Can Chinchillas Eat Cheerios?

Cheerios are a delicious and nutritious family treat that can be found in every convenience store. Be it for breakfast or just for treats, this brand of cereals captures the hearts of many people all around the world.

Aside from humans, Cheerios can also be fed to animals such as chinchillas.

Chinchillas can eat Cheerios and they will love them. These cereals are totally safe for your furry pets if fed in moderation. This is due to the high amount of phosphorus in Cheerios that can create a calcium-phosphorus imbalance in the Chinchillas’ diet.

The best ratio for their diet should be around a 2 to 1 ratio of calcium to phosphorus. This ratio can’t be achieved by eating Cheerios that only have 1 to 1.

This table from the USDA National Nutrient Database shows every nutrient that can be found in Cheerios.

Not all of these nutrients are healthy if eaten in large quantities by Chinchillas.

Amount Per Serving	Amount
Saturated Fat (0.5g)	3%
Trans Fat	0 g
Polyunsaturated Fat	0.5 g
Monosaturated Fat	0.5 g
Calories	100
Calories From Fat	15
Cholestrol (0mg)	0%
Total Fat (2g)	3%
Total Carbohydrate (20g)	7%
Dietary Fiber (3g)	11%
Soluble Fiber	1 g
Sugars	1 g
Protein	3 g
Other Carbohydrate	16 g
Vitamin A	10%
Vitamin C	10%
Vitamin D	10%
Sodium (140 mg)	6%
Potassium (180 mg)	5%
Vitamin B6	25%
Vitamin B12	25%
Phosphorus	10%
Magnesium	8%
Zinc	25%
Calcium	10%
Iron	45%
Thiamin	25%
Riboflavin	2%
Niacin	25%
Folic Acid	50%

From the nutritional data, Cheerios contain a high percentage of calcium and phosphorus, which could lead to the imbalance of these two nutrients in the Chinchillas’ diet. Aside from that, Cheerios do provide many nutrients that are beneficial to Chinchillas.

What types of Cheerios can chinchillas eat?

Cheerios come in different types and flavors. Choosing the one that won’t affect Chinchillas’ health is always the best option.

So, we will take a look at these 6 most popular varieties and make a comparison as to which is the healthiest and least harmful to your pets.

This table only includes essential macronutrients that are needed by Chinchillas:

Varieties	Original Cheerios	Protein Cheerios	Frosted Cheerios	Fruity Cheerios	Chocolate Cheerios	Multigrain Cheerios
Carbohydrate	9.4 g	76.19 g	79.8 g	84.19 g	82.5 g	81.4 g
Protein	12.09 g	12.26 g	9 g	5.8 g	5.8 g	8.3 g
Fiber	9.4 g	7.1 g	7.5 g	5.2 g	6.2 g	8.7 g
Phosphorus	481 mg	413 mg	296 mg	222 mg	222 mg	276 mg
Calcium	401 mg	343 mg	370 mg	370 mg	370 mg	345 mg
Sugar	4.36 g	29.43 g	32 g	32.2 g	34.09 g	21.2 g
Fat	6.73 g	5.08 g	4.69 g	4.59 g	5.09 g	4.09 g
Water	5.13 g	3.49 g	2.2 g	2.2 g	2.2 g	2.5 g
Energy	376 kcal	378 kcal	376 kcal	381 kcal	380 kcal	370 kcal

Based on the data above, we can’t conclude that all of these varieties are truly healthy for Chinchillas. But the healthiest one would be the Original Cheerios.

This is because the original variety contains the highest amount of protein and fiber with the least amount of sugar, which is 4.36g per 100g.

However, this doesn’t mean your Chinchillas can eat as much Original Cheerios as they want. You still have to feed these cereals to them in moderation due to the unbalanced ratio of calcium to phosphorus.

Keeping a low amount of sugar in Chinchillas’ diet is quite important to ensure that they don’t become overweight. Foods that are high in sugar can also cause some dental issues in Chinchillas.