Tag Archives: japanese persimmons

can guinea pigs eat sharon fruit

Can Guinea Pigs Eat Sharon Fruit?

Sharon fruit are also called persimmons.

They are eaten fresh, dried, raw, or cooked.

When eaten fresh, they are usually eaten whole like an apple in bite-size slices and may be peeled. One way to consume ripe Sharon fruit, which may have a soft texture, is to remove the top leaf with a paring knife and scoop out the flesh with a spoon.

Riper persimmons can also be eaten by removing the top leaf, breaking the fruit in half, and eating from the inside out.

The flesh ranges from firm to mushy, and, when firm owing to being unripe, has an apple-like crunch.

They are completely inedible until they are fully ripe.

Can guinea pigs eat Sharon fruit?

Let’s take a look at their nutritional data and find out more.

In particular, their acidic, water, sugar, fat, salt, calcium and phosphorus data is of most interest as far as guinea pigs are concerned.

Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)
Energy 293 kJ (70 kcal)
Carbohydrates
18.59 g
Sugars 12.53 g
Dietary fiber 3.6 g
Fat
0.19 g
Protein
0.58 g
Vitamins
Vitamin A equiv.
beta-Carotene
lutein zeaxanthin
(10%) 81 μg
(2%) 253 μg
834 μg
Thiamine (B1) (3%) 0.03 mg
Riboflavin (B2) (2%) 0.02 mg
Niacin (B3) (1%) 0.1 mg
Vitamin B6 (8%) 0.1 mg
Folate (B9) (2%) 8 μg
Choline (2%) 7.6 mg
Vitamin C (9%) 7.5 mg
Vit E (5%) 0.73 mg
Vitamin K (2%) 2.6 μg
Minerals
Calcium (1%) 8 mg
Iron (1%) 0.15 mg
Magnesium (3%) 9 mg
Manganese (17%) 0.355 mg
Phosphorus (2%) 17 mg
Potassium (3%) 161 mg
Sodium (0%) 1 mg
Zinc (1%) 0.11 mg

source wikipedia

As you can see, Sharon fruit contains a hint of salt and fat, calcium, quite a lot of acidic content and sugar.

This means that guinea  pigs can eat Sharon fruit but only in small amounts. They are just too acidic and sweet to be eaten regularly. So they are a nice treat for guinea pigs to eat.

A few pieces once a week is sufficient for them to back up their regular diet of hay, water, veggies and guinea pig mix/nuggets.

How should sharon fruit be eaten by guinea pigs?

Sharon fruit are eaten fresh, dried, and raw.

When eaten fresh, they are usually eaten whole like an apple in bite-size slices, and may be peeled.

Those that have a soft texture may not be as appealing to guinea pigs

Riper sharon fruit may be more appealing for them.

Just remove the top leaf, break the fruit into small pieces which are easy for them to consume.

They will prefer smaller pieces that they can easily manage.

Before feeding to them, make sure that it is washed thoroughly so any bacteria is removed for your piggies.

For more foods that guinea pigs can and can’t eat, check out our guinea pig food list.

can guinea pigs eat japanese persimmons

Can Guinea Pigs eat Japanese Persimmons?

We’ve already had a look at American Persimmons, but did you know that there was another type of Persimmon? Okay you did.

Japanese persimmons are very popular in and around Asia. They are sweet and slightly tangy with an occasional fibrous texture that has a crisp firm state.

It is best eaten when allowed to rest and soften slightly after harvest.

So can guinea pigs eat Japanese Persimmons, and if they can how much of them can they eat?

Lets take a look by looking closely at their nutritional data.

In particular, we’re interested in their calcium, acidic, phosphorus, fat and sugar content.
Energy 293 kJ (70 kcal)
Carbohydrates 18.59 g
– Sugars 12.53 g
– Dietary fiber 3.6 g
Fat 0.19 g
Protein 0.58 g
Vitamin A equiv. 81 μg (10%)
– beta-carotene 253 μg (2%)
– lutein and zeaxanthin 834 μg
Thiamine (vit. B1) 0.03 mg (3%)
Riboflavin (vit. B2) 0.02 mg (2%)
Niacin (vit. B3) 0.1 mg (1%)
Vitamin B6 0.1 mg (8%)
Folate (vit. B9) 8 μg (2%)
Choline 7.6 mg (2%)
Vitamin C 7.5 mg (9%)
Vitamin E 0.73 mg (5%)
Vitamin K 2.6 μg (2%)
Calcium 8 mg (1%)
Iron 0.15 mg (1%)
Magnesium 9 mg (3%)
Manganese 0.355 mg (17%)
Phosphorus 17 mg (2%)
Potassium 161 mg (3%)
Sodium 1 mg (0%)
Zinc 0.11 mg (1%)

source wikipedia

As you can see, Japanese persimmons, have a hint of phosphorus, calcium and fat. However they are a little acidic and also contain a lot of sugar.

They contain a decent amount of vitamin c.

With this in mind guinea pigs can eat Japanese persimmons but only once a week unlike their American persimmon relative.