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05-11-2009XtraVital Degu Gets Thumbs Up
Approval from the Experts
Article written by Chloe V. Long, founder of Degutopia
The degu (Octodon degus) is a relatively new companion animal that has been growing in popularity in the UK (as well as Europe, the US and even Japan) over the last couple of decades. Originating solely from central Chile, degus are charming caviomorph rodents (being closely related to chinchillas and guinea pigs), strictly herbivorous and adapted to a high-fibre diet, consisting in the wild of mostly dried vegetation throughout much of the year. It is widely believed that degus came to human attention through a curious aspect of their physiology; degus have an unusual insulin structure and are unable to tolerate the regular intake of free sugars in the diet, developing diabetes quickly if they do so. Therefore in the 1950’s degu specimens were collected for study, eventually finding their way into north America and Europe, where their bubbly characters and larger-than-life personalities soon saw them becoming available on the pet market.
Degus are generally easy to keep and low-maintenance small pets, however the confusion over what they are and are not allowed to eat has been a sticking point for many owners and owners-to-be. In fact, as long as a few simple rules are followed, this need not be an issue. The key factors to be considered are the need for a high fibre, low protein and low sugar diet, just as degus are adapted to consume in the wild. A few commercial diets formulated specifically for the degu are available (some better than others), making life much easier for the anxious owner. At Degutopia we put these feeds to the test, trialing and analysing their suitability for degu maintenance based on the requirements of the degu, to help make the owners’ decision that little bit easier.
In 2009, Beaphar released a new version of their XtraVital Degu feed mix, which got us very excited! The ingredients and nutritional breakdown of the feed matched the requirements of the degu perfectly (all ‘green’ according to our ‘traffic light’ rating system), and it performed very well in our small feed trial. In addition to this, the diet performed exceptionally well in our preference tests, with 42 % of our degus choosing XtraVital Degu over the other three diets on offer. We came to the conclusion that, in addition to ad lib. fresh hay and occasional fresh vegetable matter, Beaphar’s XtraVital Degu was one of the best degu-specific diets currently available for degu maintenance. Degutopia gives it a big thumbs-up, and so do our degus!
Degutopia is a non-profit degu welfare organisation that provides free, impartial advice for degu owners, enthusiasts and researchers based on published scientific findings. Our website is fully referenced and provides the ultimate resource for the degu fanatic, with details of care, housing, physiology, health and of course diet, plus a whole lot more!
Further details about degu diet can be found on the ‘Degu Care- Diet’ section of Degutopia’s website:
http://www.degutopia.co.uk/degudiet.htm
The full feed trial report for XtraVital Degu can be found via the ‘About Degutopia- Articles’ section:
http://www.degutopia.co.uk/XVDFeedTrialReport.pdf
The degu (Octodon degus) is a relatively new companion animal that has been growing in popularity in the UK (as well as Europe, the US and even Japan) over the last couple of decades. Originating solely from central Chile, degus are charming caviomorph rodents (being closely related to chinchillas and guinea pigs), strictly herbivorous and adapted to a high-fibre diet, consisting in the wild of mostly dried vegetation throughout much of the year. It is widely believed that degus came to human attention through a curious aspect of their physiology; degus have an unusual insulin structure and are unable to tolerate the regular intake of free sugars in the diet, developing diabetes quickly if they do so. Therefore in the 1950’s degu specimens were collected for study, eventually finding their way into north America and Europe, where their bubbly characters and larger-than-life personalities soon saw them becoming available on the pet market.
Degus are generally easy to keep and low-maintenance small pets, however the confusion over what they are and are not allowed to eat has been a sticking point for many owners and owners-to-be. In fact, as long as a few simple rules are followed, this need not be an issue. The key factors to be considered are the need for a high fibre, low protein and low sugar diet, just as degus are adapted to consume in the wild. A few commercial diets formulated specifically for the degu are available (some better than others), making life much easier for the anxious owner. At Degutopia we put these feeds to the test, trialing and analysing their suitability for degu maintenance based on the requirements of the degu, to help make the owners’ decision that little bit easier.
In 2009, Beaphar released a new version of their XtraVital Degu feed mix, which got us very excited! The ingredients and nutritional breakdown of the feed matched the requirements of the degu perfectly (all ‘green’ according to our ‘traffic light’ rating system), and it performed very well in our small feed trial. In addition to this, the diet performed exceptionally well in our preference tests, with 42 % of our degus choosing XtraVital Degu over the other three diets on offer. We came to the conclusion that, in addition to ad lib. fresh hay and occasional fresh vegetable matter, Beaphar’s XtraVital Degu was one of the best degu-specific diets currently available for degu maintenance. Degutopia gives it a big thumbs-up, and so do our degus!
Degutopia is a non-profit degu welfare organisation that provides free, impartial advice for degu owners, enthusiasts and researchers based on published scientific findings. Our website is fully referenced and provides the ultimate resource for the degu fanatic, with details of care, housing, physiology, health and of course diet, plus a whole lot more!
Further details about degu diet can be found on the ‘Degu Care- Diet’ section of Degutopia’s website:
http://www.degutopia.co.uk/degudiet.htm
The full feed trial report for XtraVital Degu can be found via the ‘About Degutopia- Articles’ section:
http://www.degutopia.co.uk/XVDFeedTrialReport.pdf
