Gracie wont eat alfalfa

Question
My 6 year old female Guinea pig, Gracie Girl, for some reason won't eat alfalfa.  She will however, devour fresh fruits and veggies!  I don't make this a meal for her but a treat. She loves her food.  Gracie Girl is the sweetest and cutest little thing!  She just needs a bonnet and a stroller to lay in. I thought maybe this was happening because her teeth were growing too long.  I don't think that's a factor.

Out other Guinea pig, Peanut, is quite the character! He hops on top of his igloo, dumps his food bowls and chews on his candy shack.  He is a very picky eater.  He will barely touch an orange slice!  

My daughter, Marie, takes her pets out every day for play.  They even go outseide and eat grass when the weather is nice.
I need to thank you for easing my mind about something. About a week ago Gracie lost the use of her hind legs.  Our family felt so sorry for her.  After reading your posts to other small pet owners, I feel reassured that she may regain the use of her legs. I am going to the vet today and getting her some calcium.

Answer
I'm sorry to hear about Gracie losing control of her back legs. As for her not wanting alfalfa it's not likely to be caused by a tooth issue or she wouldn't be able to devour the grass and veggies either. Some alfalfa is very tough and straw like. Then of course there's the possibility that she just doesn't' like it. Nothing wrong with that.

A good calcium supplement is parsley. It's higher in calcium than any other veggie and most pigs love it. Hay helps to keep the teeth properly worn, so maybe Gracie would take to either Timothy or Bermuda. I have some pigs that will devour every bit of hay in their cage in two days and others that will only use if for bedding. They have their preferences just like we do.

Six years is a long healthy life for any pig. Their basic life expectancy is 4-5 years with a few rare exceptions. I had one sow that live to be almost 8. So some of Gracie's incapacity may be just age related. That's a tribute to your good care.

I'd be interested in what the vet has to say but quite honestly I don't think her paralysis has anything to do with calcium. If she were deficient it would have manifested itself long ago. She's just reached her 'geriatric age' and is probably showing signs of arthritis, etc.