Can a guinea pig eat plantains?

Answer 1

Guinea Pig Feeding

Ways to maximize your piggy life:

Feed at least 1 cup of fresh fruits and veggies per pig per day

Feed a new variety of fruits and veggies every day.

Fresh leafy greens should make up 2 servings or around ½ a cup.

Fresh non-leafy green vegetables should make up 1 serving or around 1/3 a cup.

Fresh fruit should make up 1/2 serving or roughly ¼ of a cup (watch the amounts as they are high in sugars and might give your piggy diarrhea).

Make sure they have unlimited hay. Hay helps assist with digestion and is also the best way to wear down their teeth.

Make sure you feed them guinea pig plain pellets with Vitamin C. Do not get them guinea pig food with seeds, nuts or anything else in it as they will get stuck in your guinea pigs teeth and/or make them fat!

Make sure the foods you are feeding are LOW in calcium as calcium can cause bladder sludge/ stones.

Make sure the foods you are feeding are LOW in oxalic acid as oxalic acid can bind with calcium and form oxalate stones.

Just to be on the safe side its best to give your guinea pig a ½ dose of Vitamin C supplements in case they will not eat good quality vegetables/fruits or if they are ill or if your pellets were stored incorrectly and the vitamin C went bad. You can crush a plain Vitamin C tablet with very little to no sugar added and sprinkle it over their fresh fruits and veggies(I find they don't like the taste!). Give approximately 10-25mg per day more if they are sick or pregnant. You also may use a liquid Vitamin C that you can dose using a syringe. I prefer a special guinea pig supplement I get at the pet store. When I give them fresh water every day I put ½ the amount it says on the bottle in their water. New research shows that too much Vitamin C can cause problems as well so make sure you are giving them an appropriate amount!

Try to give your guinea pig 2 meals a day. They like to forage for food and one big meal might hurt just like it would to you! So do two meals, morning and evening.

If you are giving them fresh food in their cage make sure you take any leftovers out after an hour or else they will go bad and make your guinea pig sick!

Make sure you wash all your fruits and veggies thoroughly. You don't want any pesticides or residue to get to your piggy.

Buy fresh fruits and veggies twice a week. Don't feed them any rotten or food that has gone bad! Buy items that are in season as this will cost less and then you are sure it is the most fresh. Local is always best but not always possible. Do try local and organic!

Pet store guinea pig treats are just that, treats. It's best to stay away from them all together. Especially yogurt drops and anything with sugar or artificial ingredients. I find that most piggies won't eat them anyways especially when they have such a wonderful salad to eat!

Do NOT feed any meat, dairy or human food! Anything like cheerios has been too processed for them and the added calcium will cause problems. Stick to fresh fruits and veggies.

Make sure your guinea pigs have 2-3 different hay racks per piggy spread out around their enclosure.

If you are going to take your piggy outside make sure they are safe from predators and they can't run away. If you or your neighbors use pesticides, weed killers, fertilizers, anything unnatural, or your area is prone to air pollution its best to keep them off the grass or inside.

Do not use wood bedding in their cage! Especially pine, cedar or any other aromatic (smelly) wood. The scent and natural oils will cause your guinea pig respiratory problems. If you have to use wood bedding, use aspen. Paper bedding is good as well. Don't use only newspaper as it's not absorbent enough. I find the recycled paper bedding to be too expensive and wasteful so I use old towels, sheets and other junk cotton clothes to line their cage. I change these daily and wash a load weekly.

Again do not feed Cherry/Peach/Plum and other pitted fruit tree leaves and limbs/twigs they contain Cyanide (poison).

Each guinea pig needs 7.5 square feet of space. That means the cage needs to be a minimum of 2.5x3 feet. They don't like heights so it's best to only have 2 levels. They cannot have cages with wire floors they damage the piggy's feet and can cause serious health problems. A C&C cage is best. All supplies you should be able to find locally.

Guinea pigs are social creatures so they do best with a buddy. Don't put a breeding pair together (male and female), pregnancy and birth is VERY hard on the female. 20% of the time mother and/or babies die. Plus it doesn't help the current situation with homeless abandoned guinea pigs. Try to get two when you rescue them from a shelter. (Don't buy from pet shops as they breed and keep unhealthy animals!) It can take some time for 2 guinea pigs to get use to each other if they have never been together before.

