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Good-quality food and fresh, clean water must be readily
available at all times. Commercially available pelleted chows
provide all of the essential nutrients, as long as the pellets are
fresh and wholesome when offered. Some guinea pig owners are tempted
to feed rabbit pellets, assuming that they are roughly equivalent to
guinea pig pellets, but this is not so. Unlike most mammals
(including rabbits), guinea pigs require a high level of the vitamin,
folic acid. Unlike rabbits, guinea pigs cannot manufacture their own
vitamin C and must, therefore, receive it from an outside source.
Interestingly, people and our primate relatives share this dependence
on vitamin C from the food we consume. Pellets milled for guinea
pigs take these special requirements into consideration and are
appropriately fortified with these 2 nutrients, among many other
essential ones.
Guinea pig chows generally contain 18-20% protein, 16% fiber and
about 1 gram of vitamin C per kilogram of ration. Even when the
fresh pellets are properly stored in a cool, dry place, about half of
the vitamin C content is degraded and lost within 6 weeks of manu-
facture. Therefore, the diet should be supplemented with vitamin C
as follows: 200 milligrams of ascorbic acid (vitamin C) should be
added to about 1 qt of drinking water, made up fresh every 12 hours,
or a single guinea pig should be offered one handful of kale or
cabbage or one-quarter of an orange daily.
Researchers are not in agreement on the advisability of adding
other items to the balanced ration (pelleted chows). We recommend
that fresh greens, hay and small amounts of fruit be offered daily
with several precautions: These items should not exceed 10-15% of
the daily diet. Furthermore, the fresh items must be thoroughly
washed to avoid pesticide residues and possible bacterial
contamination.
All foods should be provided in heavy ceramic crocks that resist
tipping over. The sides of the crocks should be high enough to keep
bedding and fecal pellets out of the food, or the crocks should be
elevated slightly above the bedding.
Water is most easily made available and kept free from
contamination by providing it in one or more water bottles equipped
with "sipper" tubes. Guinea pigs tend to contaminate and clog their
water bottles more than other pet rodents by chewing on the end of
the sipper tube and "backwashing" food particles into it. For this
reason, all food and water containers should be cleaned and
disinfected daily.
Guinea pigs tend to be creatures of habit and do not tolerate
changes in the presentation, taste, odor, texture or form of their
food and water. Pet owners should avoid making radical changes in the
food and water containers. Any changes in the food itself should be
made gradually. Failure to do so usually results in the guinea
pigs' refusing food and water, which can lead to disease.
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