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Feeding Your Rats |
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Rats and Chocolate
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Food really is for life, and diet can make all the difference to your rat's health and longevity. We all know what is healthy food and what isn't, but we still like to fill our shelves, and our stomachs, with junk. OK, you have the choice, but your rats live on whatever type of food you give them. Even if you can't stop yourself from eating junk food, at least feed your rats the type of foods that we would all benefit from. The main bulk of your rat's food should be grains and seeds, and there are specially prepared mixes for rats in most pet shops. Reggie Rat or Burgess Supa Rat in the UK, and probably rat blocks in the USA. These, however, do not provide all the nutrients your rat needs for a well balanced, healthy diet. They may also include preservatives, colorants and pesticides. It's not too difficult to make up your own rat mix, and Debbie Ducommun has produced her own recipe at The Rat Fan Club Diet. This is fine for those of you in the USA, but the ingredients are difficult to find (if not impossible) in the UK. Variety is the spice of life, or so they say, and we've tried to include a variety of ingredients in the mix. Some can be found in most store cupboards, many in health food shops, and others you may have to look around for. If you're going to try the mix, don't worry too much if you can't find certain ingredients. It's astounding how difficult it is to find dried peas these days! We usually top up the mix with some more cooked brown rice, which is a huge favourite of ours. If you can't get hold of the preparatory rat mixes, please don't be tempted to give your rat hamster or gerbil food. It is totally unsuitable and has far too many sunflower seeds and peanuts, which are high in protein and fat. A diet too high in protein can lead to hot spots and skin irritation. If your rat has spots and scabs, usually around the neck and back area, and is scratching excessively, it could be mites, or it could be too much protein. Try cutting out all protein for a few days (including the rat mix and grains) and give him a bland diet of cooked brown rice and fresh vegetables. If the scratching stops, you can introduce the rat mix again, but leave out any additional protein. You may notice that I make no mention of meat so far, and that's not just because I am vegan and don't feed my rats any meat products. The rat mix or blocks should contain all the protein your rat needs, but if you really want to give your rat some meat, try and make it white meat or fish (make sure there are no small bones!) The skin of a cooked chicken contains a huge amount of fat, so remove the skin beforehand. The remainder of their diet should consist of fresh fruit and vegetables. Rats can't retain vitamin C as we do, and they need fresh foods to add this to their diet. Despite popular opinion, rats and mice don't particularly enjoy cheese. I'm sure there will be someone whose rats do, however. Dairy products are something you should steer clear of, as they can lead to upset tummies in rats. A little won't hurt, but try and keep it to treats. If you want to give your rat porridge or cereal (we love Ready Brek!) you could mix it with water or a little Soya or rice milk. |
Fruit and Vegetables
Some fresh foods that we enjoy best are carrots, broccoli florets, cauliflower florets, celery, banana, apples, grapes, plums, strawberries, tomato, cucumber, avocado and peas. Try not to give too many greens, such a lettuce, as this can lead to runny poohs. Where possible, try to give your rat organic foods, those with no pesticides. If you can't offer them organic foods or other fresh fruit and veg, you can give them frozen veg. Don't think that canned veg or fruit is just as good - it isn't. Take a look at the ingredients on a can of food and you will probably see more preservatives and other ingredients than the actual food itself. Salt and sugar are usually right at the top of the list. Cooked Foods These are basically foods that you
may have left over from your meals. Cooked rice, potatoes, pasta, bread, porridge or
oatmeal. These are mostly carbohydrate and overfeeding can lead to a fat rat! Don't give your rat any salty or spicy foods - so many of you mention curry in your emails. Rats love junk food too, but if you want to have a healthy rat with a long life, please don't give him junk, or processed, foods. The same rule for canned food applies here as it does in the fruit and veg range. Never feed your rats something you wouldn't eat, like manky vegetables. The fresher, the better. Treats and tid-bits This is where I really start to worry. I've had people ask me if it's OK to give their rats - crisps, chips, sweets, fizzy drinks, ice cream, chocolate, burgers and alcohol. NO IT ISN'T! For one thing, rats can't vomit or
burp, and fizzy drinks can lead to a build up of gas in their digestive systems, which can
cause a lot of discomfort and can even be lethal. So can alcohol. Never, ever, ever,
give your rat alcohol! You would be giving it poison. I like a drink as much as the next
person, but giving it to any animal - especially a small animal - is
irresponsible, idiotic ... and dangerous. I know that some people give their rats a drink
now and then, but why do they do it? Usually Healthy treats could include raisins, fruit, yoghurt drops (for hamsters), cereal (Cheerios, Shreddies, or any wholegrain variety with no added sugar) plain popcorn, corn, a little wholegrain bread or biscuit, and even dog biscuits! The dog shapes are a great favourite of ours and are the main ingredient in all our stashing games. They are also great for their teeth. If you have any healthy recipes that your rats enjoy, please email us.
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because they've had a drink
themselves and think it would be funny or cool
to see their rat get drunk. It wouldn't just be drunk, it would be poisoned. If you need a
drinking partner, get a life - not a rat!