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The short answer is yes, guinea pigs can eat bok choy! Yes, we’ve got another vegetable to add to your list of guinea pig-safe produce! However, just like most fruits and vegetables for guinea pigs, it needs to be fed to them in moderation. It’s important to remember that the majority of a guinea pig’s diet should be hay and water!
Read on to learn more about bok choy and the nutritional benefits it has for guinea pigs. If you’re interested in learning more about different fruits and vegetables, check out our Vegetable Master List and our Fruits Master List.
Remember that a healthy guinea pig diet includes lots of hay and water, some pellets, and fresh produce! It's important to never feed your guinea pig too much of any one thing in order to keep their diet balanced!
What vitamins and other nutrients does bok choy contain?
Vitamin C
Bok Choy is a great source for this vitamin, as it contains 45 mg in a 100 g portion! Vitamin C is important for preventing scurvy, which is a disease that causes swollen, painful gums and difficulty eating, which can lead to a loss in appetite. This is dangerous because it causes unhealthy weight loss.
It can also lead to weakness and lack of energy in your guinea pig and even affect the condition of their hair. Vitamin C is also important for boosting immunity to prevent and fight off infections, such as fungal and respiratory infections.
Calcium
Even though too much calcium can be bad for your guinea pig, they still need it in order for their body to function properly. Calcium is vital for bone formation and maintenance. Certain groups of guinea pigs will need more calcium than others.
For example, young guinea pigs have a higher requirement for it because they’re still growing and developing, whether it’s for their bones or the overall health of their teeth, and calcium is necessary for that. In general, guinea pigs’ hearts, muscles, and nerves also require calcium for them to function well. In 100 g of bok choy, there is 105 mg of calcium.
Phosphorus
This works with calcium for guinea pig bones and teeth when it comes to formation and maintenance! It’s also super important for making sure that the body properly uses carbohydrates and fats. This means it plays a huge role in your guinea pig’s ability to use energy efficiently, as well as how it stores it.
Phosphorus also helps the kidney properly filter out wastes so your guinea pig can expel it through their urine. In 100 g of bok choy, there is 37 mg of phosphorus.
What other benefits does bok choy provide for your guinea pig?
Bok choy is lower in sugar than a lot of other leafy vegetables that your guinea pig may already be eating. This is important because guinea pigs’ bodies aren’t able to break sugars down as well as the human body can. This means piggies can be at risk for unhealthy weight gain and even obesity if they’re having too much sugar from any of their foods.
What are the downsides about bok choy for guinea pigs?
While there are lots of great things about bok choy, there are also some elements that aren’t very good for them. Unfortunately bok choy is one of the types of vegetables that can cause bloating in guinea pigs.
Bloating occurs when gasses from the digestive system build up in the guinea pig’s body and aren't properly released. This can become dangerous pretty quickly in guinea pigs. You can read more about bloating and how to treat it in our blog post here.
Guinea pigs can eat bok choy, but do they like it?
When it comes to this leafy green, it’s a hit or miss! Unlike a veggie like lettuce that many guinea pigs enjoy without fail, not all piggies enjoy bok choy. You’ll just have to give a little to your piggy to try and see!
How should you go about feeding your guinea pig bok choy?
Before you serve this veggie to your guinea pig, make sure you thoroughly wash and clean it to get rid of any pesticides and any other kinds of impurities.
Because of the possibility of your guinea pig becoming bloated if they eat too much bok choy, we’d recommend only one small stalk broken off the bok choy two or three times a week at most.
Overall, it is OK to feed your guinea pigs bok choy!
Just like all fruits and vegetables guinea pigs should never eat too much of any one thing, because they need a diverse range of nutrients and vitamins. Make sure you do your research to ensure that everything that you are feeding your guinea pig is not only healthy for them, but safe! A happy guinea pig starts with a safe and healthy one.
