Proper rat diet or an alternative?
well I'm pretty positive I'm feeding my rats everything they should be getting which includes, regular rat mix, fresh water, fruits and vegetables. So my interrogate is.. I have three girl rats and they eat so much together that I go through one small pack of regular rat mix from the pet store like in 3-5 weeks. Now is there something else i can manufacture them at home for them to eat to switch it up and bit. Is there food bowl supposed to be complete all the time or are you only supposed to fill it within the morning and when its gone its gone until the next day? Please just any food suggestion would be great!
Rats need a nutritious, well balanced diet - actually terribly similar to what we as humans ought to be eating instead of the junk we usually put into our systems. This medium not the stuff you find in pet stores! Check out Suebee's diet here: http://www.ratsrule.com/diet.html . The foods found in pet stores are not nutritionally balanced, and generally turn out to be a waste of money, as rats don't eat most of what's in them. Harlan-Teklad (http://www.teklad.com) lab blocks are also an excellent food and are 100% nutritionally total. If you are unable to use harlan-teklad, a low-calorie, low-protein (under 10-12% is best) dog food such as the light blue Low Calorie Natural Balance dog food works well as a substitute within CONJUNCTION with Suebee's mix (a staple diet is mentioned on that link). If you cannot find Natural Balance dog food, Nutro Natural Choice Lite works alright too. The key is low calorie, low protein! A mixture of fresh fruits and veggies are important at tiniest 2 times a week or more.
Here is a list of foods that are safe, not safe, and food mixes appropriate for rats: http://www.bruxnboggle.com/forum/viewtop...
Rats can eat pretty much everything. Cooked pasta is good; bread, chicken, small amounts of cheese, rice, you can nurture them leftovers from your dinners of chicken fajitas, spaghetti and marinara, even a little yogurt, just nought with too much fat like ground beef. Rats will one and only eat as much as they need, so feed them as much as they similar to.
Answers: Store bought rat mix is not the best option and should be avoided whenever possible. Lab blocks are a great option (Mazuri lab blocks available at PetSmart or Harlan Teklad available online- HT is the best of the two). Otherwise Oxbow Regal Rat is a fantastic store bought food, but some rats eliminate to eat it.
Home made food is always a great option.
Suebee's mix is a popular odds:
http://www.ratsrule.com/diet.html
The best home made diet out there is http://www.ratfanclub.org/diet.html
Make sure you aren't feed too many fruits or vegitables. Daily feedings should be avioded of these as they can cause runny stool. As for feeding times, once a morning is fine. Too much food can cause an overweight rat. Weigh your kiddos once a week to make sure they are maintain a good weight. Females tend to stick around 1 pound, but can be over or under that cargo. A food scale is inexpensive and can be invaluable to you. A rat that gains or loses weight contained by a week should see a vet. As I was weighing one of my own girls weekly, I was competent to catch a health problem before it get serious when I saw her weight was going down.
Please feel free to email me next to any further questions.
Good luck!
First: do not feed them a pip mix, its very bad for them and not near nutritionally total. Feed lab blocks.
Second: always have a staple dry food available. Rats' blood sugar is too unstable for them to go too long lacking a few nibbles of food. If they have a stash of food tucked somewhere in their cage you don't requirement to refill the bowl right away, but if they are intake it right away and not hoarding it then you should give them more.
Third: fruits and veggies should be fixed to about a 1" cube per rat per day so they don't take too much of one nutrient. You can give them a few different fresh foods daily but no more than a cube of respectively.
Last: is it a 2-pound bag? That should last them a week at most. They sound resembling they are being underfed.
I had rats a few years ago and we pretty much just fed them pet store food and kept their food bowl full adjectives the time. They lived a little longer than average rats and all died from tumors :( which is common within rats. They weren't fat either just average size. Good choice in pet. I would say just hang on to them stocked on food and water and clean their cage and they should live a long positive life :). Hope i helped!