FOODS TO GIVE:

Anise: 2-3 times a week

Apple: weekly, 2 slices include peel; remove core and pips (seeds are poisonous). Royal gala variety is a favorite. Many fruits are full of natural sugar and have fruit acid. To avoid your guinea pig getting a sore mouth, cut all fruit into small pieces and just give as an occasional treat because of the high sugar content.

Apricot: weekly

Artichoke: 2-3 times a week

Arugula: 2-3 times a week

Asparagus: weekly

Banana: less than monthly, can cause constipation

Basil` (Fresh): weekly, serving size is roughly a ping pong(golf ball size) one ounce or 25 grams

Beans (snap and green): 2-3 times a week

Beets: weekly

Beet greens (leaves): monthly

Bell Peppers (red, yellow, green or orange): 2-3 times a week, one slice of a whole pepper, remove seeds. Very high in vitamin C, especially the red. Pease note: Bell peppers are not to be confused with red hot chili peppers which are a totally different food and should never be given to guinea pigs.

Blackberries: 2-3 times a week, serving size is roughly a ping pong (golf ball size) one ounce or 25 grams

Blueberries: 2-3 times a week, serving size is roughly a ping pong (golf ball size) one ounce or 25 grams

Broccoli: weekly, half a floret, including the stalk

Broccoli Leaves: 2-3 times a week

Brussels sprouts: weekly

Cabbage (red, green, Savoy and pak-choi): weekly

Carrot: 2-3 times a week, one baby carrot or a small slice of a large carrot.

Cauliflower: weekly

Celery (and leaves): 2-3 times a week, One 1/4 of a stick. Very stringy so needs to be chopped up into small pieces to avoid piggy choking.

Cherries: 2-3 times a week (remove pits), serving size is roughly a ping pong (golf ball size) one ounce or 25 grams

Crab apples: 2-3 times a week

Cranberries (raw): 2-3 times a week, serving size is roughly a ping pong (golf ball size) one ounce or 25 grams

Cilantro: every day, serving size is roughly a ping pong (golf ball size) one ounce or 25 grams

Chicory greens: 2-3 times a week

Collard Greens: weekly

Corn on the cob: weekly

Corn husks (corn on the cobs outer leaves): twice weekly, roughly half a leaf of a husk.

Cucumber: 2-3 times a week, one slice, include the outer layer which is their favorite part. Very little nutritional value, but has high water content and is loved by most guinea pigs. Cucumber is really appreciated by guinea pigs in hot weather; it acts as a liquid and is nice and cool.

Dandelion Leaves: twice weekly, two or three, average size. A seasonal food during spring and summer.

Dill: weekly, serving size is roughly a ping pong (golf ball size) one ounce or 25 grams

Endive (Belgian and curly): every day

Figs(raw and all natural dried): weekly, one medium sized one

Garden cress: 2-3 times a week

Gooseberries: every day

Grapes, Seedless: 2-3 times a week, One or two, must be seedless, serving size is roughly a ping pong (golf ball size) one ounce or 25 grams

Grass, Fresh: three to four times weekly, Small handful,. A seasonal food, spring, summer and autumn. Sometimes my piggies go outside to eat fresh grass for themselves on warm sunny days. Never put guinea pigs out on wet grass, always make sure the grass is dry and never use grass that's been cut by a lawn mower. When spring has arrived and your grass has started to grow, just give your piggies a small amount of grass to begin with so their tummies adjust. More about safety tips below.

Kale: weekly, Two to three small leaves.

Kiwi fruit: weekly

Lettuce, Butter head (Boston and Bibb): every day

Lettuce, Green or Red Leaf: every day

Lettuce, Romaine: every other day, one large leaf.

Mango: weekly

Melon (cantaloupe and honey dew): weekly

Mustard Greens: weekly

Oranges, tangerines): weekly. One or two segments, remove rind and pips, you can give a little of any orange citrus fruit.

Orange peel: 2-3 times a week, serving size is roughly a ping pong (golf ball size) one ounce or 25 grams

Papaya: weekly

Parsley (curly or flat): weekly, A few sprigs. Very high in calcium so should be limited if your guinea pig is prone to developing bladder stones, serving size is roughly a ping pong (golf ball size) one ounce or 25 grams

Peaches: weekly

Pear (bartlet and Asian): weekly, one small slice, include peel, remove core and pips.

Peas/pea pods: 2-3 times a week

Pineapple: weekly

Plum: weekly

Pumpkin (raw): weekly (remove seeds!)

