Care and Nutrition of Guinea Pigs, by Dr. Michelle Bellville

Photo by Izzie Atkinson

Guinea pigs, also known as Cavies (singular Cavy) are affectionate, lively, and responsive little creatures. They make excellent pets since they are gentle and if handled frequently while they are young, rarely scratch or bite.  They originate from South America like another popular pocket pet, the Chinchilla.  Guinea pigs are “monogastric” herbivores, meaning that they have one stomach (unlike the cow that has a multiple or compartmented stomach) and eat plant-based foods.  A happy, healthy guinea pig can live up to 4-8 years as a pet, 5 years being the average.  They make the coolest sounds, and their calls have names: chutt, chutter, whine, tweet, whistle, purr, drr, scream, squeal, chirp, and grunt!

Guinea pigs do best on a solid bottom cage, but beware they can make quite a mess of their surroundings! Clean up their food bowls daily and check the patency of their water bottle too – your guinea pig may have shot a food slurry into the tube of their sipper bottle!

Just like rabbits, guinea pigs are “hindgut fermenters,” meaning that they break down their food in the last portion of their intestines (versus cows that ferment in their “foregut” or stomach).  To then get these nutrients absorbed, guinea pigs and rabbits are coprophagic – they ingest their own feces.  Gross, I know, but it is very important to their overall health!  This is more problematic for obese guinea pigs, especially ones kept in a wire bottom cage: obese guinea pigs are unable to catch these nutritious fecal pellets from their anus, which then drops through the wire, and the guinea pigs are unable to stay properly nourished.

Unlike rabbits, guinea pigs have a dietary need for Vitamin C, as they cannot produce it on their own. Unfortunately, Vitamin C is not stable for long in foods or water, so a fresh source of Vitamin C must be given daily. The easiest thing to give them is a Vitamin C containing fruit or veggie daily such as red or green peppers, cabbage, broccoli, tomato, kiwi, or a few wedges of an orange.  You can also add Vitamin C to their water source, but make sure to change it daily.  Vitamin C deficiency is a very common and very serious disease that can easily be fatal!

Guinea pigs learn what foods they like very early in life, so get your guinea pig used to different guinea pig chows and vegetables so they are not weary of variety. Guinea pigs should eat guinea pig pellets and grass hay, supplemented with fresh veggies. Good quality grass hay should be available at all times. Depending on the age, lifestyle, and weight of your guinea pig your veterinarian may recommend that pellets are offered in limited quantity or that they are offered free choice. Veggies can be offered in small handfuls, and leafy greens are the best to offer. Treats such as fruits or other marketed snacks are unnecessary, but if you choose to use them, offer only very small amounts (one treat per day) or use a special veggie as a treat!

Remember that just like any pet, guinea pigs should see their exotic animal veterinarian at least once yearly for a physical exam, a fecal exam, and likely bloodwork as your guinea pig gets older.  Check out Oxbow Animal Health for more info on how to care for your guinea pig, as well as a great place to get the good quality hay and pellets they need!

Written by Dr. Michelle Bellville

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Read more or contact Dr. Michelle:
Dr. Michelle Bellville
www.lapoflove.com
Orlando@LapofLove.com
(407) 487-4445

Dr. Bellville assists families in the Orlando Florida area with In Home Hospice and Euthanasia. She is also available to assist families with 'exotic' species like birds, hamsters, rabbits, etc with all end of like care.  

Rabbit Care, by Dr. Michelle Bellville

Photo by Jaime.
(Click to see original.)

Thinking about getting a small furry friend?

Rabbits are cool little animals with great personalities. They can be potty trained and can even live peacefully sharing a house with cats and dogs. These creatures can range in size from dwarf breeds that weigh only a few pounds to Flemish giants that easily weigh over 20 pounds! They have extremely powerful rear legs that help them jump, and all sizes of these animals are at risk of breaking their backs if mishandled. They are ‘hind gut fermenters,’ meaning that they use bacteria in their large intestine (behind the stomach, or ‘gut’) to help digest the fiber they eat. Other examples of hind gut fermenters are horses and rhinoceros! ‘Foregut fermenters’ are animals like cows and giraffe that use bacteria in their stomach to digest the fiber they eat. As gross as this sounds, rabbits consume some of their own feces – special fecal pellets called cecotropes – in order to get all the nutrients they need. You will probably never see them do this, as they usually consume cecotropes at night or early morning. This is an important reason to make sure your rabbit’s cage does not have a wire/mesh bottom that would allow for waste to drop where your rabbit can’t reach.

Photo by Asaciel
(Click to see original.)

Just like horses, rabbits need access to food all day, and one of the most common problems requiring medical care are gastro-intestinal related issues. Also like horses, rabbits cannot vomit and need to eat predominantly hay and grasses. Contrary to popular belief, rabbit pellets are meant to be a minor portion of the daily diet, with unlimited access to hay and measured amounts of fresh chopped veggies as the major portion. Young rabbits can have alfalfa hay and pellets, but as rabbits mature, the hay and pellets offered should be something other than alfalfa. Timothy pellets are very common, and you can vary the hay with timothy, orchard grass, botanical, meadow, and oat hay. Fresh chopped veggies should be dark leafy greens, root veggies, and herbs. The list for greens/herbs is quite long, but include things like dandelion greens, kale, arugula, spring mix, turnip greens, bok choy, fennel, basil, mint, and cilantro. Offer these at 1 packed cup per 2 pounds body weight. Veggies include things like carrots, broccoli, edible flowers, celery, bell peppers, cabbage, and squash and should be offered at 1 tablespoon per 2 pounds of body weight per day. Rabbits LOVE fruit and can have this special treat in small quantities (no more than 1 teaspoon per 2 pounds body weight per day).

