My pet mouse is fat. What food and exercise does he really need?

A few things you can try are using a smaller dish for your rat and make sure to wash it weekly, daily if need be. One just big enough to hold one feeding block is plenty. And feed fortified food. These foods can be found in either “block” or “seed” type forms, and a mixture of both is recommended. If you’re trying to help your rat lose weight, feed it no more than 3 tablespoons per day. Rat blocks contain a complete supply of vitamins and minerals. And avoid the generic “rodent formula” foods available at pet stores, as these often don’t provide an adequate amount of protein for your rat. Limit treats. One tablespoon of chopped fruit or vegetable is the best treat for your rat. Including apples, strawberries, bananas, and squash as treats rather than regular part of your rat’s diet will help support its weight loss. Feed treats in a separate dish from your rat's regular food and make sure to clean the treat bowl daily. Feed her at night, when she is most active, and if you notice her stashing food in her cage, you're giving her too much. Rats are intelligent animals who need a great deal of mental stimulation and activity. If you’re trying to help your rat lose weight, making sure it has plenty of activities will help it stay healthy and happy. If you have room, buy or bulild a multi level cage so she has to climb from level to level and feed her at the top or bottom and put her nest area at the other end. Play with her, they love interaction with their people. Provide an exercise wheel, tunnels, igloos, ropes, ladders, blocks, and child or baby safe toys for your rat to play with. Wooden gnawing blocks make great chew toys. You can also offer rawhide chew sticks or hard dog biscuits. Old soup bones or chicken bones are fine for a rat to chew on

I would cut back the amount of hamster food and treats you offer him. If you feed him fruit or fruit based treats, I would cut this back as well. Finally I would increase his exercise. You may try to get a ball and let him run around the house in the ball a few times per day. You can also give him a wheel if he doesn’t already have one. I hope this helps!

The short answer is no. Cheese simply isn't an appropriate component of any pet mouse diet. Cheese offers no nutritional value to mice and therefore just isn't appropriate or safe. A healthy mouse diet calls for a balanced commercial mouse food. Mouse food is available at most pet supply retailers; it often comes in the form of pellets or blocks. Seed mix is another common option. It is recommended that you feed your mouse a single tablespoon of this ration every day -- nothing more, nothing less. Although you'll cross cheese off the "Suitable Mouse Snacks" list, all human treats are not out the window. If you want to reward your sweet mouse with something yummy and different once in a while, choices to consider include blueberries, apples, cauliflowers, carrots, bananas, zucchini, cucumbers and peas. Before allowing your mouse to munch on any of these fresh items, rinse them carefully and chop them up into small, mouse-friendly nibbles. Keep portions minimal. Excessive amounts may lead to belly distress. Again, a teaspoon is enough -- serve it just a couple times a week, though. Hope this helps. Best wishes!

It depends on how much he gained. Mice can range between 30 and 45 grams. If he weighs more, consider having him examined by your veterinarian to diagnose any medical causes, then consider adjusting his diet to maintain a healthier weight.

You can supplement her commercial pellets or blocks with a small amount of fresh fruit (apple, blueberries, strawberries, etc), some fresh greens and a small amount of vegetables (cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, etc). Be sure to remove any uneaten food after 8-10 hours.

Hello, This is a great question. This food should be fine for your hamster since they have similar teeth to rats and mice. However, seeds are very high in fat and have little vitamin content. Therefore, they’re considered “junk food” and really should be a minority of the diet. A rodent block type food (the ones that are very boring looking, tan, and all look the same) would be idea as he majorly of the diet. These rodent blocks come in different sizes for rats vs hamsters but they’re likely the same formulation.

Thanks for reaching out about Oreo. Are you sure they are both males? Some animals grow at different rates. Is the smaller one skinny? Diseases such as bacterial/parasitic enteritis, metabolic disorders, dental disease, can all prevent weight gain. Weight can be controlled by offering a balanced diet which is pellets, versus seed which is high in fat. If the problem persists, a veterinary visit should be scheduled. Good luck.