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LooBoosShedZoo
Diet
This diet guideline and recommendations are based on my own personal experiences, veterinary advice and research.
Hay
Hay should make up 75% of your guinea pigs diet. Guinea pigs are herbivores, meaning they don't eat or need any kind of meat, just plant material. Their digestive system requires a constant supply of high fibre food to keep it healthy and running smoothly. Hay is not only an excellent roughage food, it also helps to keep their teeth ground down. I feed bales of hay as it is good quality, inexpensive and lasts much longer than smaller bags. I have also found it to be much fresher.
Pellets
Plain dye free high quality guinea pig pellets, formulated with Vitamin C can be provided. One guinea pig will eat approximately 1/8 cup of pellets a day when also fed adequate hay and fresh vegetables. Look for a pellet that uses stabilized vitamin C and has a "Best If Used By" date to ensure quality. Avoid pellets that use animal byproducts and those whose primary ingredient is corn. A pellet free diet can be fed and ensures a more natural diet, however using pellets is not wrong... Guinea Pigs have been domesticated to be our pets and to survive off commercial pellets, guinea pigs can do well without them on the correct balance of items but providing pellets as well as fresh food ensures that your pets are definitely getting everything they need. There is no right or wrong with feeding or not feeding pellets as long as you are feeding the right ones. They can survive with them and without them.
I have used a mixture of pellets and two of my favourite choices are the Pets at Home guinea pig nuggets and Oxbow Cavy CuisineGuinea Pig Pellets. Both pellet mixtures have a good balance of ingredients incluidng the very important vitamin C content and also good fibre content. Since feeding these pellets my pets have been much more active, have brighter eyes and coats, and they hardly ever tend to get ill! I haven't had a poorly guinea pig for a very long time unless it was an illness that has no relation to have been caused by diet, such as cancer.
Vegatables / Greens
Although good quality pellets contain vitamin c, its not an adequate amount for a guinea pig, their diet needs to be supplemented with vitamin c vegetables.
Vegatbles, greens or forage should be fed daily and should be measured out to create 5-10% of your pets daily diet. You should ensure that your pets are gaining enough Vitamin C within each meal by using things with high Vitamin C content such as Red Bell Peppers. Avoid using fruits and naturaly sugary items too often, such as carrots.
Please see the safe food list below to guide you on creating the perfect salad bowl for your pets.
Forage
When researched and picked carefully, you can not only save money but provide a more natural diet by feeding forage every day or every few days instead of shop bought veg. You could also give growing your own foods a try!
Forage is really fun to find and you will learn that your guinea pigs adore it. Ensure that no pestisides have been used anywhere near the area that you are picking from and always choose forage that's fresh and clean from any dog or cat urine or feces. It will always need to be rinsed thoroughly before feeding and you can also dry some out ready for when forage is no longer readily available during the colder months. I recommend the book 'Foraging for Rabbits' by Twigs Way, this book gives you a clear and in depth look at how to forage, how to store and dry and what is safe and unsafe to pick. Although it is advertised for Rabbits, everything seen in the book is exactly the same with guinea pigs.
For some examples of safe and unsafe forages, please see the tables below.
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