A popular question regarding training guinea pigs is what to give them as treats during training sessions. You can essentially use anything that is okay to feed guinea pigs on a daily basis, as long as the guinea pig likes what you are offering them. You don't have to stick to just one thing either; it's a good idea to use different types of foods to help vary their diet.
As a side note, if you decide to use a food that the guinea pig is unfamiliar with, be sure to feed it by hand or in their bowl several times before using it in training sessions. Once they are readily eating the food and seem to enjoy it, you can start to use it in your sessions. Also, keep in mind that store bought treats are not really ideal for training sessions as they are not very healthy to feed to guinea pigs, and should not be fed in large quantities. So, with this in mind, here are some suitable veggies you can choose from:
1. Bell Peppers.
These are a healthy choice for guinea pigs, as they have high vitamin c content, and can be fed frequently. Bell peppers come in green, yellow, orange, and red. You can use any of these colours that you wish, or a combination of all four. I use primarily bell peppers with my own guinea pigs. You can cut them up into bite sized pieces to use them in training sessions, or you can cut them into strips, and give them a bite of it each time.
2. Carrots.
I used to use carrots all the time when training my guinea pigs, but decided to switch to bell peppers, as carrots are high in natural sugars and shouldn't be fed in large quantities every day. That said, I did use carrots for a long time, during which they worked well. I still use them for training sessions, just not so frequently. :) They are a good vegetable to use for training, but it is a good idea to use it more sparingly, and in combination with other vegetables. Carrots can be cut up into bite sized pieces for training sessions, or you can use a big carrot, and offer them a couple bites each time. You can also use baby carrots.... but you may end up in a constant battle of tug a war if your guinea pigs are anything like mine. ;) And they will most likely win too, then run away with their prize.... :P
3. Romaine Lettuce.
Romaine lettuce is another great veggie to use for training guinea pigs. It is healthy, has good water and vitamin content, and most guinea pigs would eat it all day if they were allowed. :) You can rip up lettuce into pieces to reward your piggy with, or you can just use a whole leaf, and let your guinea pig rip off their own pieces. Either way works. :)
This is by no means a complete list of all the vegetables you can use, but they are the ones I have used personally and that others have used successfully. If you want to research more, go for it! I'm sure there are plenty of options. Just make sure it is a food that is safe for guinea pigs to eat fairly regularly (for example, fruits are best given as only an occasional treat, so probably not ideal to use regularly for training sessions).
If you use something other than the veggies listed above, feel free to comment and share your opinion! I would love to hear what other people use to train their piggies. Until next time, have fun training your piggy! :)
~Jenna & the piggies :)
www.guineapigtricks.com
As a side note, if you decide to use a food that the guinea pig is unfamiliar with, be sure to feed it by hand or in their bowl several times before using it in training sessions. Once they are readily eating the food and seem to enjoy it, you can start to use it in your sessions. Also, keep in mind that store bought treats are not really ideal for training sessions as they are not very healthy to feed to guinea pigs, and should not be fed in large quantities. So, with this in mind, here are some suitable veggies you can choose from:
1. Bell Peppers.
These are a healthy choice for guinea pigs, as they have high vitamin c content, and can be fed frequently. Bell peppers come in green, yellow, orange, and red. You can use any of these colours that you wish, or a combination of all four. I use primarily bell peppers with my own guinea pigs. You can cut them up into bite sized pieces to use them in training sessions, or you can cut them into strips, and give them a bite of it each time.
2. Carrots.
I used to use carrots all the time when training my guinea pigs, but decided to switch to bell peppers, as carrots are high in natural sugars and shouldn't be fed in large quantities every day. That said, I did use carrots for a long time, during which they worked well. I still use them for training sessions, just not so frequently. :) They are a good vegetable to use for training, but it is a good idea to use it more sparingly, and in combination with other vegetables. Carrots can be cut up into bite sized pieces for training sessions, or you can use a big carrot, and offer them a couple bites each time. You can also use baby carrots.... but you may end up in a constant battle of tug a war if your guinea pigs are anything like mine. ;) And they will most likely win too, then run away with their prize.... :P
3. Romaine Lettuce.
Romaine lettuce is another great veggie to use for training guinea pigs. It is healthy, has good water and vitamin content, and most guinea pigs would eat it all day if they were allowed. :) You can rip up lettuce into pieces to reward your piggy with, or you can just use a whole leaf, and let your guinea pig rip off their own pieces. Either way works. :)
This is by no means a complete list of all the vegetables you can use, but they are the ones I have used personally and that others have used successfully. If you want to research more, go for it! I'm sure there are plenty of options. Just make sure it is a food that is safe for guinea pigs to eat fairly regularly (for example, fruits are best given as only an occasional treat, so probably not ideal to use regularly for training sessions).
If you use something other than the veggies listed above, feel free to comment and share your opinion! I would love to hear what other people use to train their piggies. Until next time, have fun training your piggy! :)
~Jenna & the piggies :)
www.guineapigtricks.com
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