Looking for advice on best fresh foods for guinea pigs

[Ellie]

Hi there,

I'm beginning to feel like every guinea pig book I read tells me something different about the kinds of fresh foods that a guinea pig should and shouldn't have. I try to give them a range of things (carrots, broccoli, cucumber, tomatoes, cauliflower leaves and stems, and 'green stuff' like kale and spinach) while avoiding any that my books tell me to avoid, but I was just wondering what kind of advice everyone else has had from good, trustworthy sources on which foods are best and which should be avoided?

Thanks in advance!
Ellie

[Jennicat]

http://www.guineapigcages.com/forum/...arts-info.html

This site has the best nutrition chart that I've found. General rule of thumb is lots of greenery, and veggies/fruits high in calcium and sugar in moderation. Don't feed things that are extremely gas causing (like cabbage) or "starchy" "root" type veggies, like onions, potatoes, etc.

[Kendalle]

foods to avoid--- Stuff with really high acids... tomatoes, oranges, lemons, grapefruit...

stuff with high fat-- nuts squash in high amounts... avocados artichokes

stuff with no nutrients-- lettuces

(most of this can be added to diet just not as a large part)

stuff with extreme flavors- spicy-- garlic chillies, onions

[Jennicat]

Kendalle, most lettuces do have nutrients. Only iceburg lettuce is problematic. Our herd gets a daily mix of escarole, endive, romaine, green leaf, and red leaf lettuces as their staple greenery Plenty of Vitamin C in romaine!

[Kendalle]

hmm no lettuce is listed as good nutrients for iguanas hehe... i never have lettuces

[Jennicat]

Interesting! Well lettuces are quite fine for piggies. The greenery I see recommended commonly for iguanas (mostly things like collard greens, kale, mustard greens, collard greens, and dandelions) have an inappropriate Ca ratio for guinea pigs, and can contribute to bladder stones and other problems. Guinea pigs, naturally, would eat greenery for most of the day, like cattle or horses, whereas I'm sure iguanas in the wild would have a much different diet.

[Ellie]

Thanks for the quick and helpful replies - and especially for the link, the charts look really thorough (more so than the lists in any of my books)!