Senior Guinea Pig Food by Oxbow

[Sef]

Has anyone seen this?
https://www.oxbowanimalhealth.com/our-products/fortified-food/essentials-senior-guinea-pig-food

I am not seeing it anywhere except on their website.

[Lynx]

I see the Ingredients and Guaranteed Analysis are:

Timothy Grass Meal, Oat Grass, Orchard Grass, Suncured Alfalfa Meal, Oat Hulls, Soybean Meal, Suncured Ground Miscanthus, Oat Groats, Flaxseed Meal, Sodium Bentonite, Barley, Dried Plain Beet Pulp, Salt, DL-Methionine, Ginger Root, Hydrolyzed Yeast, Inulin, L-Leucine, L-Lysine, Turmeric Powder, L-Ascorbyl-2-Monophosphate (Vitamin C), Chamomile, Choline Chloride, Vitamin E Supplement, Zinc Sulfate, Mixed Tocopherols, Yeast Culture , Yucca Schidigera Extract, Zinc Proteinate, Niacin, Copper Sulfate, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin A Supplement, Manganous Oxide, Riboflavin Supplement, Biotin, Thiamine Mononitrate, Magnesium Sulfate, Copper Proteinate, Sodium Selenite, Manganese Proteinate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Folic Acid, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Cobalt Carbonate, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Calcium Iodate, Rosemary Extract

Guaranteed Analysis:
Crude Protein (min) 3.00%
Crude Fat (min) 2.50%
Crude Fiber (min) 25.00%
Crude Fiber (max) 29.00%
Moisture (max) .10.00%
Calcium (min) 0.35%
Calcium (max) 0.75%
Phosphorus (min) 0.25%
Vitamin A (min) 10,000 IU/kg
Vitamin D3 (min) 900 IU/kg
Vitamin E (min) 200 IU/kg
Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C) (min) 300 mg/kg

[Sef]

Yes, I saw that it has alfalfa meal as an ingredient. I was thinking it might be worth looking into for guinea pigs that are ill and in need of something to help boost appetite or need to gain weight (which I'm currently dealing with). The calcium content is the same as the Garden Select and Essentials formulas (which isn't ideal but still lower than most other brands now that KMS is no longer in business) and also does not contain calcium carbonate.

I will let you know what I find out about its availability if I hear back from Oxbow on it.

[Lynx]

I think alfalfa may contribute extra protein, too.

I was not familiar with calcium iodate. Looks like it is primarily an iodine source, not a calcium source, so if the ingredient list is basically getting the calcium naturally occuring calcium instead of added calcium, IMO, that is a good thing. At least the alfalfa is not listed as a first ingredient.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/pharmacology-toxicology ... lcium-iodate

Common dietary sources of iodine include iodized salt, ethylenediamine dihydroiodide (EDDI), calcium iodate, as well as naturally high iodine sources such as kelp and certain seaweeds.

And it appears the d-Calcium Pantothenate is a source of vitamin B5.

[Sef]

Chewy.com finally has this product in stock, and I ordered a bag this evening:
https://www.chewy.com/oxbow-animal-healthy-essentials/dp/521926

Interestingly, the calcium listed on the bag differs from what is listed on Oxbow's website:
Calcium (min) 0.30%
Calcium (max) 0.60%

If the analysis is accurate, it's actually a little lower in calcium (on average) than either the Adult Essentials or GS pellets.

[Lynx]

Sounds promising! I hope it works out for you.

[Bookfan]

Let us know how it goes.

[ItsaZoo]

It looks like there’s a little more vitamin C in the senior compared to the adult Garden Select. Plus they have added antioxidants.

[Sef]

Yes, I noticed that too. Still waiting to hear back from Oxbow on the calcium content.

[ItsaZoo]

I was going to try it even though Gidget isn’t a senior, but I decided on the organic instead. She’s picky and doesn’t eat all her pellets, and only nibbles at the vitamin C, so I’m always looking for something she might like.

[Sef]

I haven't used the Senior Formula yet, but I think it could be a good product for older pigs who might be losing weight as part of the natural aging process and need a little boost.

We use Garden Select, although I ordered the Organics stuff by accident awhile back. It looks good but does contain calcium carbonate, which is an ingredient that (rightly or wrongly) I try to avoid.

I still wish Oxbow would come out with a lower calcium option for stone-prone pigs, and also a soft diet for those who have chronic dental issues and have a hard time chewing pellets. It would also be nice if they offered smaller quantity 'sample' packets, like KMS used to do.

[ItsaZoo]

I agree regarding the smaller quantity. A few pounds of food goes a long way and it would be nice to be able to switch off for a picky pig.

[Sef]

I started one of our older males on this today. His weight has been up and down for no apparent reason over the past couple of months, and that's why I ordered this in the first place. In the time that it took for my order to get here, though, his weight had leveled off and I didn't really want to change it up if it looked like he was going to maintain right at 1kg. He has started to drop again this week, though, so I'm gradually adding the Senior Essentials pellets to his feedings of Garden Select to see if it will help.

[ItsaZoo]

I ordered the Organic before I saw your post about calcium carbonate. The max calcium less than 1% but I don’t think I’ll order them again. The Garden Select doesn’t have calcium carbonate, but I thought fussy little Gidget might like a change. It seems she doesn’t really care for pellets no matter what. She maybe eats a tablespoon of pellets a day and if her pellet cup is empty it’s because half the pellets are on the floor.