Calcium rich foods?

[cea2001]

I have two pregnant sows at the moment, one of whom is very young and came pregnant from the petshop, must have been impregnated at 4 weeks. Those of you who read my post in First Hand Accounts on abscesses will know that I am not at all keen on feeding lucerne (alfafa) hay - the stuff we get here is SO spiky and rough. But I´m keen for these two to get optimal nutrition (obviously) so could anyone recommend any particularly calcium rich foods? They´re getting supplemental Vit C and plenty of oat hay, of course.

The pigs get plenty of different veg - I know parsley is particularly calcium rich. Can anyone think of any others?

[Lynx]

Why not try alfalfa cubes? Around here they sell such things - small dried squares of alfalfa that do not have sticking out pokey parts. I´m not very familiar with alfalfa, but it could also be that what you have found is too mature. It might be that some alfalfa harvested earlier would be both more nutritious and softer. Maybe you could find out from a farmer or extension agent if you have such things.

[Kat]

Just a thought, has anyone tried those little yoghurt drops with their guinea pigs? I know my guinea pigs won´t touch them, but if your pigs do eat them, surely they´d be a source of calcium!?

[Peter]

Parsley is good. It´s rich in calcium and vitamin C if I remember correctly.

Are you feeding an alfalfa based pellet? That would be good for calcium, too. I´d try the cubes, like Lynx said. My pigs love to chew on them!

[Alfie]

Based on what I´ve read, dairy-based calcium isn´t usually advisable except in special cases.

My pigs seem to agree - when I first got them I bought yoghurt drops and they wouldn´t touch them. Again, they know what´s best for them.

[lisam]

My pigs love those yogurt drops. However, there is so much sugar in them that I think any benefits are cancelled out.

[cea2001]

Thanks for your help - I have actually tried the lucerne cubes but they´re quite hard to get hold of here (the pet shops only stock them occasionally). I´ll keep feeding the parsley and other veg anyway. Both girls look great, lovely and healthy with very shiny fur. I´m just a little worried about the little one, Peaches, as she´s too young to have babies. I´m only filling up their pellet dish once they´ve emptied it as I don´t want the babies to get too big for her. She´s in her 6-7 week of pregnancy from what I can ascertain and she´s not too big at the moment. Fingers crossed (and vet on stand by!)

[Lynx]

Do you have feed stores? Around here, they are sold in big bags very cheap to horse people. Have any horse people? Or horses?

If you think farm vs. petstore, you might find another source (and often inexpensive).