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Can Guinea Pigs Eat Cauliflower?

Guinea pigs are intelligent and playful pets. They are entertaining and adorable little buddies, always ready for games and fun! Being friendly and talkative, they are popular as pets in many households. Guinea pigs require your love, care and patience, but they are less demanding pets compared to bigger animals, such as cats and dogs.

On the other hand, they are less fragile than hamsters, for example, and their life span can reach eight years approximately. Guinea pigs are social and they don’t like to be alone. It is often recommended to take care of at least two guinea pigs, not just one.

Guinea pigs love company of humans, but they would be very pleased to have a friend of their own kind. If you decide to get more than one piggy, they will certainly have happy and fulfilling life in your home. They will also quickly get used to you and your household, so all of you will have great moments together! Guinea pigs are also very playful, so you should spend time having fun with it. They love to cuddle; just be cautious not to knead them too much, because they are tiny and tender.

Guinea pigs are not difficult or expensive to take care off. You need to get it a big cage and equip it with some interesting devices to play and hide. They need to have some cozy corners to hide. Guinea pigs are prey animals, so they need to feel safe and protected in their own living space.

In addition, their prey animal nature causes them to hide signs of illness, in order to avoid becoming an easy meal for bigger animals. So, pay attention on your pet’s behavior and monitor it carefully. A healthy guinea pig eats all the time, it is very active and it produces a great variety of adorable sounds!

Proper menu for little gourmets

Guinea pigs are great gourmets, yes. They just love to eat! Belonging to a large family of rodents, guinea pigs have long and constantly growing teeth. That is the main reason why they nibble and chew things all the time. Fresh hay is recommended to be given in unlimited amounts. It is their basic food, both because of good properties for their bellies and usefulness for their teeth. They should be fed both grass and legume hay; just get informed on particular situations. Grass hay is to be given all the time and legume in special conditions, such as pregnancy, for example.

Pellets are also meant to be served daily. They provide guinea pigs necessary nutrients for their healthy growth and development and provide them energy they need. Fresh water is an essential, of course.

Besides those, vegetables and fruits are also important. While veggies are recommended on a daily basis, fruits are to be served only as treats. Fruits are sugary and acidic, so too much of them could cause obesity, diabetes and stomach problems.

Cauliflower precautions and benefits

Vegetables are highly important in guinea pigs’ daily nutrition. They are packed with valuable vitamins and minerals and are very good for digestion. You shouldn’t go overboard, of course. Veggies are to be given in raw form, but too much of raw food would cause diarrhea and other stomach problems. Just be careful and everything should be fine.

Cauliflower is okay to enrich your cavy’s menu, but only in moderation. It contains vitamin C, which is necessary for all cavies. Vitamin C is very important to be provided, because guinea pigs’ organism cannot produce it on its own. Lack of vitamin C leads do scurvy, a common disease in guinea pigs. It is best vitamin C is supplied from fresh fruits and vegetables. So, speaking of it as a vitamin C source, cauliflower is good. Cilantro can be too, but not as much.

On the other hand, cauliflower contains a lot of sulfur and it is quite gassy vegetable, so you don’t really want to go overboard with it. Too much of it would most likely cause your little friend bloating and stomach upset, so keep it in small portions. Cauliflower is not on the list of veggies to be given daily. A bite size of raw cauliflower once in a while would suffice.

Cauliflower should be served raw. Cooked is not harmful, but it is less nutritional. Guinea pigs prefer raw veggies, so it is better to serve it that way. Avoid cauliflower soup and mash. Those dishes contain ingredients that are okay for humans, not cavies. Butter, milk, cream or anything else we use to make those meals are all harmful for guinea pigs.

Leaves and stalks of raw cauliflower are completely safe. In fact, most guinea pigs appreciate raw leaves the most! Flowers are not as good as leaves and stalks and they are to be avoided.

So, the verdict is clear. Cauliflower is very good source of essential vitamin C, but quite gassy, due to sulfur content. It is okay to be given in limited, occasional portions. You can also feed your guinea pig raspberries in moderation.