piggi food?

Question
what is the best suggested piggi pellet food ? I have heard that Oxbow is the best one but there is only one provider here in sumter.. We have chain pet stores but i prefer to not buy from them because they treat the animals baddly. So i want get one that maybe more easily to get. Does the brand really matter as long as it does not containt the nuts and seeds.?
is LM animal farms classic from Tractor and supply good?

Answer
It doesn't really matter what the brand is. You are correct about the little colored extras that are put into many of the foods you buy at pet stores or wholesale places like WalMart. Many of the major pet store chains such as Petco and PetSmart do carry a quality brand feed.  If you are able to find a feed store in your area you will find a better product.

KayTee makes an excellent cavy food that is just the green pellets. Feed stores typically carry larger quantities and sometimes the smallest you can purchase is 25 lb bags. The concern with that is the degrading of the Vit C.  Most of the Vit C is pretty much gone three months after the feed is milled.  That's not a problem if you supplement the Vit C.  You can either get Vit C crystals for the water or just give a daily handful of parsley, which contains more Vit C per oz than any other vegetable.

If you purchase a large bag that you can't use within a month be sure to keep the pellets in a plastic container of some sort, not metal.  The metal degrades the vitamins. If you have refrigerator space you can also keep some in there. That extends the life of the feed even better.

I have a food chart that lists the three major cavy pellets here in So. Calif. What you need to be concerned with is the amount of protein and minerals in the feed. You can use this chart just to compare what you are able to get locally.  I'll be happy to email it to you. It will be a big help in deciding which brand will work best for you. I will send you a private message with my email, then you can send me yours if needed.

Places like the Tractor Supply probably do carry a good product. They carry other feeds and usually those places carry good quality products. They have a big reputation to protect.  I don't know much about the LM brand but that doesn't really matter. As long as you see what's in it it doesn't really make a difference who makes it.

Oxbow does make an excellent product as well.  The issue is the price. When you have to order something online the cost of shipping usually makes it impractical.

I realize what you are saying about not supporting some pet chains but buying feed from them is different than buying their animals. That will be something you have to decide.