Archive for the ‘Frequently Asked Questions’ Category
Are Guineas Selective?
Hay is a big part of a guinea pig’s life, never mind his diet! There are claims that pellets can “prevent selective feeding”, can they? My guineas often select not to eat pellets or certain feeds/foodstuffs, can selection really be removed from guineas? Should the option to select food be removed? Who’s to say any [...]
January 8, 2010
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What foods are excluded from the Ratewatchers’ Diet?
Ratewatchers is a Calcium to Phosphorus balanced diet, not about including and excluding any foodstuffs. By following the diet the urine will not be saturated with certain minerals, therefore maximising bladder health. However it should always be remembered that for many guineas maximising bladder health is all that can be done. In short, no foods [...]
November 5, 2009
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The diet is too high in Phosphorus, do I just ‘up the Calcium intake?’
Ratewatchers diet is about amount and portion as well as the Ca:Ph balance. It is insufficient to just increase one type of foodstuff or another without weighing it first. How do you know what is enough?It is suprising the difference that a small amount of certain foods can make. It is also suprising the amount [...]
March 23, 2009
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How can I best prepare small amounts of fresh food?
All food must be washed and have been out of a fridge for long enough to reach room temperature. Because the amounts of foods like carrots are so small instead of slices we recommend cutting instrips as an alternative. This is also a better way to give food as it is a similar shape to [...]
February 24, 2009
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Can all my guinea pigs have the Ratewatchers Diet?
Unless a guinea pig is ill or needing a specific source of food then it advisable to feed all guinea pigs the same diet and in the same enclosure. Ratewatchers is a balanced diet that can be fed to try and avoid any issues with stones. It is not a guarantee that stones will be [...]
February 23, 2009
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Why do I need to weigh the food out?
It is important when feeding Ratewatchers diet to get the amounts of Calcium to Phosphorus balanced correctly. This can only be achieved by weighing out individual foods so that a general idea of what that weight (e.g. 20g) of that particular food, looks like. As a general rule the Phosphorus high foods are heavier and [...]
February 23, 2009
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Do high calcium foods balance out high phosphorus foods?
It is important to look at the diet as a whole and the ratios of certain foodstuffs together so that a balance can be achieved. A good example of a well balanced food that is high in Calcium is quick dried grass such as Just Grass, Readigrass and Graze On; these have a high Calcium [...]
February 21, 2009
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Will feeding Ratewatchers mean that my guinea pig won’t get stones or sludge again?
There is no diet or lifestyle plan that can make any such guarantee. There are various reasons why a guinea pig can develop bladderstones; one of the more common ones being an inbalace in the diet- often this is between Calcium and Phosphorus with Magnesium playing a part too. Oxalate (the by product of the [...]
February 17, 2009
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Do I need to worry about Oxalic Acid content in foods?
According to Oxbow research Calcium Oxalate stones were not commonly found in guinea pigs- they were one of the least found. However, once formed these stones are unlikely to dissolve and are very hard to break up and must be either passed or removed surgically. Therefore it is advisable to only feed small amounts of [...]
February 17, 2009
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Generally, which foods are high in Phosphorus?
As a rule it is fruits of plants and roots (under ther the ground, i.e carrots/swede/beetroot).
February 10, 2009
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