I just got my first 3 rats all girls. What should they be getting for there diet?

Question

I give them there regular rat mix and then once a day I give them carrots and apple pices.

Answer 1

your doing better than me. I suggest lab block rat mix a limited amount of fruits and veggies. Don't feed them unhealthy human food or they could become obese and more susceptible to tumors

Answer 2

I have two rats as well. Just make sure the food you are giving them is not too high in protein, it is not good for them. Also if it has a lot of seeds it could be very fattening. A lot of specialists suggest lab blocks but my rats wont eat those. Just be sure to give them something fresh everyday such as fruits and veggies! And make sure you get them out at least once a day to bond/exercise! Hope this helps! Good luck :D

Answer 3

you could also give them small amounts of cheese, cooked pasta, boiled egg, grapes, sweet-corn and peas :)

Answer 4

oh jeez, i feed my rat EVERYTHING! fruits, veggies, cereal, seeds, nuts, chicken, hamburger. my rattie is a bit spoiled lol

Answer 5

It sounds like you're doing just fine! A complete cereal diet for rats (like Reggie Rat, Supa Rat e.t.c) will provide all the nutrients they need to be healthy. You can supplement their diet with small pieces of fresh fruit and vegetables every other day as treats, or other biscuit like treats designed for small animals  - though bone-meal dog biscuits are a great treat to leave in their cage at all times, as they love to chew them and it's great for their teeth! There are some fruit and vegetables rats can't eat though, like citrus fruits and rhubarb- you may want to check these out on the internet. Don't feed your girls too many human foods as treats though as this can make them obese and give them an upset stomach and runny poo. Similarly, make sure the fresh fruit/veg is in moderation and not every day - that will make them sick too - you should only give them the apples and carrot pieces every other day.

Hope this helps!

Answer 6

You can get a high quality lab block from Kim's Ark.  http://www.kimsarkrescue.org/content/vie...  Harlan makes lab blocks designed for optimal nutrition for lab rats.  I know it might sound bad, but it is in the scientists' best interest to keep the rats healthy during experiments.  Harlan makes lab blocks for lab rats in very large quanities, so you have to buy it from a second hand dealer.  Kim's Ark charges $1/lb plus shipping.  

The key to a good rat diet is to keep it low in protein and low in fat.  Studies show that doing this will prolong the lifespan of your rat.  Most seed mixes you find at pet stores are not balanced nutrition.  They have far too many seeds which are fattening.  Additionally, dried corn can have a fungus in it that reacts badly with your rats' stomach and can give them cancer.  Even the lab blocks they have at large pet store chains are usually pretty high in protein and fat.  

Fruit and vegetables are great to give to rats as it fills them up, provides nutrients, but doesn't have a lot of calories.  Carrots, apples, lettuce, grapes, berries, are all good choices.  Mine really like frozen peas.  You can also feed them various "healthy" cereals like cheerios and puffed wheat.

As a side note, I feed my rats only in the morning vs keeping their food bowl filled all day.  Rats have a tendency to overeat and can get fat.  Also doing it this way makes it easier to monitor how much your rats are actually eating.  This allows you to know if they are getting sick, or how much to cut back if they start getting chunky.

Hope that helps!

Answer 7

Oxbow Regal Rat is the premium choice for a store-bought rat food. If your local pet stores don't carry it, you can usually order it through a vet clinic that treats exotics. If you can't get ahold of Regal Rat, try Mazuri blocks. Complete rat diets like lab blocks and such are preferable to mixes with seeds and other fattening ingredients that encourage a rat to pick through and only eat their favorites. Avoid Kaytee products, as they contain ethoxyquin, which has been linked to cancer in more than one study. The first ingredient should never be corn, corn meal or corn flour.

Igwig - Reggie Rat is not a good diet. First of all, it's a mix. Mixes, if they are balanced, are only balanced if the rat eats a little of everything in the diet. That rarely happens with a mixed diet, where rats will pick through it and only eat what they want. Also, it contains corn and alfalfa, two red flags in rat diets. Alfalfa is completely indigestible for rats, and is only in the diet to provide bulk as a cheap filler ingredient. And as someone said below, dried corn can carry toxic fungus.

Reggie rat also won't publish their ingredient list on the websites of online stores that sell it. That's another red flag. Companies that are proud of their diets will provide their ingredient list. No doubt I could find more wrong with it if I saw the full list.