New Look Nuggets

Your small pets’ favourite nuggets now have a brand-new look!

Rabbit nuggets, guinea pig nuggets and other varieties of nuggets for small pets may not look very exciting from the outside – but inside, they’re packed full of fibre and all the vitamins and minerals your small pets need to help them stay healthy and happy.

Designed to capture all the nutritional benefits of fresh grass, which fibrevores such as rabbits, guinea pigs and chinchillas, would naturally eat in the wild, and to prevent selective feeding (a real problem with muesli-style foods, causing dental and digestion issues) all Burgess Excel small pets nuggets, feeding hay and healthy treats are made using only the finest quality ingredients at Burgess’s own factory in the heart of Yorkshire.

In fact, did you know it was Burgess Pet Care that developed the UK’s first single component nugget for rabbits to prevent selective feeding and the world’s first food specifically formulated for indoor rabbits?

Look out for the new look!

The company’s latest innovation is to give the Excel nuggets packaging a whole new look –with bold, bright colours and gorgeous new photography – so that your small pets’ favourite food really stands out and is easy to spot in-store.

In-house vet, Dr Suzanne Moyes, explains: “We’ve updated the packaging based on feedback from our customers, simplifying the layout to make the key product benefits clearer so it’s even easier for owners to choose the best product for their small animals. For example, 81% of rabbit owners and 60% of guinea pig owners told us that dental health was very important to them, so we’ve added a new ‘Don’t forget the hay for dental health’ logo to our packs. We’ve also slightly tweaked the formulations for our best-selling Adult Rabbit with Mint and Guinea Pig with Mint nuggets. There are no changes to the ingredients, but we’ve slightly increased the fibre levels.”

You’ll also see a new ‘muesli free’ logo on the back of all the new packaging. Dr Moyes adds: “We hope this will help spread awareness about the problems that can be caused by selective feeding in some small animals.”

Got a question about the new-look Burgess Excel nuggets packaging? Keep reading to find the answers in our Q&A below.

Why nuggets are the best choice for small pets

Muesli has the reputation of being a healthy, nutritious food for humans and the same approach has been used when marketing muesli-type foods for small pets. Unfortunately, the opposite is true. While pet owners may think they’re buying a healthy mix of tasty nibbles, feeding a muesli mix to small pets such as rabbits, guinea pigs and chinchillas, can result in all sorts of health problems.

Research undertaken by The University of Edinburgh revealed that muesli-based diets encourage selective feeding, where small pets eat some high starch/sugar components of the muesli diet, while rejecting the nutritious and fibre rich elements. This can cause painful teeth problems and lead to an imbalanced diet.

The best way to ensure your small pets are getting everything they need from their diet is to stick to the 5-step Excel Feeding Plan, which was developed in conjunction with one of the world’s leading small animal vets for rabbits, guinea pigs and chinchillas. This will provide your small pets with the perfect daily balance of fibre and nutrition.

Big care for small pets

• Whether your rabbits live indoors or outdoors, are young and playful or enjoying their golden years, there’s a Burgess Excel nugget just for them. Burgess specialist life stage nuggets contain the vitamins and minerals to supplement your rabbits’ diet. Shop for your rabbits >>

• As a prey species, both indoor guinea pigs and outdoor guinea pigs can suffer from stress without outwardly showing it, so Burgess has created a unique calm formula with added L-tryptophan, a serotonin precursor which has a role in the regulation of stress. Shop for your guinea pigs >>

• Excel chinchilla nuggets have added mint for extra tastiness and are suitable for herbivores that need a high-fibre, low-energy diet. Also suitable for degus. Shop for your chinchillas and degus >>

• Excel hamster nuggets contain the right amount of protein, fibre and other nutrients that hamsters, and dwarf hamsters need to help maintain a healthy lifestyle and are also suitable for gerbils and mice. Shop for your hamsters, gerbils and mice >>

• Excel rat nuggets have been formulated with vets and nutritionists to make sure that they contain all of the nutrients your rats need in every tasty mouthful. Shop for your rats >>

• Excel ferret nuggets have high levels of balanced protein, including fish and chicken, to help support healthy muscle formation and added calcium to support bone health. Shop for your ferrets >>

Burgess Excel nuggets Q&A

Q: Why have you changed the pack design?

A: Based on customer feedback we’ve updated our design to modernise it and make the product benefits clearer on the front of our packs, so it is easier to choose which one is right for your small pets.

Q: Have you changed the recipes?

A: We have slightly tweaked some of our recipes to increase the levels of beneficial fibre, but the top-quality ingredients and careful method of processing remain the same. We haven’t added anything new or taken anything out, so you don’t have to worry about transitioning to the new varieties.

Q: Why have you changed the recipes?

A: The new recipes have higher levels of fibre which is important for rabbits and guinea pigs. Remember that 85%-90% of your rabbit or guinea pigs’ diet should be fresh grass or feeding hay.

Q: Will the changes affect the taste?

A: We have tested the new formulations on some of our own animals and they all enjoyed munching away on their nuggets as usual! This wasn’t a surprise given the very small changes to the recipes that we’ve made.

Q: Have the 1.5kg bags replaced the 2kg bags?

A: With the exception of Excel Ferret Nuggets, all our 2kg nuggets will change to 1.5kg as our customer research reveals that this pack size is better suited to the majority of small pet owners’ needs.

Q: What is the recyclability of the bags?

A: The majority of our bags are recyclable in large supermarkets.

Ever wondered why 92% of vets recommend our Burgess Excel small pets range? It could be down to the exceptional care we take with our grass...

At Burgess, all our small pets nuggets, feeding hay and healthy treats are made using only the finest quality ingredients that meet our stringent specifications and homegrown grass that’s exclusive to Burgess – no other pet food manufacturer has access to our grass!

By choosing Burgess and Burgess Excel pet foods, you know you can feed your pets with complete confidence. And, by signing up to Subscribe & Save, it’s easier than ever to give them the top quality, tasty, nutritious food they deserve, every single mealtime. Simply:

1. Choose your pet’s favourite Burgess Excel tasty feeding hay or selected Burgess Excel rabbit and guinea pig nuggets and click on the Subscribe & Save 10% option
2. Decide how often you’d like your food delivered
3. Head to the checkout and complete as normal – then sit back and relax, knowing that your order will be delivered straight to your door!

Helping you to help your small pets live their best lives

At Burgess Pet Care, we’re focused on helping pets and pet people understand more about the importance of healthy nutrition and caring for their animal companions in the best way possible. Here are some of the ways we can help:

• Got a question about caring for your pets or about the best way of feeding them? Ask our vet >>

• Looking for helpful advice for your pets? We’ve lots of great tips to help you give your animals the best life on our pet care pages >>

Are your small pets Burgess small pets? Join the Burgess Pet Club for exclusive offers and rewards.

LET’S GET SOCIAL Sign up to the Excel Bunny Base – a safe Facebook community for rabbit guardians that are looking for advice and friendly discussions from likeminded owners – and there are lots of cute bunny photos and videos! Also join us on Instagram. Or why not become part of the Excel Squeak Squad on Facebook? Join Berry & Bramble, our special G-force guinea pigs, on weekly missions and fun competitions.

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