A BALANCED Diet for a Guinea Pig
Guide for guinea pig owners: They are exclusively plant-eaters (herbivores), feeding only on grass, hay, vegetables and fruit
A balanced diet for guinea pigs will be high in fibre and vitamins (particularly vitamin C). The vegetables, fruits and herbs listed below merely serve as examples. There is plenty of useful literature available that will help you to plan your guinea pigs’ feeding (quantities, content, frequency, etc.).
When feeding guinea pigs, you should remember three important factors:
- Guinea pigs always need high-quality hay so that their digestive system can work properly.
- Guinea pigs can’t generate their own vitamin C, so it must be present in their diet.
- Guinea pigs’ teeth never stop growing, so they need fibrous food that will wear down their teeth.
An ideal diet will contain:
- Hay (must be available at all times)
- Fresh grass (depending on the season)
- Vegetables (a variety)
- Fruit
- Herbs/plants
Vegetables:
- Romaine lettuce
- Rucola (rocket) leaves
- Sweet (bell) peppers
- Broccoli
- Carrots
- Cucumbers
- Green cabbage
- Spinach
- Turnip greens
- Iceberg lettuce
- Courgettes (zucchini)
Most of the vegetables listed above contain vitamin C
Clean the vegetables well and don’t serve them too cold
Fruit:
- Strawberries
- Apples
- Pears
- Kiwi fruit
- Peaches
- Papayas
- Rose hips
Wash the fruit thoroughly, and only offer it in small quantities
Herbs and plants:
- Dill
- Grass
- Dandelion
- Watercress
- Comfrey
- Parsley
- Coneflower
Twigs
- From apple trees
- From maple trees
- From birch trees
- From blackcurrant bushes
- From hazelnut shrubs
- From pear trees
- From willow trees
Take great care when choosing twigs – some can be given in large quantities, but others should be carefully rationed and given only occasional