If you have a guinea pig at home, figuring out what you can feed him or her is necessary. And it doesn’t hurt to look at new food choices. Such as fresh veggies, vegetables, and other human-foods. Do you think can guinea pigs can eat pickles?
Pickles are sour and salt cucumbers. Some pickles are fermented while others aren’t. This increases their sodium content which isn’t good for humans. And especially guinea pigs because their bodies can only process fresh veggies and grass.
Feeding your guinea pig pickles can lead to digestive problems. So to give you a quick answer to your questions – can guinea pigs eat pickles? The answer is no. And here’s why.
Guinea Pigs Should Not Eat Pickles
When 80% of a guinea pig’s diet consists of fresh hay. And the remaining 20% consists of fresh veggies like spinach, carrots, tomato, herbs, cucumber, broccoli, etc.
Pickles are not a part of that diet. It will cause bloating, sodium excess, and vomiting in guinea pigs. The well-being of your guinea pig is directly dependent upon his or her diet. So what you feed your pet pig on a daily basis is super important to take note of.
Vegetables that are fermented can become too acidic. Hence, the salty and sour taste of pickles. In fact, chances are that your guinea pig may not even like the taste of pickles.
And it would be best if you never try feeding him or her even a tiny piece of pickle.
Quick Pickles – Everyday Food with Sarah Carey
Drinking Pickle Juice
If guinea pigs cannot eat pickles, they should not drink pickle juice either. Pickle juice is not the vegetable itself. It’s the liquid that you preserve the vegetable in. For a lot of people, drinking pickle juice may seem disgusting. But for humans, there are certain benefits of drinking pickle juice.
It’s good for muscle recovery, hydration, weight loss, blood pressure problems, and much more.
For guinea pigs, it should be avoided. Guinea pigs have a sensitive gastrointestinal system. Not only that, it can cause burning, bloating, and acidity in the GI tract in guinea pigs.
So before you even consider giving your guinea pig pickle juice, don’t do it.
High Salt in Pickles
Pickles contain plenty of salt. Because fermentation is a method of preserving vegetables. Pickles are essentially cucumbers that are fermented using salt.
Too much salt in the diet can cause high blood pressure, bloating, acid reflux, tummy ache, etc.
Not only salt, but pickle recipes also consist of vinegar, seasoning, mustard seeds. And in some places, like in Asia, oil is also used to make pickles.
Besides cucumbers, people also make pickled carrots, beetroot, cabbage, and cauliflower. You can make pickles at home using warm salted vinegar and water. You can preserve these veggies in a refrigerator overnight or keep them for days to get a more concentrated flavor.
The high salt content in pickles is a bad nutritional factor. And that is a major reason why your guinea pig should not eat pickles.
What’s the Alternative? What is The Best Guinea Pigs Food?
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Why not feed your guinea pig the vegetables that people add in pickle recipes. Such as carrots, cucumbers, and cabbage. You do not have to give your pet pig pickled vegetables. You can simply feed him or her the fresh, un-fermented vegetable.
Cucumbers, cabbage, and carrots.
These are the most common veggies used in pickles. And they are nutritious and healthy for guinea pigs in their natural, un-fermented form.
#1. Cucumber
Guinea pigs can eat the skin and fleshy portion of a cucumber. With green cucumbers, you can also feed your pet pig the cucumber skin. But make sure that it’s cleaned and rinsed thoroughly well.
Cucumbers offer plenty of hydration to guinea pigs. Since they contain high fiber, if your guinea pig refuses to drink water, cucumbers can keep them hydrated. Feeding a guinea pig cucumbers 2-3 times per week is ideal.
#2. Cabbage
Cabbage contains vitamin C which is good for guinea pigs. But never excessively feed your pet pig cabbage. It may cause stomach problems such as bloating, diarrhea, gas, and constipation.
Even though there are plenty of varieties of cabbage. Green, red, Chinese. Cabbage is good for guinea pig’s health. And red cabbage is the safest of them all. It contains calcium and vitamin C.
The one cabbage variant you should stay away from is savoy cabbage. It can cause urinary tract stones in guinea pigs. And it contains even less calcium and vitamin C.
You want to feed your pet pig a vegetable that is high in good nutrients. And red cabbage has sufficient calcium and vitamin C to keep your pet healthy and active. So feeding cabbage 2-3 times per week is optimal.
#3. Carrots
Last but not the least, carrots are an absolute favorite of guinea pigs. They, too, contain vitamin C which is good for guinea pigs. For improving eyesight, digestion, and keeping the immune system strong.
Even though carrots do not harm guinea pigs, they do contain sugar. So feeding a small amount a few times per week is ideal. Do not cook or boil the carrots before serving. Guinea pigs love the crunchy texture of carrots. You only have to go online and watch hundreds of videos of cute guinea pigs eating carrots!
Kaytee Timothy Complete Guinea Pig Food| Amazon’s Choice | More than 4900 reviews
Final Thoughts – Can Guinea Pigs Eat Pickles
Pickles damage your pig’s digestive tract. Causing inflammation, burning sensations, and in worst cases, even infection. They are salty and sour to taste. And they consist of too much which is bad for guinea pig’s health.
I hope this article has given you all the information you need about not feeding guinea pigs pickles. And what you can feed your pet pig instead.
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