical to put some of that around the area.
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Post by 3piggles on Nov 10, 2021 21:15:36 GMT
I read that diatomaceous earth deters them. Just pour a line around the outside of the run under the hutch, where the piggies can't get to it. I've never tried it, so can't say if it works.
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Post by Bean on Nov 11, 2021 8:14:19 GMT
Might be quite expensive to cover a big enough area to stop them getting in though. Probably a solution better for the gardeners, although I've never tried it either as I've never heard compelling enough results from people who have.
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