What do fancy rats eat and what treats should I give them?

Feeding: Food is another concern of many rat owners. Healthy, balanced, and affordable rat food is hard to come by in many places. A lot of people resort to feeding their rats rabbit, hamster, or parrot food since it is so readily available. Although the rats will have no problem stuffing their faces with whatever you give them, these foods are not healthy and will inevitably cause problems in the future. Most hamster mixes contain alfalfa pellets that the rats have problems digesting. They also contain lots of seeds that are high in fat. Rabbit food also contains lots of alfalfa pellets. Then there's parrot food mixes; rats love it, but the seeds, peanuts, and other contents of the mix are very high in fat. Rats require a well-balance, specially formulated lab block feed. Sometimes these can be found in pet stores, but even then the brand is also something that needs to be considered. Although it is labeled rat food, many feeds are still not healthy. Some good brands of feed are Harlan Teklad, Oxbow Regal Rat, and Mazuri. Before purchasing a rat, you should know what kind of food is good for them and where to get it. When commercial rat feed is not available, a healthy alternative is to make your own homemade rat feed. A good recipe is provided here: http://www.ratsrule.com/diet.html. Along with this recipe, you will also need to provide a low-protein (18% or less), low fat (4% or less) dog food. I've found that Field Trial Dog Food works great, and you can only get it from Dollar Tree! Rats also love a variety of fruits veggies, and some other human foods.

Rats are scavenger animals by nature. They can eat pretty much anything we can eat. However this does not mean that they should. Many foods are too high in sodium, fat, or protein. Too much fat or sugar in a diet can lead to an overweight or diabetic rat. Too much protein can lead to dry, itchy skin.

Some foods to avoid are as follows;

Blue Cheese.

Licorice.

Raw Dry Beans or Peanuts.

Raw Sweet Potato.

Raw Red Cabbage.

Brussel Sprouts.

Raw Artichokes.

Green Bananas.

Green Potato Skin and Eyes.

Wild Insects.

Rhubarb.

Raw Bulk Tofu.

Oranges/Orange Juice.

Raw Onion.

Carbonated Drinks.

Some foods to feed with caution are as follows;

Chocolate. It contains stimulants that can lead to heart failure or neurological poisoning in high quantities. A small bit of dark chocolate is okay once in a while and may actually alleviate respiratory distress.

Peanut Butter. This can cause rats to choke. If you want to feed it to your rat, mix it with jam or water to make it less sticky.

Avocados. These are high in fat and good for underweight rats. However, the pit, rind, skin and leaves of avocados are toxic. The part of the fruit in contact with the pit has a higher concentration of toxins.

Dried Corn. It can have high levels of fungal contaminates which can lead to liver cancer. A little fresh corn is fine.

Things to watch out for are as follows;

Mold. This can be toxic. Remember that grains can go moldy too.

Chlorinated Tap Water. Chlorine isn't good for us or our pets.

Household Plants. Here's a list of toxic plants: http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=18+1804&...

Bug Poison/Spray. It was made to kill. You wouldn't eat it, would you?

Healthy foods for occasional treats are as follows:

Yogies. (any flavor; store-bought)

Unsalted crackers.

Corn on the cob

Whole wheat bread w/ peanut butter.

Whole wheat bread w/ olive oil.

Frosted Mini-Wheats.

Cheerios.

Oats.

Corn Flakes.

Cheez-Its.

Blueberries.

Strawberries.

Apples w/ peanut butter.

Peas.

Broccoli.

Grapes.

Carrots.

Romaine lettuce.

Unsalted nuts and seeds.

Dry, uncooked pasta. (the spiral kind with spinach and tomato flavor)

Bananas.

Green peppers.

Baby food.

Baby cereal.

Plain yogurt.

Cottage cheese. (very small amount)

Dark chocolate. (very small amount, size of chocolate chip)

Plain cooked brown rice.

Cooked chicken w/ bone. (only a tiny bit of meat)

Plain popcorn. (no salt, no butter)

Keep in mind that all of these are to be used as treats and should be given in moderation.

Fancy Rats

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I feed mine a mix of spring greens, carrots, brocoli, curly kale and red grapes every day. They used to love blueberries, but one day decided they didnt want them anymore and through them out the cage, they still wont eat them 6 months later! They also refuse to eat strawberries and raspberries. I have a book about rat diets called The Scuttling Gourmet(get it if you can, its the best rat book available) and I try to only give them foods that have a beneficial side to them. Once a week my 10 rats get a tuna pasta bake meal between them. I also give them mashed potato when I have it as I always make too much. They also get frozen peas in the hot weather. I sometimes give them bread soaked in soya milk, that is a very rare treat though. They also get about half an egg each once a month, either scrambled or boiled. I give them canned tuna in spring water every couple of weeks as well. I also give them weetabix in soya milk or porridge made with soya milk. They never have cows milk as rats cant tolerate it. Goats milk or soya milk is best. I cant remember the last time they had "normal" rat treats. At the moment my lot are finishing off some pouches of kitten food that I got for my babies. I never have a problem with my lot finishing their dry food, the bowl is empty in less than 24 hours. I mix up my own food for them. The link for more info about it below. I use dry pasta, cereals, rat food and dog biscuits as the base for it. Every couple of months I put a small bag of pistachio nuts in the mix for some variety. I always get organic foods for my rats if its available. I worry about the chemicals in non-organic food. A safe level for humans is unlikely to be safe for rats due to their small size. Before I started making my own rat mix and giving them organic food I seemed to live at the vets, I always had at least one rat on antibiotics and they never made past 18 months. Since then, I have hardly been to the vets and my rats are living to way past two. I believe its due to the organic food, the chemicals must have been causing respitory problems.

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