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Guinea pigs, like humans, really enjoy eating and love to eat things that taste amazing as well as make them feel good. Finding the best guinea pig food can be a task, luckily Small Pets Guru is here to help you with our top picks, recommendations and tips on how to choose the best guinea pig foods.
Things To Consider When Choosing The Best Guinea Pig Food
Your guinea pig is relying on you to provide the necessary Vitamin C in their daily meals; this is because they cannot make it alone. The best way to ensure that your piggy gets a sufficient amount of Vitamin C every day is to provide them with fresh fruits and vegetables such as:
- Apples
- Broccoli
- Carrots
- Celery
- Spinach
- Parsley
- Oranges
- Kale
- Tomatoes
Guinea pigs are quite prone to diseases caused by Vitamin C deficiencies, a common example is scurvy, which can cause weakness, blood clotting issues, swollen joints, bones and more.
Things You Should Never Feed Your Guinea Pig
There are some things that you should never give to your guinea pig. Piggies tend to gobble up anything that you put in their food bowl; however, some owners are not aware of plants that are potentially harmful to their small pet. As always, we recommend that you do your research but here are a few things that you should never feed to your guinea pig:
- Cereals
- Grains
- Nuts
- Corn
- Peas
- Onions
- Mushrooms
- Avocado
- Belladonna
- Garden Shrubs
- Tulip
- Fig
- Daffodils
Small Pets Guru always recommends that all small pet owners do their own independent research in order to be aware of anything that could be potentially harmful or even deadly to your small pet.
Factors To Consider
Ingredients
You should ensure that the food you select for your pet contains high-quality ingredients that will provide your guinea pig with the nutrients he needs to grow and lead a healthy life.
Quantity
Most guinea pig foods come in a range of different sizes and quantities. If you prefer to be able to move the bag around,, maybe you might consider a lighter and smaller quantity. If you would like to avoid the hassle of buying food quite often, you could purchase a larger quantity so you can purchase your pet’s food less frequently since it will last longer. We recommend that you start off with a smaller quantity if it’s your guinea pig’s first time trying the food and if they like it you can invest in larger bag sizes.
Artificial Chemicals and Preservatives
The foods we have chosen are free from things that do not have your guinea pig’s best interest at heart. Too much of these artificial flavours, colourings, preservatives and unnecessary chemicals can have a detrimental effect on their health.
Types of Guinea Pig Foods
Timothy Hay
Timothy Hay is an important part of a guinea pig’s life. The guinea pig owners reading this probably already knew that because of the number of random bits of timothy hay lying around your house; sometimes it feels as if timothy hay has taken over your life and your home. There are different types of timothy hay, the feeding timothy hay and the timothy hay used for bedding. Hay helps to keep their digestive systems in check and it is necessary to maintain a healthy teeth size. Without this, your sweet guinea pig would instead look like a scary, toothy little furry monster.
Pellets
Pellets are a good way to ensure that your pet is eating everything he should in order to have a balanced diet. High-quality pellets are made out of a range of ingredients, vitamins and minerals and prevent your pet from picking and choosing their favourite parts of the food.
Oxbow essentials cavy cuisine is predominantly a Timothy-based high fibre diet which features stabilised vitamin c and an excellent level of calcium to phosphorus ratio that guarantees absolute nourishment for adult guinea pigs. Its overall content of protein and energy levels are lower than that of pellets as adults do not require as high a level of nutrition as young guinea pigs. This feed is precisely formulated to meet the exact nutritional requirements of the adult guinea pig. They are conveniently packaged in various sizes; 5lb, 10lb and 25lb.
Pros | Cons |
Lower in protein, calories and calcium | May not be suitable for very picky guinea pigs |
High in fibre for daily digestive health | |
Fortified with vitamins & minerals for optimum health |
This fantastic recipe is made with a naturally fibre-rich blend of sun-cured timothy hay and other wholesome ingredients such as alfalfa meal, wheat and oats. It is cautiously made with lower contents of calcium and protein which can possibly cause urinary tract issues and obesity in adult guinea pigs. Timothy complete guinea pig food is nutritionally fortified with about ten vitamins and minerals, including vitamin c that support and protect your pet’s digestive system.
This complete and well balanced formula is conveniently pelleted for optimal feeding compliance of your small furry friends and to ensure their overall health and longevity.
Pros | Cons |
Supports dental health through natural chewing activity | Some packages have been observed to come with puffy & crumbled pellets |
Naturally preserved for optimum freshness with no artificial colours or flavours | |
A complete diet that helps ensure proper nutrition for a healthy immune system & growth | |
High fibre from Timothy hay helps in excellent digestion |
Western Timothy features 100% timothy hay, absolutely free of preservatives and additives, enriched with high fibre and fortified with low calcium and protein which maintains the smooth functioning of gastrointestinal tracts of small animals.
Timothy hay has some characteristic multifunctional purposes which include;
- Maintenance of a healthy urinary system
- Prevention of obesity
- Helps mental stimulation
- Promotion of natural foraging behaviour
- Improvement of overall health
Pros | Cons |
Additional incentive of sweet-smelling grass that will stimulate the appetite of your guinea pig | Some of the recipe have been observed to feel a bit crunchy |
High fibre, low protein & low calcium | |
Widely recommended by veterinarians |
This awesome, all-natural recipe features 7 nutrient-rich ancient grains fortified with fruits, vegetables, vitamins and minerals to boost your herbivore’s overall health and well-being.
This delicious choice of guinea pig food contains fibre-rich timothy hay which ensures healthy digestive activities and helps spark up instinctive foraging behaviour.
Vitasmart guinea pig food from Vitakraft is ideal for guinea pigs in all stages of life, provides nutritionally well balanced diet and contains oats, omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids to promote healthy brain, heart and visual functions and ultimately, to deliver a taste your pet will love.
Pros | Cons |
100% free from artificial colours, flavours and preservatives | |
Natural ingredients promote instinctive foraging | |
Contains the essential vitamin C guinea pigs need to thrive | |
Features 7 ancient grains fortified with essential nutrients |
Nugget foods are precisely designed to prevent selective feeding by effectively minimizing the tendency for your guinea pig to only eat the parts of a traditional muesli mix it delights in, ensuring it receives the full benefits of its feed; wherefore, perfectly blended into Burgess excel tasty nuggets for guinea pigs are both digestible and indigestible fibre in their classic ratio to ensure the essential source of nutrients to keep your small pet healthy and to boost a hitch-free digestive system and proper dental health respectively.
This formula also contains vitamin c and other vital nutrients in addition to blackcurrant and oregano for extra taste, joyful mood and overall health benefits.
A brilliant and lovely pick for Guineas!
Pros | Cons |
Natural antioxidants to support the immune system | |
Correct high-fibre ratio encourages natural behaviour; prevents boredom and helps bonding | |
Indigestible fibre helps keep teeth worn down at right size and shape | |
Delicious blackcurrant for extra flavour & oregano to alleviate stress & aid digestion | |
Fortified with vitamin c & minerals for healthy eyes, skin and coat |
Guinea Pigs are fantastic pets that deserve the best guinea pig foods that their owner can get. Small Pets Guru shows the commitment that we have to small pets by sharing articles like these to help our readers choose amongst the best guinea pig foods for their pet guinea pig and with this guide, your guinea pig will be guaranteed the meals of their dreams.
