Can Guinea Pigs Eat Horse Hay? (Answered!)

I recently went out and bought my kids some guinea pigs as a surprise for a birthday.

They’ve always been talking about wanting them, so I decided why not,

I love having animals around, too!

I got them home and everyone was very excited, before we realized something crucial: I hadn’t bought any food for them.

We were stuck as the shops had all closed, so I had to think fast about what I could feed them.

It occurred to me I had plenty of horse hay, so I decided to check if that was safe for them.

So, can guinea pigs eat horse hay?

Small amounts of it would be fine, but the fact is that horse hay is too protein rich for guinea pigs. Certainly adult guinea pigs should not eat regular or large quantities of horse hay. It will be fine in a pinch if you have nothing else, but get them some guinea pig food as soon as possible.

Though hay might seem harmless, it goes without saying that horses and guinea pigs are two very different animals.

Horses need a lot more protein than guinea pigs, so horse hay is a lot more nutritionally rich.

Let’s look into it in more detail.

Is horse hay good for guinea pigs?

In a word, no, not really.

Guinea pigs only have quite a limited need for protein and other nutrients that horses do, and horse hay is obviously naturally packed with these nutrients.

Thus, eating horse hay does not really provide the nutrients that guinea pigs need, and provides too much of the ones they don’t.

In very small amounts, horse hay that isn’t too rich in alfalfa may be okay for your guinea pigs.

Certainly, if you’re in a jam and have no other feed to give them as I did, it’s better than nothing.

However, you need to get them back on their regular diet straight away.

If you are going to give your guinea pigs horse hay, be sure to give them only a very small amount.

They may even appear to enjoy it a lot, but like I say, too much of a good thing will not be good for them.

So, what hay can guinea pigs eat?

Can guinea pigs eat any type of hay?

The only thing you really need to avoid is hay that has too much alfalfa.

Alfalfa is often put into horse hay to augment the protein content, since horses have an enhanced need for protein.

Horse hay is often complex hay with alfalfa added, and this is not good for your guinea pig.

Again, way too high in protein.

As long as your guinea pig has access to high quality grass hay at all times of the day, it will have no problems.

Things like timothy hay, meadow hay, orchard grass or oat hay.

All of these are great options that your guinea pig will love.

So, the only type of hay they really need to avoid is alfalfa.

In some cases, your vet may recommend alfalfa hay if your guinea pig needs extra protein for any reason.

Other than this, they should never eat alfalfa hay.

Can guinea pigs eat straw instead of hay?

No, is the short answer.

Straw is less a foodstuff and more just bedding.

Straw contains virtually no nutritional value, and so if it was your guinea pig’s main diet, it would spend most of its time eating.

Straw is also much harder and tougher, full of hard and sharp stalks which can hurt your guinea pig during digestion.

As I said, high quality grass hay at all times of the day and your guinea pig will thrive.

Do not try to feed them hay instead.

Can guinea pigs eat prairie hay?

Prairie hay is a favorite choice for small animals like rabbits, and it is certainly a great choice for guinea pigs!

It’s easy for them to chew and digest, and is nutritionally complete, providing more or less everything they need per day.

Again, though, they should have access to hay throughout the day.

You need to have a supply of prairie hay constantly stocked.

Prairie hay isn’t just a good food, either; it makes great bedding, and is one of the options you’ll often find at pet stores.

Straw is often a better option for bedding as it is a lot cheaper, and prairie hay, we think, is better used in the diet, rather than as bedding.

So, though it might seem like it’s just dried grass, it’s actually a bit more than guinea pigs really need.

Horses are big, muscular animals, and they need huge quantities of protein to maintain their weight.

Guinea pigs are very small, and too much protein can quickly become detrimental.

If you’ve got nothing else, horse hay will be fine in a pinch, but be sure to get out and buy proper food as soon as you can.