Having a solid handle on a great diet for your rabbit will make it easy keeping a rabbit happy and healthy for a long time! Check out www.rabbit.org for great information on rabbit care, and don’t forget to have your rabbit examined yearly by an exotics trained veterinarian!

Blog by:
Dr. Michelle Bellville
www.lapoflove.com
Click Here for Dr. Michelle's Bio/Contact Information

Dr. Bellville assists families in the Orlando Florida area with In Home Hospice and Euthanasia. She is also available to assist families with 'exotic' species like birds, hamsters, rabbits, etc with all end of like care. 

Beginning life with an exotic pet, by Dr. Michelle Bellville

Did you know that guinea pigs get scurvy? How about the fact that pet lizards can lose so much calcium in their bones that they bend? Did you know that birds can get arteriosclerosis, heart disease, and hypertension like humans? A little rabbit may be a sweet Easter present for your son or daughter, but do you know what it needs to eat to decrease chances of illness, obesity, and dental abscesses?

Each one of these creatures deserves to have a long, healthy life like our typical dog and cat companions, yet many are passing away young or silently living a suboptimal life. I remember having hamsters, guinea pigs, and rabbits as a child and I realize now how much I truly didn’t know. These animals I kept really deserved better of me. No one ever told me I needed to be educated in how to keep these animals, so I never looked.

Petrie, a fat tailed gecko and
my first exotic pet.

At 13 years old, my mom allowed me to get a fat tailed gecko I named Petrie. I did my research – found out how to keep her the best I could, and spent the next 13 years with her. One of the exotics veterinarians at University of Florida commented that she was one of the oldest fat tails they had ever seen!

Before you buy a pocket pet, reptile, or bird, do your research: buy a book on care of that animal or go to one of the recommended websites below so that you can be an educated future owner! If you are already sharing your life and home with one of these amazing creatures, make sure they get their yearly check-up by an exotics- trained veterinarian – they can help you take a critical look at the husbandry (home environment, food, daily routine, etc) of your pet to see if or where changes should be made!

• For rabbits: www.rabbit.org has great resources
• For reptiles: check out the Advanced Vivarium Series (AVS) books – individual species guides
• For general bird care: Birds for Dummies or The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Bird Care & Training.

Blog by:
Dr. Michelle Bellville
www.lapoflove.com
Click Here for Dr. Michelle's Bio/Contact Information

Dr. Bellville assists families in the Orlando Florida area with In Home Hospice and Euthanasia. She is also available to assist families with 'exotic' species like birds, hamsters, rabbits, etc with all end of like care. 

Pet Euthanasia in Orlando - Orange County Florida

Lap of Love's goal is to empower owners to care for their geriatric pet and help them when the time comes to say goodbye to their furry family members.  Drs. Ross and Bellville offer Veterinary Hospice and Pet Euthanasia in the Orlando area and surrounding cities. 

Dr. Ross's says, " My hope is that I may be able to make this transition a little easier by allowing the family members to say farewell in the peace and comfort of their own home."

 

Putting a dog or cat down is a difficult decision and Lap of Love can help you with gauging your pet's quality of life. Click here for a Quality of Life Scale.

Our furry family members take all shapes and sizes - Dr. Bellville can also assist families with exotic species such as hamsters, rabbits, ferrets, and birds. 

Both veterinarians are University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine graduates and live in the Orlando area.


Feel free to contact them for more information or to help assist you in determining 'when the right time is'.

Dr. Christine Ross

drchristine@lapoflove.com
(407) 487-4445
Orange, Osceola, and Seminole counties including Orlando, Winter Park, Altamonte Springs, Oviedo, Kissimmee and surrounding areas. Dr. Christine will, on occasion, assist families in Melbourne and Daytona area. This requires advance notice to help schedule for the drive.





Dr. Michelle Bellville
drmichelle@lapoflove.com
(407) 487-4655

Orange, Osceola, Polk, and Lake counties including Orlando, Kissimmee, St. Cloud, Poinciana, Windermere, Celebration, Clermont, Lakeland, and surrounding areas.








Blog by:
Vet Mary Gardner
Lap of Love Veterinary Hospice and In Home Euthanasia
www.lapoflove.com

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Dr. Michelle Bellville provides cat and dog euthanasia at home and expands the Orlando service area

Lap of Love expands the Orlando area coverage with the addition of Dr. Michelle Bellville.  Dr. Michelle was born and raised in Orlando and went to Cincinnati Bible College and Xavier University where she double majored in Bible and Helping Professions. Dr. Michelle then studied Zoology at the University of Florida where she also graduated from Veterinary school in 2009. 

Dr. Michelle has two litter-mate yorkie-poos, Tigger and Pooh Bear whom just turned 2 yrs old. As a true zoologist – she also has an exotic species - a blue tongue skink named Spike who is just shy of two months old. 

When she is not helping families care for their pets, she sings regularly at her church apart of their worship team, makes custom jewelry, bonsai’s, cooks and LOVES football!

Dr. Michelle says, “I believe our animals know when it is time and try very hard to let their owners know as well.”  Still, pet euthanasia is one of the hardest decisions a family has to make and the goal of all Lap of Love veterinarians is to help people evaluate the quality of life of their pet and guide owners in making the decision. 

Dr. Michelle joins Dr. Christine Ross in the Orlando area. Together they cover Orange, Osceola, Seminole Polk, and Lake Counties including Orlando, Kissimmee, St. Cloud, Poinciana, Windermere, Celebration, Clermont, Lakeland, Winter Park, Altamonte Springs, Oviedo, and surrounding areas.

Click here to learn more about Dr. Michelle and In Home Pet Euthanasia in the Orlando area.

Lap of Love Veterinary Hospice and In Home Euthanasia

www.lapoflove.com