[Gpdd] Health: fattening foods?

[Lydia G Boland]

Unprocessed Oat Groats are a great treat for bunnies and piggies and  
they are very fattening.   So not great as an everyday treat but  
occasional.  But they still have their hulls so they have fiber.  I  
used them to fatten up Satchel when he had lost some weight and  
whenever a bun or pig are sick I give them these.  I had to stop  
because one of my bunnies is overweight but I have them on hand for  
whenever I need them.  I can't give them to one and not the other so  
for now no one gets them.  You can order them through BunnyLuv, the  
only place I know who sells them, and all of the profits go back in to  
the non-profit rescue which also has guinea pigs and hamsters.  You can  
also try banana and other fruits.  Just be careful because too much  
sugar from fruits can cause stomach upset so keep an eye on the poops  
and if they become too soft cut back.  They also sell BunnyLuv Oat  
Blend hay which rabbits and guinea pigs seem to love.  I sent some to  
our secret pals and the one I heard from said their pigs loved it and  
ate it up right away and they wanted to order more.  American Pet Diner  
sells a hay that has a higher fat content than the others on their site  
which is the second cut timothy/Timothy Gold Hay and I know the guys  
like that.  It is 4.5 % fat compared to the others which are 1-2.4%.   
If your guinea pig hasn't had any bladder sludge/ stone problems you  
can try giving him some alfalfa pellets to tempt his appetite.  I  
always keep some on hand when one of them gets sick and doesn't want to  
eat.  Alfalfa is more fattening and higher in calcium.

groats- http://bunnyluv.com/unoatgr.html

hay- http://bunnyluv.com/timgrashay.html

Second cut timothy analysis-  
http://www.americanpetdiner.com/analysis.html
Second cut timothy to order-  
http://www.americanpetdiner.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc? 
Screen=PROD&Product_Code=Hay_2nd&Category_Code=Guinea_Pigs

Good luck with Niles!

Lydia

On Jun 2, 2005, at 11:21 AM, Ginger Fitzsimmons wrote:
>
> Niles is clearly getting better, eating everything but hay now. His  
> vet says he is too skinny and would like to see him put on weight.  
> (Why him and not me? <g>) Anybody have suggestions for fattening foods  
> for pigs?
>
> -ginger
> part of the Niles Cougar slave contingent