Can Guinea Pigs Eat Oats [Are Oats Bad For Guinea Pigs?]

If you have a pet, then you probably know about the everyday urge to share breakfast with it. And that might be fine if you have a cat or a dog. However, if you have a guinea pig, sharing certain breakfast items, such as oats, is not a good idea.                                                                                                   

So, can guinea pigs eat oats? No, it’s not healthy for a guinea pig to eat oats. Oats are a type of grain that is incredibly high in starch and carbohydrates. On the other hand, guinea pigs are herbivores and cannot process oats or any other type of grains. Oats make guinea pigs obese and damage their urinary systems.

In this article, we’re going to discuss why oats are not as safe for guinea pigs. We’ll discuss in point, so jump to whichever section you’re looking for.

Is It Safe for Guinea Pigs to Eat Oats?

Guinea pigs cannot and should not be given oats. Only under specific circumstances are piggies recommended to eat oats. Before we try and understand why oats aren’t good for guinea pigs, we should understand the physiology of guinea pigs.

Guinea pigs are natural herbivores, meaning they solely live on vegetables and leaves. They don’t eat grains or meat, so it is not wise to feed them grains, such as oats. This is because guinea pigs don’t have the digestive system to process grains. So, if you give guinea pigs any breakfast grains, such as oats, it will develop digestive problems, such as diarrhea.

However, many herbivorous animals can eat grains without any health hazards. Then why can’t guinea pigs eat them?

The main reason behind that is their sheer size. Guinea pigs are small and don’t grow more than 10-12 inches in length (700-1179 grams in weight). On top of that, they don’t burn enough calories daily to maintain a starch-based diet. Since oats are filled with carbohydrates, giving piggies oats would inevitably make them obese and create a ton of health problems such as diabetes.

Oats also contain Phosphorus, which can cause serious damage to the urinary system of your precious piggy. All in all, don’t feed oats to a guinea pig.

When Can I Feed Oats to My Guinea Pig?

If you have a guinea pig, you’ll notice that some owners give their piggies oats, and even some vets recommend them. Does that mean they don’t know about the health hazards that come with oats?

Even though oats aren’t suitable for guinea pigs as a daily diet, it’s not completely unsafe to feed them. Vets recommend feeding oats to guinea pigs as a safe way to boost their weight. If you have a guinea pig that is skinny or underweight, it is okay to feed them some oats. This will increase their weight, as well as fix any skin-related issues that they may have.

Some owners also feed oats to pregnant guinea pigs during pregnancy, to provide them with some much-needed extra nutrition.

Some owners feed oats to their guinea pigs during the winter. The extra carbs help the guinea pigs to maintain their body heat during the cold season, as well as develop their outer fur.

Rolled oats are the best kind of oats to feed a guinea pig. They are raw and unprocessed, so they obtain the most nutritious value for your piggie.

If you do feed guinea pig oats, do it so without milk. Guinea pigs are lactose intolerant and cannot process any dairy products.

Risks of Feeding Oats to Guinea Pigs

Whether you are feeding oats to your pet piggy daily or once in a while, some health hazards come with feeding oats. Such as –

• Increased Weight: Oats are filled with carbs, and since guinea pigs don’t burn many calories, it can make them fat. When a guinea pig gets fat, it develops fatty tissues around its internal organs, such as its heart and respiratory system. This can make them more prone to seizures and other health problems.

• Inability to Groom: A fat guinea pig cannot move around as easily. As a result, they cannot tend to their backs and bottoms. Their bottoms get dirty, and are attracted by flies. This results in flies laying eggs in their fur, which makes them more prone to parasites, creating immense irritation and pain for your beloved guinea pig.

• Bladder Issues: Oats contain high levels of Calcium. Even though calcium is good for any animal with a bone structure, excessive amounts can lead to serious complications. Most guinea pigs receive their much-needed calcium and other minerals from their veggie diet. The excess calcium results in bladder stones, making them bleed through their urinary tract.

• Kidney Failure:  Oats contain phosphorus, a mineral that is known to create physical problems in smaller animals such as guinea pigs. Phosphorus leads to guinea pigs developing kidney stones. It is deadly, and can lead to renal blockage/kidney failure and even death.

• Digestive Problems: Since guinea pigs are herbivores, they have a more delicate stomach than other land-dwelling animals. Most herbivorous animals need a diet of greens, hay, vegetables, and some fruit. They don’t require and cannot process high levels of starch and carbohydrates that are found in grains (such as oats). The dry oats can lead to choking and runny/dry stool, and even diarrhea.

• Gas: Since oats have a high level of carbohydrates, guinea pigs cannot digest them. Instead, this results in bloating. When piggies are bloated, their stomachs are filled with undigested gasses and compressed air. This can be extremely painful for guinea pigs and can even be fatal if not treated in time.

• Selective Eating: Guinea pigs are picky eaters, meaning they like to eat what they find tasty rather than what might be right for them. If given processed sugar-induced oats regularly, guinea pigs will develop a habit of it and won’t want to eat healthy things like vegetables. So, try and keep them on a healthy diet, and don’t get them used to oats, which can prove to be fatal in the long run.

FAQs

Here are the answers to some common queries you may have if you own a guinea pig.

Conclusion

Guinea pigs are a bundle of joy, a fur baby to any pet owner who has them. These animals are a blessing. Since pet piggies don’t live in the wilderness, they don’t get to graze in their natural habitat. It is up to us, the owners, to ensure they don’t become exposed to something unnatural while in our care.

So make sure you don’t feed your beloved guinea pig grains or oats. It is natural to share food with our pets lovingly. But we must be cautious not to harm them unwittingly. Oats are health hazards for guinea pigs, so refrain from feeding them to your pet. We hope this article was helpful. Thanks for reading.