Snacks?

[xx Angelica<3]

Well. I would like to give my gerbils A little bit of "variety" in their diet. They're everyday mix is a blend seeds (Nutriphase brand).. and sometimes i'll give them A bit of cheerios, and today I just found out they like cherries! But they won't eat them unless I take the skin off of the cherry. Lazy boys. They also munch on carrots and sunflower seeds, but those seem to get them fat, so I only give them sunflower seeds once A week or 2. What other snacks could I give them? Thanks .

Here is the Nutriphase mix they eat.

[CrWoodyspets]

I don't know about gerbils but my mice love vanilla wafer cookies! Good treats for gerbils are yogurt drops, uncooked oatmeal, cooked or uncooked rice, chex mix, and yes they love cheerios! Oh yeah they might like Fruit loops too.

[bokuza]

I actually have two forms of staple food for my hamsters, a bag like the one you showed and lab blocks. Daily I stick in broccoli and Romaine Lettuce leafs. Some apple cuts some nights too. At some restless nights or if i've noticed a small change in the feces I put in some blades of timothy hay. I find that maybe when one my guys eats too much of something they tend to chow on grass like dogs do. Also, its just fun for them to try and make bed of it!

Im afraid that it's not very good for gerbils to ingest the amount of seeds found this mix of food. They should really have only 2-3 sunflower seeds a day. Also, if this mix has corn in it, id avoid those pieces. These are more fatty and not need bits for Gerbils.

[Paganegyptian]

I used Nutriphase at first, but I kept getting the same issue, they pick out only certain items and eat that. If you got that isssue , they can become anemic on vitamins. I decided to try them on a much more nutrient Puppy Dog Food. They absolutely love it. So Nutriphase becomes a side dish, not the primary food now. Their energy went way up, and are very active now with beautiful coats.


Oh, And they absolutely Love lettuce! They eat that stuff like no tomorrow. They get a bite of that 3-4 times a week.

[GerbilCrazy]

i give mine cheerios, sunflowers, puffed wheat, cat/dog food, milk bones, apples, grapes, strawberries, spinach, celery leaves, grass, leaves, sticks, hay lol I give them alot of different stuff to eat. Oh and a couple of mine like scrambled eggs, noodles, chicken, and bread sometimes

[CrWoodyspets]

If you leave a piece of bread out for one night and then you give it too them the next day, it works really well for them to grind their teeth down.

[xx Angelica<3]

I changed their diet. I got them http://www.petsmart.com/product/inde...ductId=2753533

They seem to like it alot.

[AnimalMad]

lol i didnt know they ate all of that, i should try them foods and see if they like it, just wondering i hear that lettuce id bad for them, should i give them a type of lettuce or not?

[Paganegyptian]

yes, if you feed Hamsters too much, it can cause temporary diarrhea due to the high water content. That's why I give them a very small nibble instead of a whole leaf. A 1/4 leaf for me, will feed 8 hamsters. And the occasional Puppy biscuit for a treat.. I tend to go extremely light on food with high sulpher content like Broccoli.

[xx Angelica<3]

Quote: Originally Posted by AnimalMad lol i didnt know they ate all of that, i should try them foods and see if they like it, just wondering i hear that lettuce id bad for them, should i give them a type of lettuce or not?

I give mine lettuce about twice a week.

[Purple-Hops]

Not sure about gerbils but I found with my hammies to make sure the veggies are completly DRY and no iceberg lettuce since it has no nutritional value! Basic rule for veggie shopping is the darker and more vibrant the color the better the nutritional value. Romaine,red,green,baby lettuces were good and loved by my hamsters.
Also, I never trusted store mixes for my hamsters and just bought a tonne of ingredients to make my own mix from the BulkBarn Button LOVED it! there were bits of everything in there and he was a healthy plump motha' for 2 1/2 years!

[Paganegyptian]

Lettuce is only for Hydration purposes in my case. but the main staple is Puppy kibble. They love that stuff and with the extra vitamins and calcium, the pups grow very healthy and strong, while giving the nursing Moms extra supplements she looses during nursing.

[CrWoodyspets]

Wait..puppy kibble for gerbils?

[RodentzRule]

Quote: Originally Posted by CrWoodyspets Wait..puppy kibble for gerbils?

Yeah, it has most of the nutrients small animals needs, I prefer to use it as a treat but it can be used as a staple food.

[CrWoodyspets]

Oh. I didn't know it could be used like that! I use cat food for a treat sometimes though...and they love it.