# Do mice need a muesli-type food?



## CuriousWhiskers (Mar 20, 2020)

I came across this and am a little confused. On the mouse forum that I am on, someone corrected me about this. There was a post saying that the person's mice were selectively eating just the seeds and not the pellets from their food mix(it's one of those seed mixes with colorful pellets mixed in). I suggested that they could feed an all pellet diet, assuming that it would be the same sort of thing with mice as with rats. Apparently not? They said that mice need to have a "diverse diet" and that feeding only pellets is taking away an important source of enrichment. I did a little research and a couple other websites said that as well. And now I'm a tad bit confused as to why it's different with mice and rats?


----------



## 511958 (Feb 11, 2019)

I believe it isn't much different, it's just that diet is a very controversial topic and you will find people who have different opinions. Some people believe mixes are better, as they provide a "diverse diet" as you said, and some people believe pellets are better. I personally believe both are okay, as long as they are made correctly, but I do favor pellets a bit. (for rats) Here's a little pro and con list I made below for you to consider.

*Pellets*
(the good ones)
-------------
Pros:

picky animals won't be able to choose and eat only their favorite bits
easier to feed
generally cheaper than (homemade) mixes
tried and true

Cons:
- more boring to eat (but you can use other forms of enrichment in the cage to stimulate them)

*Mixes*
-------------
Pros:

more fun to eat
you know exactly what goes into it (homemade mixes)
might be tastier

Cons:

practically ALL the mixes you can find (online and in stores) are unhealthy, so if you want to feed your pets a healthy diet, your only option is to make it (or buy it from Etsy sellers who make their own)
picky animals might only eat their favorite bits, leaving out nutrition
more expensive (homemade mixes)
difficult to make (homemade mixes)


----------



## _dizzy_ (Mar 28, 2018)

I've owned mice in the past and preferred feeding them pelleted mixes. It could be possible that they were referring to also feeding them veggies? Maybe they misunderstood and thought you meant just pellets?
I also think it depends on the mouse itself. If it's only eating one thing from it's mix then it's not getting the proper nutrition and should be switched to a pelleted diet. Seed mix food can be fed as a treat every now and then to provide enrichment.


----------

