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Post by LilyandDaisy on Jul 31, 2020 18:02:58 GMT -8
What effect wears off? So did you speak to the owner about their weight?  The sore eyes come back after about a week on fresh bedding. I managed to suggest to the owner that dietary factors might not be helping the eye situation. I don't actually know whether their weight or diet is at all relevant to it, but it certainly isn't doing them any favours and it makes sense that excess weight or nutritional imbalances (from selectively eating less healthy foods when too much food is being supplied) might impact on the whole body. I recommended sticking to 10-12g of food per gerbil per day and she said she'd check how much they were feeding them. |
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Post by Markpd on Aug 1, 2020 3:07:45 GMT -8
Ah got ya, it's weird how different bedding helps, but only for a short time. Yea good point about the weight and general health, hopefully then they'll feed them less then without having to directly address the issue of weight. So you didn't say their little lard balls need to eat less then? lol  (joke).
I thought the daily recommendation was 8-10g/Gerbil? Have I read wrong? Or is it just a ball park figure anyway?
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Post by LilyandDaisy on Aug 1, 2020 7:06:53 GMT -8
Ah got ya, it's weird how different bedding helps, but only for a short time. Yea good point about the weight and general health, hopefully then they'll feed them less then without having to directly address the issue of weight. So you didn't say their little lard balls need to eat less then? lol (joke).
I thought the daily recommendation was 8-10g/Gerbil? Have I read wrong? Or is it just a ball park figure anyway?
I've read recommendations ranging from 5g to 15g. I find my females do well on 10g so I guessed up to 12g might be ok for larger males. It is a ball park figure. I give mine as much as they will eat without leaving bits behind, plus a very small surplus for hoarding. Then occasionally I skip a feeding to allow them to eat from their hoard. I do find it's sometimes best to phrase things in a way that doesn't put the blame on anyone, even when that's perhaps not 100% accurate. I've had to deal with hamsters in tiny wheels this year too and I tend to say something "I noticed Hammy's back was bending on his wheel. This happens when they've grown too big for the wheel. I'd recommend getting a bigger one". It might not be completely true, because a 5 inch wheel is never really suitable for even a young Syrian hamster, but it gets the point across and doesn't sound like I'm calling them a bad owner (particularly bearing in mind a lot of small pets belong to children who don't know any better). |
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Post by Markpd on Aug 1, 2020 7:32:39 GMT -8
Ok, so round about 10g then. Yea being diplomatic is usually better received , even if you are bending the truth slightly. I am usually diplomatic myself, unless their rude to me, then the gloves come off!  |
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Post by betty on Aug 2, 2020 1:23:05 GMT -8
Yes, LilyandDaisy - I do the skipped days too with them - just to make sure they eat up all the little bits they leave til last usually if they have anyway. On that day I still give them something fresh though - just incase they don't have any uneaten bits left anywhere!
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(joke).
), late 70s
