If you have a new pet, and you do not know how to feed it properly, some secrets of guinea pig nutrition will allow you to enjoy communicating with these amazing and cute animals longer.
Amazing cute animals - guinea pigs! They bring a lot of joy and are not whimsical at all.
Be ready
Do not forget about pigs for a long time, they do not like loneliness at all, since in nature these animals live in flocks. If your guinea pig lives in a cage, then you will see more than once how, bored, it will stand on its hind legs and begin to whistle you. Do not forget to get her out of the cage so that she can run around and chat with family members. If your pet moves freely around the apartment, then do not forget to provide him with a separate burrow so that he can retire and hide from danger.
In a standard cage 40 * 40, instead of bedding, you can use hay, shavings or straw, as well as wood litter for cat litter. Granular wood filler perfectly absorbs liquid and eliminates odor, and guinea pigs also gnaw on it. It is undesirable to use small sawdust, as they can get into the eyes and respiratory tract of the pig.
Feeding features
Feeding guinea pigs is pretty easy, of course they won't do with food from your table, but their diet is pretty simple. It is better to feed your pet 2-3 times a day at a certain time, so as not to lead to the development of diseases of the digestive system. Experts consider the best food for guinea pigs: wheat bran, oats, carrots and various herbs in summer and hay in winter. For an adult you need: half a kilo of grass, or 60 g of hay; about 100g of vegetables and fruits plus grain or bran - 50 grams and a little granulate - 10-20 gr.
Food must certainly contain about 5 mg of vitamin C, since in the process of evolution, guinea pigs have lost the ability to synthesize it, and it is not always contained in food. The diet must contain seeds, cereals, potatoes, vegetables, grass, dandelions, lettuce, turnips, beets, cabbage, tomatoes, apples and hay. It is best to give ready-made feeds, which are available in the assortment in pet stores, but if you still give your own prepared feed, then by all means adhere to the following proportions: coarse fibers - 15%, raw proteins - 20% and animal proteins - 4%. and enough hay and water. Pregnant females need to increase the glucose content in the feed.
Contraindicated
Do not feed guinea pigs: red cabbage, cheese, sausage, meat, eggs, sweets, unripe or overripe fruits and berries, and damp, moldy, rotten or contaminated food, and leftovers from your table.
Do not change your diet drastically in order to avoid digestive upset.
