Can Mice Eat Sunflower Seeds? (Here’s Why It’s Not Recommended)

It’s no secret that mice love sunflower seeds. So, can mice eat sunflower seeds as part of their balanced diet, or are they a treat? – I’ll explain.

The bottom line is that sunflower seeds should be given to your mice as occasional treats. If at all. (Personally, I stopped giving them to my mice)

I’ve discussed this with mice breeders and some have expressed concerns that a diet rich in sunflower seeds increases the chances of tumors, obesity, and other health concerns.

One of the issues with sunflower seeds, and other nuts and corns is that there is always a risk of contamination.

These foods are passed as suitable for consumption even if they have low levels of contamination as it’s not harmful to us.

But mice are a lot smaller than us! So tiny amounts of toxins are potentially harmful.

There is also a chemical that mice produce when digesting corn that is believed to increase the risk of tumours, so it’s better to be safe than sorry and stay away from sunflower seeds.

Your mice need a nice balanced diet of whole grains, occasional fruits and vegetables as treats, and some form of proteins.