Hay
Besides this, they need unlimited access to fresh hay. Hay is important to wear down their teeth and keep the stomach healthy. I give them hay in a hay ball to keep it nice and clean for them to eat. The are some disagreements about what kind of hay they should have. Some sites say that they should only be given brown-ish hay not green-ish, while others say that they should be given timothy. As far as I'm concerned, there is nothing wrong with some good meadow hay or timothy hay from the local pet shop, unless it shows signs of mold or such of course.
There is a lot of controversy about wether or not they should be given Alfalfa. Some sites say that it's good for them since it contains a lot of calcium, and other sites say that it's bad for them for the same reason. It does contain a lot of both calcium and protein, which might be harmful to both liver and kidneys. But of course it would only be harmful in large quantities.
I give my degus a pinch of alfalfa a week, and they really love it. Other than that I give my degus oat straw too, and they do chew on it a little bit, but they seem to be much more interested on playing around in it and dragging it into their house. |
Types of hay
- Alfalfa - Bromegrass - Fescue - Oat straw - Orchardgrass - Timothy - Meadow hays - Readigrass |