Product Review: Ecotrition Snak Shak Activity Log

Today, we're going to review Ecotrition Snak Shak Activity Log. We reviewed a similar product a while back: Ecotrition Snak Shak Natural Hideaway. The primary difference between these two products is that this one is shaped like a log, while that one was shaped like a hut.

That looks fun to chew on.

It is fun to chew on! What's in this thing, by the way?

Like the other Snak Shak product we reviewed, we loved chewing on this one, and we did try walking through it. However, we didn't find this one fun to hide inside of like the hut. Also, we have the same concerns about the ingredients as we had with the other Snak Shak. These things are made with pine wood and honey; while not dangerous (in moderation), it's not the healthiest thing we could eat, either. We'll give it 4/5 stars.

Ask A Guinea Pig: Can Guinea Pigs Eat Scotch Fingers?

Myshala Forster asks: "my lil piggy Topdeck goes crazy when I'm eating scotch fingers and if I put them down to grab something for him to chew on he runs to the plate eating the scotch fingers, are they dangerous for him??"

Answer: We have to admit that we had never heard of a "scotch finger" before your question, so we had to use Google to figure out what it is. Apparently, Scotch Fingers are "the most popular plain sweet biscuit in Australia... The biscuit has a lovely melt-in-the-mouth texture, which is the result of our bakers using a combination of butter, eggs, condensed milk and a special soft flour."

This sounds like good human food (for an occasional treat), but not good guinea pig food. Processed foods in general should be avoided. Also, flour is typically made from wheat, and grains are not well digested by guinea pigs. In addition, dairy should not be fed to guinea pigs, with the exception of baby guinea pigs drinking their mother's milk, because we are lactose intolerant as adults.

Notice how we're eating the strawberries and Oxbow treats, and not the chocolates behind us. 

So we've established that they are definitely not good and should not be a regular part of your guinea pig's diet, but are they actually dangerous if your piggy sneaks in a bite or two while you're not looking? Probably not, but you should still be cautious. Here's the advice that was given to the owner of a guinea pig who ate some saltine crackers: keep a close eye on your piggy afterwards, and make sure that they're eating hay, drinking water, and pooping normally. If anything seems abnormal, take your piggy to the vet. Alternatively, you can call ASPCA's animal poison control number (888-426-4435). (Or, in your case, whatever the Australian equivalent of the ASPCA is.)

Got more questions for us? Feel free to Ask A Guinea Pig!

Guinea Pig Valentine's Day!

Can Guinea Pigs Eat Broccolini?

No, that's not a typo in the post title. Broccolini is a hybrid between regular broccoli and Chinese broccoli. It's also known as broccolette. In terms of feeding, treat broccolini like broccoli and only feed it 1-2 times per week sparingly since it's a gassy food.

Yum!

Delicious!

Broccoli, will you share with me? Ah! Don't be mean! I was just asking!

Broccolini is really good! 5/5 stars!

Product Review: Super Pet Music Chews Modern

If you look at most of the toys we've reviewed up to this point, most of them have been homemade toys, like oatmeal containers and paper bags. Today, we're going to review a professionally-made toy: Super Pet Music Chews Modern, which we got as part of our prize for winning the carrot-carving contest.

Uh-oh. Guinea pigs are just one of several animals this product is made for. That's never a good sign.

What the heck is that thing? Doesn't look like fun.

What's that in my food bowl? Oh, it's that same boring toy from before. You moved it. Great.

The back of the package says: "Simply slide any of our wide assortment of chews onto a Super Pet Ka-Bob dispenser." We admit that we didn't have this dispenser in our cage, but we can't imagine liking this thing any more if it was hanging down. Sorry, but this toy is just not fun for us. We had no interest in chewing on it. Maybe hamsters and rabbits would like it better, but there should not be guinea pigs on the front of their package. 1/5 stars.

Can Guinea Pigs Eat Green Leaf Lettuce?

We guinea pigs love almost all forms of greenery, but a classic green food that we love is lettuce. We've tried different forms of lettuce in the past, but we hadn't tried "green leaf lettuce" before. This type of lettuce is curly, crunchy, and a nice grassy green color. Green leaf lettuce can be fed to us almost daily.

I'm staying back. Those two are having dominance issues!

See? Broccoli points his head aggressively at Lola...

...and then Lola points her head aggressively right back!

While Lola and Broccoli had their aggressive rivalry for dominance, I sneaked pieces of lettuce and ate them alone in the back. One thing all three of us can agree on is that green leaf lettuce gets 5/5 stars!