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Post by conniew on Mar 31, 2024 15:50:45 GMT -8
I started trying fresh veggies for Cream and Coco. I started with slicing baby carrots in about 3/16ths inch thick. I put 4 slices in the topper on a small treat slate. Along with 4 small pieces of cucumber. The next morning the carrots were gone and the cucumber were dried up shadows of what they once were. LOL!
So today I put in 4 more slices of carrot only.....2 for each of them....but Cream is the one grabbing them and diving for the bedding to go enjoy her new treat. She had them gone from the slate in about 5 hours. So I put 4 more in the cage about an hour ago and they are all gone now. I watch her run up the ladder dash over the the treat slate and put a slice of carrot in her mouth and run down the ladder. I have not idea if Coco is getting any of the carrots. Should I put more out at a time. Is 8 slices in one day too much? Please advise. Thanks
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Post by LilyandDaisy on Apr 1, 2024 11:05:31 GMT -8
Would that be 8 slices between the two of them? I don't think that's necessarily too much.
Within reason, and as long as you aren't noticing any ill effects like loose stools, you don't need to strictly limit fresh foods as gerbils will adjust their water intake to match, and will also generally eat enough dry food to keep them nourished as long as it's always available. Once when one of my gerbils was ill I gave her unlimited fresh food because she loved it, and she stopped drinking water entirely for a few days because she just didn't need it with all the fresh food she was eating.
It is best to build up gradually in case they aren't used to a lot of fresh food. Also, foods that should possibly be limited include cruciferous vegetables (cabbage, sprouts, kale, cauliflower etc) due to the potential for digestive upsets, very watery vegetables with limited nutritional value such as lettuce and cucumber, and fruits due to the sugar content. Green leafy vegetables tend to the most nutritious so prioritise those if you can.
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Post by conniew on Apr 1, 2024 11:10:11 GMT -8
Would that be 8 slices between the two of them? I don't think that's necessarily too much. Within reason, and as long as you aren't noticing any ill effects like loose stools, you don't need to strictly limit fresh foods as gerbils will adjust their water intake to match, and will also generally eat enough dry food to keep them nourished as long as it's always available. Once when one of my gerbils was ill I gave her unlimited fresh food because she loved it, and she stopped drinking water entirely for a few days because she just didn't need it with all the fresh food she was eating. It is best to build up gradually in case they aren't used to a lot of fresh food. Also, foods that should possibly be limited include cruciferous vegetables (cabbage, sprouts, kale, cauliflower etc) due to the potential for digestive upsets, very watery vegetables with limited nutritional value such as lettuce and cucumber, and fruits due to the sugar content. Green leafy vegetables tend to the most nutritious so prioritise those if you can. Thanks for this info. Yes a total of 8 slices of baby carrot was put into the cage yesterday. Do the dried treats count like the dried carrot, sweet potato and strawberry treats? So leafy green except cabbage and lettuce and kale? How about spinach or a spring mix salad mix. Excited to see them eat these fresh foods. I think I saw cream take a dried cranberry once from a forage mix. |
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Post by LilyandDaisy on Apr 1, 2024 11:29:06 GMT -8
Would that be 8 slices between the two of them? I don't think that's necessarily too much. Within reason, and as long as you aren't noticing any ill effects like loose stools, you don't need to strictly limit fresh foods as gerbils will adjust their water intake to match, and will also generally eat enough dry food to keep them nourished as long as it's always available. Once when one of my gerbils was ill I gave her unlimited fresh food because she loved it, and she stopped drinking water entirely for a few days because she just didn't need it with all the fresh food she was eating. It is best to build up gradually in case they aren't used to a lot of fresh food. Also, foods that should possibly be limited include cruciferous vegetables (cabbage, sprouts, kale, cauliflower etc) due to the potential for digestive upsets, very watery vegetables with limited nutritional value such as lettuce and cucumber, and fruits due to the sugar content. Green leafy vegetables tend to the most nutritious so prioritise those if you can. Thanks for this info. Yes a total of 8 slices of baby carrot was put into the cage yesterday. Do the dried treats count like the dried carrot, sweet potato and strawberry treats? So leafy green except cabbage and lettuce and kale? How about spinach or a spring mix salad mix. Excited to see them eat these fresh foods. I think I saw cream take a dried cranberry once from a forage mix. Dried vegetables should be more limited, particularly sweeter veg like carrots and sweet potatoes, as the sugars are more concentrated and they're less filling, so gerbils can eat more of them. So within reason I'd leave it up to decide how much fresh carrot they want to eat, but I wouldn't let them have as much dried carrot as they want. And dried fruits in particular are treats really due to the sugars. Spinach is a great option. I'm not sure what's in a spring mix salad? |
