Rat food, what do you feed your babies?

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I thought that extrusion hamster blocks weren't good, I got them simply because I was in a bind. Now I feel better serving them. And my rats love them, haven't had them refuse food once.
 
Yep, Extrusion is what I feed as well. Nutriblock disappeared from any pet stores I've been to so Extrusion it is.
 
I always fed my mice nutriblock, a petstore in Edmonton reccomended it (they bred and said it kept their mice "glowing"). So when I got my rats I naturally searched for it. Then I started working at PJs Pets and they don't sell it. And Extrusion was all they had, so I bought that, figuring I could get nutriblock later on. Plus I had an employee discount. But I think nutriblock is around the same price, so I'm going back to that once this bag is done.

What stores is it available at?
 
I still make my own version of Suebee's mix for my rats, just as I have for the past several years. The mix includes:

-Kashi 7 Grain Puffed Cereal (stone ground whole: oats, hard red winter wheat, rye, long grain brown rice, triticale, buckwheat, barley)
-Corn Flakes
-Shreddies
-Cheerios
-Pearl Barley
-Dehydrated Veggie Flakes
-Dog Biscuits
-Banana Chips
-Dried Papaya
-Dried Pineapple
-Dried Cranberries, Blueberries, Currants, Raisins
-Soy Nuts
-Sunflower Seeds
-Tri-colored Pasta Elbows
-Multi-grain Croutons

They also get fresh fruits and vegetables, lab blocks, scrambled eggs, and stuff like that for treats.
 
I hope this helps: http://www.afrma.org/bc_ratdiet.htm

Growing rats need 3 times more protien, but still need low fat (5%). I've feed young rats dog food that meets the fat, protein and as many other requirements as you can from that list. I found it easier to walk through the dog food isle with the list of ideal ingredients and compare it to the various foods there. There are sooooo many different dog foods you'll eventually find something. Lab block is obviously preferred for adults.
 
I should add that I'm reasonably sure that last post will be shot down by the experts on here. I'm basing that on my previous track record here. :wallbang:
 
It was always the way to give young rats high protein. Then I found a few scientific studies proving that rats when weaned do not need high protein. I've noticed so many people won't accept change. But... these same people that do continue to feed high protein swear that their rats are indeed healthy. The only problem is that it can never be proven.
We would need to have a controlled study, where rats are fed a high protein diet, another group fed a low protein diet and then all the rats are allowed to live a normal happy life and once they pass they should have a postmortem to examine cause of death and also the state of the organs.
 
I agree with Jorats about the study thing with rats diets. I would love to see the results. For you people who feed Harlan and Oxbow, how much of each do you give? I only have 2 little girls who dont eat that much because they are small girls.
 
jennifervb said:
Good Lord! I will never understand why the (#@$%^**%#@#((&#@! system makes it so hard to get something as SIMPLE as FOOD for our animals!

Why in the &#$%%&! can't a pet supplier stock foods like Oxbow and Teklad instead of trying to poison our babies off with trash like Kaytee?

As far as shipping prices go... what is the U.S.A.'s problem??? DUH... Canada BORDERS the United States! You would think, with their shipping costs, that Canada was on another planet. :evil:

If I'm missing any valid points... please let me know. :)

I live in the USA, Michigan to be exact. Trust me, the shipping is no better for us coming from Canada. I have had things shipped from Canada and been appalled at the charges to get it here.

Better pet foods ust need to be made available everywhere for everyone. Its a shame that people have to jump through hoops to get something decent to feed their furry friends.

I use HT 2018 and its shipped from Pet Food Direct. A 40lb bag costs 13.00, add another 20.00 to ship it. Not so bad over all.
 
Ratlover101 said:
For you people who feed Harlan and Oxbow, how much of each do you give?
I free feed Oxbow (which gets mostly ignored) and give each rat four HT 2014 lab blocks daily along with fresh fruit and veggies.
 
anita1216 said:
jennifervb said:
Good Lord! I will never understand why the (#@$%^**%#@#((&#@! system makes it so hard to get something as SIMPLE as FOOD for our animals!

Why in the &#$%%&! can't a pet supplier stock foods like Oxbow and Teklad instead of trying to poison our babies off with trash like Kaytee?

As far as shipping prices go... what is the U.S.A.'s problem??? DUH... Canada BORDERS the United States! You would think, with their shipping costs, that Canada was on another planet. :evil:

If I'm missing any valid points... please let me know. :)

I live in the USA, Michigan to be exact. Trust me, the shipping is no better for us coming from Canada. I have had things shipped from Canada and been appalled at the charges to get it here.

Better pet foods ust need to be made available everywhere for everyone. Its a shame that people have to jump through hoops to get something decent to feed their furry friends.

I use HT 2018 and its shipped from Pet Food Direct. A 40lb bag costs 13.00, add another 20.00 to ship it. Not so bad over all.

This is a major pet peeve of mine as well, I've still got a freezerful of HT 2014 from MumsyRat's last HT run and I'm already stressing over how or when (if ever) I'll be able to get any more. And as for Canada/US shipping - let's not even go there! jennifervb forgot to mention duties and customs fees - add that to the exorbitant shipping charges and it simply isn't worth it anymore. But, it's so hard to resist - the U.S.A. is the on-line shopping capital of the world! Thankfully, I've got friends in who live Michigan. Any oversize packages or big ticket items get sent there. The downside is, I have to wait until we see other. I've learned to be patient and my friend has learned that when her mailing box starts filling up, we're coming down for a visit!
 
4 Harlan/rat? That seems like a lot for my little girls. I want them to eat their Oxbow even if they dont like it so would 1 or 2 blocks/day and free fed Oxbow be ok?
 
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