Why do people say that Harlen Teklad is the best rat diet?

Question

Why? They formulas that people recommend are vegentarian and rats are omnivores, not herbivores. The ingredients are not very high quality and theres plenty of corn. I have seen MUCH better dietts such as Regal rat which has NO corn and contains animal protein. So what do you think?

Answer 1

I can't compare specific brands of rat diet, but I can explain the generalisation.

Most pet diets (not just rats but all small furries) are designed to appeal to humans - not animals! Hence they like to make them in cute shaped pieces, in lots of different colours etc. It's all about marketing, and often has very little to do with nutrition. They also want to make a food that is cheap enough for people to buy, and cheap enough for them to make so they can maximise profit.

As a result, many  commercial pet foods are poor quality - usually made from cheap fillers, with lots of artifical preservatives and colours etc.

Lab diets on the other hand are made with nutrition as the primary goal. Animals suffering from malnutrition do not make good test subjects, and could seriously s***w the results of any research. The animals need to be in optimum condition.

Lab diets are therefore designed to be good for the animals, regardless of how they look to us, or how expensive they may be.

So generally speaking, lab diets are usually of a higher quality than pet diets.

Answer 2

According to Kim's Ark description:

"Harlan Teklad Lab Blocks #8604

Complete and balanced to deliver optimum nutrition. Called "the best lab block" by the RMCA! The #8604 formula contains 24% protein and 4% fat. Unlike other lab blocks whose first ingredient is corn, this formula's first ingredient is soybean meal! Contains molasses! No alfalfa (indigestible to rats.) ... Made of all natural ingredients and uses soybean oil as a natural preservative."

The Rat and Mouse Club of America (RMCA) says:

"I chose this one because it is not preserved with BHA/BHT (proven cancer causing preservatives) and because the first ingredient listed is soybean meal instead of corn (though corn is second)....I really think the rats eat less of it because it is more nutritionally complete than PMI. I know I was going through a 50 pound bag of PMI in at least a month with 20-30 rats. It takes me a month and a half to two months to go through the same amount of Harlan Teklad with the same number of rats. I have also noticed that the rats are more svelte now and not as chubby."

I did find that some rats after a while on Regal Rat will decide they no longer like it and go on "hunger strikes."  I have not heard of that behavior regarding Harlan blocks.  Apparently Regal Rat also contains Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex (Vitamin K) which has been known to cause cancer in lab rats and the reason that most quality dog foods no longer use it.

I also found this:

"Also, please note that the Regal Rat Oxbow rat diet is designed only for adult rats.  Female rats tend to reach most of their physical growth at 6 months, but males not until 8 months or longer.  Personally I would not give females the Oxbow diet, because a diet higher in soybean meal helps to prevent mammary tumors.  And I would not use the Oxbow diet for males until they are at least a year old."

Hope that helps!

Answer 3

Here's some discussion you might find interesting:

http://www.jorats.com/forum/viewtopic.ph...

Also, I know a lot of people who use the non-vegetarian formulas and an equal number who feed HT combined with dog food. But really, animal protein vs. non-animal protein doesn't make a difference nutritionally. As long as the protein content is adequate, it doesn't matter where that protein comes from.  

Answer 4

I couldn't agree with you more. Not only is it vegetarian, it also has low quality ingredients like corn, as you said. And C, have you looked at the ingredients in Harlan Teklad? They have menadione in them too. All rat diets do at this point, unfortunately.

I much prefer Oxbow's Regal Rat. It's a much higher quality diet.