Your Guinea pig is never happier than when he/she are eating! They can eat a wide variety of food. They need constant access to hay, a good quality dried food and small amounts of fresh food (preferably twice a day.) This is because they cannot produce their own vitamin C so need to be topped up regularly in order to keep them healthy. A diet consisting purely of dried food though is not healthy for your Guinea pig as these dried foods are full of protein and excessive feeding can cause kidney stones. Please ensure you buy good quality hay, damp smelly stuff just isn't good enough. There are lots of different types available too such as Timothy Hay, Orchard Hay, Meadow Hay, Alfalfa... it's all good stuff.

Guinea pigs also enjoy a variety of wild plants including of course dandelions and grass. However, if you feed them these please make sure the grass has not been treated and that the dandelions are not near the road otherwise they can be poisoned by exhaust toxins.

Any fruit or vegetable should be clean and fresh, anything left over should be removed before it goes stale.

Grass clippings from the mower should not be fed as they will make Guinea pigs poorly.

Water

They Will need clean fresh water daily and easy access to it of course.

Please make sure the water bottle is cleaned out well too, especially the spout. Bits from the Guinea pig’s mouth can go back up through the spout and into the bottle so please change the water daily and use a mini bottle brush for the spout. A soak in Milton once a week is recommended. (The metal spout that is, NOT THE PIGS !!!)

 

VEGETABLES AND SALAD

Artichoke

Asparagus

Bell/sweet peppers – red,green,yellow (not hot or chilli)

Broccoli

Brussels Sprouts and stalk leaves

Butternut squash

Celery leaves and stalks

Carrots including tops / leaves (not too many, Vit A content linked to health problems)

Cauliflower stalks

Cabbage

Corn on the cob (strings, leaves & stalks are edible too)

Celery Root / Celeriac

Cucumber

Chicory

Courgette

Garden cress

Green beans

Kale

Lettuce - Romaine, Cos, Lollo Rosso, Lambs Tongue (not iceberg)

Mange tout

Peas in pod

Parsnip

Pumpkin

Pak choi

Rocket

Radishes (if mild)

Spring greens

Spinach (feed in moderation)

Sweet potato

Swede

Water Cress

 

FRESH HERBS

Basil

Coriander

Dill

Mint

Parsley (curly and flatleaf)

Thyme

FROM THE GARDEN AND HEDGEROW (please make doubly sure you pick the right ones. Wild Flowers of Britain by Roger Phillips is extremely useful for identifying safe wild plants)

Agrimony

Apple tree leaves/branches

Blackberry leaves

Chickweed

Clover

Cow Parsley

Coltsfoot

Dandelion (flower and leaves)

Grass

Groundsel

Hazel branches

Mallow

Pear tree leaves/branches

Plantain

Raspberry leaves

Stinging Nettle

Wild Strawberry (berries and leaves)

Yarrow

FRUIT

Apple (don't over do these, can cause mouth sores)

Apricot

Bananas

Blackberries

Bilberries

Blueberries

Cherries

Cranberries

Cantaloupe Melon

Currants - yellow, red or black (leaves also edible)

Grapes (in moderation, high in sugar)

Grapefruit (caution - sores around lips can develop)

Guava

Gooseberries

Honeydew Melon

Kiwi Fruit

Mango

Nectarine

Orange (caution - sores around lips can develop)

Papaya

Fresh Pineapple

Pear

Plum

Peach

Raspberries

Strawberries

Tomato (sores around mouth can develop; leaves poisonous)

Tangerine / Mandarin (caution - sores around lips can develop)

Watermelon (can cause diarrhoea - high water content)

Never feed potatoes, iceberg lettuce or rhubarb.

Think "safety" too when gathering wild plants. If in doubt, please leave it out. They don't want poorly tummies.

Remember that All Guinea’s love to chew. Small branches from apple/pear trees or hazel will be most welcomed. Make them about 6" long, cut off any spiky bits and ensure they don't have any fungus on them. Leaves will be enjoyed too. They will neatly eat all the bark off and it saves them gnawing at your hutch interior.

Strive for a balanced diet of fresh foods with as much variety as you can possibly achieve. Too much of one particular food is never a good thing (boring too) and just like people they do have our preferences!