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Post by conniew on Apr 1, 2024 11:35:04 GMT -8
Thanks for this info. Yes a total of 8 slices of baby carrot was put into the cage yesterday. Do the dried treats count like the dried carrot, sweet potato and strawberry treats? So leafy green except cabbage and lettuce and kale? How about spinach or a spring mix salad mix. Excited to see them eat these fresh foods. I think I saw cream take a dried cranberry once from a forage mix. Dried vegetables should be more limited, particularly sweeter veg like carrots and sweet potatoes, as the sugars are more concentrated and they're less filling, so gerbils can eat more of them. So within reason I'd leave it up to decide how much fresh carrot they want to eat, but I would let them have as much dried carrot as they want. And dried fruits in particular are treats really due to the sugars. Spinach is a great option. I'm not sure what's in a spring mix salad Spring mix usually contains tender baby lettuce, spinach, and other edible leaves. It may also include red and green romaine, red and green oak leaf, chard, arugula, spinach, endive, radicchio, and other heirloom lettuces. I am sorry but I think you contradicted yourself above....limit dried veg like carrot....."but I would let them have as much dried carrot as they want" ? So this is confusing...sorry. |
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Post by LilyandDaisy on Apr 1, 2024 11:38:19 GMT -8
Dried vegetables should be more limited, particularly sweeter veg like carrots and sweet potatoes, as the sugars are more concentrated and they're less filling, so gerbils can eat more of them. So within reason I'd leave it up to decide how much fresh carrot they want to eat, but I would let them have as much dried carrot as they want. And dried fruits in particular are treats really due to the sugars. Spinach is a great option. I'm not sure what's in a spring mix salad Spring mix usually contains tender baby lettuce, spinach, and other edible leaves. It may also include red and green romaine, red and green oak leaf, chard, arugula, spinach, endive, radicchio, and other heirloom lettuces. I am sorry but I think you contradicted yourself above....limit dried veg like carrot....."but I would let them have as much dried carrot as they want" ? So this is confusing...sorry. Sorry, I meant to say wouldn't there. I'll edit it. The spring mix sounds fine to me. |
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Post by conniew on Apr 1, 2024 11:47:25 GMT -8
 This is their fresh food tray today. Apple, bell pepper and carrot. |
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Post by conniew on Apr 1, 2024 11:49:22 GMT -8
Spring mix usually contains tender baby lettuce, spinach, and other edible leaves. It may also include red and green romaine, red and green oak leaf, chard, arugula, spinach, endive, radicchio, and other heirloom lettuces. I am sorry but I think you contradicted yourself above....limit dried veg like carrot....."but I would let them have as much dried carrot as they want" ? So this is confusing...sorry. Sorry, I meant to say wouldn't there. I'll edit it. The spring mix sounds fine to me. Thanks! |
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Post by LilyandDaisy on Apr 1, 2024 16:15:01 GMT -8
I'm not sure on the scale on that photo so it's hard to judge. But it looks like more than gerbils are likely to eat in one sitting. It probably wouldn't be harmful for them, but there's a risk of food getting lost in the bedding and going mouldy.
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Post by conniew on Apr 2, 2024 6:48:21 GMT -8
I'm not sure on the scale on that photo so it's hard to judge. But it looks like more than gerbils are likely to eat in one sitting. It probably wouldn't be harmful for them, but there's a risk of food getting lost in the bedding and going mouldy. Well, yesterday they didn't take any of it. So I removed it after a few hours. Neither gerbil was up on the topper much yesterday. Sometimes they have real active days and other times they have days where they tend to stay underground most of the day. They don't eat dry food out of a bowl anymore like they used to when they were babies. So now I spread their dry food on a large splate in their topper and they come forage through that and grab a seed and run to the nearest hide to eat (Coco) or they run down into the bedding to eat (Cream). Sometimes I sprinkle dry food on top of the bedding too. Yesterday I put a paper towel tube in their cage on top of the bedding and by evening it was down under 8 inches of bedding. LOL! They are remarkable little creatures. |
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