Radicchio: every day

Radishes (mild): monthly

Raisins (seedless) Natural no added sugars or preservatives: monthly, less than 10 raisins

Raspberries: daily, serving size is roughly a ping pong (golf ball size) one ounce or 25 grams

Spinach: weekly

Squash (summer and winter all varieties): 2-3 times a week

Strawberries: every day, 5 small sized

Sweet potato: monthly

Sweet potato leaves: every day

Swiss chard (silver beet): every day

Thyme (fresh): weekly, serving size is roughly a ping pong (golf ball size) one ounce or 25 grams

Tomato's: 2-3 times a week, One baby tomato or small plum tomato,. Remember to remove the poisonous tomato top (green part). If using a slice from a larger tomato, remove seeds.

Turnips (and greens): weekly

Yams: 2-3 times a week

Watercress: weekly

Watermelon (seeds and rind): weekly

Zucchini: every day

Plants and Foods to Avoid:

- Aconite

- All nuts or seeds (guinea pigs can choke on the shell fragments and they will make your piggy fat!)

- Amaryllis

- American Holly

- American Nightshade

- Anemone

- Angel's Trumpet

- Antirrhinums

- Avocado (too fatty)

- Azalea

- Baby's Breath

- Bachelor Buttons

- Bird of Paradise

- Birdseye Primrose

- Birds foot Trefoil

- Bittersweet

- Bleeding Heart

- Blue Cardinal (Lobelia)

- Bluebells

- Boxwood

- Bryony

- Buck Thorn

- Bulbs-(any plants grown from bulbs)

- Burning Bush

- Buttercup (Ranunculus)

- Caladium

- Calla Lily

- Canned/frozen/fried/pickled foods

- Carnations

- Century Plant

- Cherry leaves (contain cyanide and are most potent when they are wilting)

and leaves of other stone fruits (fruits with pits)

- Chrysanthemum

- Clematis

- Coconut (too fatty and sugary)

- Coffee Bean plant

- Columbine

- Cookies, Potato Chips, or any kind of junk food (Um, Duh!)

- Corn cockle (type of grassy plant with a rather large lacey grain head)

- Crinum

- Crocus

- Crotons

- Crown of Thorns

- Crown Vetch

- Cyclamen

- Daffodil

- Dahlias

- Daily

- Dairy Products

- Daisy

- Datura

- Delphinium

- Dianthus

- Dog Mercury

- Dumb cane

- Dracaena

- Easter Lily

- English Ivy

- Evergreen trees

- Fig

- Figwort

- Fools parsley

- Foxglove (Digitalis)

- Gladiolus

- Golden Chain tree

- Hellebore

- Hemlock

- Holly

- Hyacinth

- Hydrangea

- Iceberg lettuce (high in nitrates, no nutritional value)

- Impatiens

- Iris

- Ivy

- Jerusalem cherry

- Juniper

- Kingcup

- Laburnum

- Larkspur

- Leyland cypress

- Lilacs

- Lily (All species)

- Lily of the Valley

- Lobelia

- Lords and Ladies

- Lupine

- Lupines

- Marsh marigold

- Meadow saffron

- Mistletoe

- Monkshood

- Morning glory

- Mountain Laurel

- Narcissus

- Nicotina

- Nightshade (deadly and woody)

- Oleander

- Orchid

- Peanut Butter

- Peppers (other then Bell)

- Philodendron

- Pigweed (amaranth - certain North American varieties may be toxic)

- Poinsettia

- Poppies

- Potatoes (poisonous if green or sprouted)

- Primrose

- Privet

- Ragwort

- Raw beans (poisonous)

- Red maple leaves

- Rhododendron

- Rhubarb (extremely poisonous)

- Salvia

- Spicy things (paprika, hot peppers, etc)

- Spurges

- St Johns wort

- Taro

- Tulip

- Tomatillo leaves & stalks

- Tomato leaves & stalks

- Verbena

- Vetch (seeds and moldy parts) can cause photosensitization.

- Walnut or Black Walnut

- Wisteria

- Wolfs bane

- Yew

I hope that helps. Have fun with your Piggy.

Answer 2

Be VERY careful feeding banana. Only tiny amounts every once in a while. All fruits should only be used as treats, but especially bananas! Too much banana can kill your pig!Bananas have HIGH amounts of sugar which can cause alot and extreme gas which is deadly.

Good luck!!!!!!!!!!Be careful

Answer 3

Yes, it is okay for them to eat. Do not feed much at a time. Some do not like it. They prefer the green leafy vegetables.

Answer 4

Yes, just not the skin.

Answer 5

Yes.