Can Guinea Pigs Eat Cabbage?

When it comes to a healthy balanced diet for your guinea pig, you probably already know they need carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins, and minerals along with fresh water daily. Most of what a guinea pig needs to stay healthy can be found in a quality guinea pig pellet, quality grazing material such as orchard grass or timothy hay, and plenty of fresh drinking water.

But guinea pigs get bored easily and they can be picky eaters. It helps keep your piggie happy when you supplement their daily diet with fresh veggies, greens, and the occasional fresh fruit.

If you’ve had your guinea pigs for any length of time, you’ve discovered by now how important vitamin C is as a daily supplement for your guinea pig’s diet. There’s a good amount of vitamin C in cabbage. Unfortunately, most cabbage doesn’t have a lot of other nutrients and it has a high water content. The exception is red cabbage.

Can Guinea Pigs Eat Red Cabbage?

The level of Vitamin C in red cabbage is significantly more than in green cabbage and it only contains traces of fat, calcium, and sugar which are bad for guinea pigs. Red cabbage typically has reddish purple leaves. Your guinea pig can eat red cabbage several times a week. It’s best to include it in with a mixture of other greens and veggies to give your guinea pig a variety of foods at each feeding.

Can Guinea Pigs Eat Green Cabbage?

Your probably most familiar with green cabbage which is used to make all kinds of foods humans love, including stuffed cabbage or cabbage rolls, soups, and stir fry dishes. When it comes whether guinea pigs can eat green cabbage, things get a little dicey.

Green cabbage does have Vitamin C which is so important for guinea pigs but too much green cabbage can also cause gas and bloating in your pet. If you do let your guinea pig eat green cabbage it should be only once a week and in small amounts. Watch your guinea pig carefully for any signs of distress or any change in their droppings and seek vet assistance if your piggie acts sick.

Can Guinea Pigs Eat Pickled Cabbage?

Although research didn’t turn up a specific warning against pickled cabbage for guinea pigs, there is a huge threat for guinea pigs with any kind of pickled or brined foods. Pickled or brined foods are typically highly acidic which can be harmful to the tender lining of your guinea pig’s mouth. It can also wreak havoc on their digestive system and cause issues.

Can Guinea Pigs Eat Cooked Cabbage?

You may wonder whether guinea pigs can eat cooked cabbage, like the leftover leaves from your cabbage rolls or stuffed cabbage. While it may not harm your guinea pigs to eat cooked cabbage, the process of cooking causes vegetables to lose vital nutrients. The main reason to feed cabbage to your guinea pigs is the Vitamin C content in it. Cooking cabbage causes a significant loss of Vitamin C, so it’s best to feed raw cabbage.