English rats diet?

[JulesDoug]

My girls really dont seem to like even the Reggie rat mix..I was looking for the nutro lite dog food that Suebee uses and I couldn't find any in our stores..does anyone in England have any ideas what we could use instead, I am kinda worried that the girls are missing vital nutrients that they need.  Lets face it girls cant live on treats alone
My girls do seem picky and any ideas on how to tempt them would be gratefully recieved
Jules Babs n Bonnie

[rogermerriman]

you could try other mixes such as rabbit and give them a supplement to make up the difference. also I have noted that the little beasties will always go for snack rather than there proper food! Not sure if there is any alternatives to the reggie mix. that is all I can get round Abergavenny way. Though you could have a look here: http://www.ratweb.fsnet.co.uk/
Some of the breeders have contacts for rat food.

[Ali]

I used to feed our girls Reggie Rat which they never ate much of (unless they'd run out of fresh food). The boys get Burgess SupaRat (just because that's what they got at the rescue centre) - again, they're not bothered. They pick out the nicest bits if they're desperate, but a bowl would stay in there for days if I let it (I tend to chuck it out after 2 days or so and refresh).

You can get a sample pack of Nutrolite sent to you from the UK supplier (I'll send you details from work tomorrow) - my boys aren't keen though. I normally stick a bit of cereal in too (Advantage, rice crispies etc) and they might eat a tiny bit of that.

The best thing to do, I think, is to make sure they've got a bowl of rodent mix handy to nibble on, but to ensure they get a good, nutritious mix of fresh food too.

I give the boys a bowl between them every evening and try to vary it - as an example, tonight they had cooked pasta, scrambled egg, some peas and other veggies, a bit of left over potato and a tiny bit of ham (not the healthiest of nights!) Last night they had some kidney beans, sardines and other stuff. You can also give fresh wholemeal bread, sweet corn, rice, yoghurt or soya yoghurt etc - anything really which is healthy for us is ok for them.

I also give the boys a cod liver oil capsule occasionally, and add vitamin drops to the water every couple of days.

I'll stop now, I'm rambling as usual! (too great a love of rats AND food  )

[Paul]

Hey Jules - hope you don't mind someone in Scotland venturing a response!  

Until recently, our girl's main diet was Harlan Lab Blocks, which you'll see being recommended by lots of people on this Forum (though I think they use the name Teklad in the US).

Labbies provide all the correct things that ratties should eat and because they're mushed then reconstituted the wee furries can't pick and choose and perhaps miss out some important stuff.
Check your local Yellow Pages for a Lab Supplies wholesaler and see if they can do lab blocks.
However, they can get worried in case people who are contacting them are actually animal rights protestors checking them out, so don't be surprised if they treat you with suspicion.
We paid £7 for a SACK a year ago and it's only half used!
We recently switched to another type of lab block which is soya based, so you might want to check that out as well.

Also, check out www.petplanet.co.uk (who I previously mentioned) for big discounts on pet products including Burgess SupaRat, which is a very nice mix (our girls love the little pink biscuits it contains).
We give them a little drop of this each night just to add interest to the lab blocks, and a fresh fruit or vegetables supper - such as Ali suggested.

I know you've just put in a PetPlanet order, but I bet if you phoned them in the am and they haven't shipped it yet, they'd let you add some SupaRat (to save double postage costs).

Paul

[Christy]

Can you get ProPac dog food where you are?  The ingrediants are almost exactly the same as Nutro if you get the low fat/low protein kind.  I alternate with my crew since they stop eating it after a while.  The change in brand helps them think they are getting something new!  

[JulesDoug]

Hmm don't know if I trust a Scot!!
Off I go back to pet planet, you know my husband will have to have words with you, you are seriously affecting his bank balance!!
How long does a lab block stay in the cage for?
Huntingdon life science is the nearest lab to us lol think they may be a wee bit suspicious
Thanks for the info..
Jules Bonnie n Babs

[Paul]

Come on - Doug should know that as a Scot I'm only trying to save you money!!  

Labbies are quite chunky things - between a hazelnut and a walnut - so we were giving three each, per girl, per day.
That was with a small handful of SupaRat mix, porridge breakfast and fruit / veg supper on top.

Huntingdon - oh my god, NO - don't go knocking at THEIR door!  
It's a Lab SUPPLIER where you get them from - a wholesaler who sells things like labbies TO places like Huntingdon.  
Huntingdon would have Special Branch on to you!!

Paul

[Tara]

Huntingdon - oh my god, NO - don't go knocking at THEIR door!  
It's a Lab SUPPLIER where you get them from - a wholesaler who sells things like labbies TO places like Huntingdon.  
Huntingdon would have Special Branch on to you!!

The dense colonist over here wants to know what Huntingdon is.  

[em]

It's an infamous scientific testing lab in the UK. They've been the subject of vast and controversial media attention over the past few years because they test anything and everything on animals and they allegedly don't treat their animals very well.

They've been plagued with people trying to get them to stop what they're doing. They get abuse on the phone, by post and in person, and people have even been killed with carbombs. Just about every day, apparently, there are a bunch of animal rights protestors who chain themselves together in front of their gates to try and stop the scientists leaving. All in all, if I was working there I'd be extremely suspicious of any random enquiry from a member of the public!

[Tara]

Ahhh! I see.  I guess I would be too.  Thanks for the info!

[em]

No probs. It's a strange issue actually - what makes people think that the best way to promote kindness to animals is to blow up people?!   to say the least.

[joolzratbag]

Ugh Huntingdon Life Sciences used to be called Huntingdon Research Centre  - it's where all my first rats were liberated from 19 years ago. I was also forced to do work experience there 22 years ago, because I wanted to be a laboratory technician (but not *that* kind of lab tech!)
It truly sickened me and I stopped eating for the entire week
The albino rats I got from there were truly wonderful special pets.

Jules, the main bulk of my rats diet is SDS rat blocks and Burgess Suparat. PetsAtHome do their own label brand of rat food which is identical to Suparat but cheaper and comes in 2kg sacks instead of 1kg
My rats despise Reggie Rat and so do I because of the synthetic food colourings & rabbit pellets in it.
The rat food makes up 80 to 90% of my rats diet - the additional foods I give are very similar to what Ali gives.
You can order the SDS rat pellets here:

http://website.lineone.net/~firelizard/lillico.html

I buy the 'Economy' diet - which is identical to RM1, just not expanded, and much cheaper! If you like, I could post you a few blocks to see if your rats like them.