Degu treat balls

[woodchip]

I thought I'd have a go at making some sort of treat ball for the girls, so I looked at the recipe posted by DC here (http://deguworld.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=health&action=display&thread=6023) and modified it (heavily).

The ingredients are as follows.

75g wholemeal flour
75g porridge oats (sugar free, etc...)
25g flaked rice (available from Sainsbury's - not sure about anywhere else)
1/2 teaspoon of vegetable oil
water to bind

Then follow DC's cooking instructions...

1. Preheat the oven to 200 ºC
2. Mix all the dry ingredients together
3. Add the oil and mix thoroughly
4. Add the water little by little until the mixture forms a stiff paste
5. Take a tiny bit of mixture between your thumb and forefinger and roll the mixture into little balls. These should be small enough for your degu to handle, about 1 cm across (note that they will not rise)
6. Place the balls on a baking tray (no need to grease)
7. Bake on the top shelf of the oven for 10-15 minutes until golden brown
Allow to cool thoroughly, the treats will be crunchy and very tasty (try one yourself!)

They don't taste very exciting to Lollie or I, but Willow and Buffy seem to enjoy them.

[lollie24]

which is a first as Buffy is a fussy eater

[Frivalicious]

Nice, I like the idea of that Might have to try it!
Is this the sort of treat that should only be given now and then or are they ok with it as a day to day treat?

[lollie24]

they are ok with it as a day to day treat but only a small amount ie one as we dont want any overweight goos

[Frivalicious]

Alright! Thanks, are deffo gonna make some for my little babies then. I got four, 16 weeks old lol

[woodchip]

The amounts above made 62 little balls, so you may want to reduce or increase the amounts accordingly.

Oh, and they taste quite nice when dipped in honey.

EDIT: As you've only got little ones I'd probably give them half each, and probably every other day just to be on the safe side. Don't want podgy goos.

[Frivalicious]

No i can see how that would be sensible. Two of them are quite tiny and the other two are larger, without looking fat. The treats would only be treats for when they are out of the cage anyway, a good motivation to come out and play with me lol.