Most of the times, when you don't know if a food
item is good or not for your animal, you better don't try to give it to
your animal. Here is a list of the main food items that aren't good for
gerbils.
Chocolate:
It contains a chemical substance called: theobromine.
According to http://chemistry.about.com,
this substance is very toxic to gerbils and even for all other pets as cats,
dogs, horses, etc. Animal cannot digest this substance as we do and get
intoxicated by it. It as the same effect then caffeine but a little less
pronounced. Heart attack can occur in serious cases.
Citrus fruits
of any kind
It
might be because of the acidity of that kind of fruit. I don't know the
exact causes. Did you know that we are one of the only animals that can't
produce their own vitamin C? Guinea pig and some primates need to eat
something that contains vitamin C if they don't want to die from scurvy,
just like us.
Unbaked
eggs
The bacteria, salmonella, is sometimes present in
eggs. To get rid of it, just baked the eggs to kill all bacteria. Be aware
that if salmonella infects your gerbil, touching the feaces of the gerbils
can also infect you. Diarrhoea is the main symptom and can be deadly to
your gerbil.
Everything
that contains to much water,
il
y
a
danger
de
diarrhée
ce
qui
est
très
dangereux
pour
les
petits
rongeurs. Vous pouvez leur donner des fruits et des légumes mais toujours en
petite quantité.
Alcohol
One
drop of alcohol won't cure a gerbil cold. Avoid any kind of alcoholic beverage.
Coffee
and tea
Those beverages contain caffeine that is very
dangerous for small animals. Gerbils are already nervous enough! Don't give them
coffee!
Fruit
seeds
Seeds
from fruits contain something close to cyanide. This can kill your
animal.
