Anything but Mazuri

Mazuri is a good food, just difficult to find around here. I feed a good quality dog kibble, IAMS sensitive naturals. Who else out there feeds other feeds like dog, cat, bird, hamster, other rats feeds, etc.,? And why?

sent from my incubator

How big of a colony do you have??

Mazuri had really good shipping deals earlier in the year...but I dont know if their still going on now. We ordered directly from them and got a real good deal.

http://www.reptilebasics.com/diet

???

I feed out 40lbs of dog food a day.

What kind?

sent from my incubator

I only have three colonies of about 1.4, plus some just weaned babies.

sent from my incubator

Just putting it out there, but anything IAMS isn't quality.
:what:

Harlan Teklad is a quality rodent diet if you can't get Mazuri.

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I fed hog feed when I started and my rodents thrived. Only reason I switched to 6f is I found a supplier closer to me that carried the stuff. My rodents continue to thrive on 6f, I wouldn't say they do any better than when they were on swine feed though.

I feed 16% hog feed mixed with a bird seed that has peanuts, corn and sunflower seeds.

And x2 on IAMs.

I wouldnt feed that to anything

Honestly, it seems like a low quality dog food would be better than a high quality one when it comes to rats, if you decide to go with a dog food.

Mazuri (6F)
First five Ingredients:
Ground Corn, Dehulled Soybean Meal, Porcine Animal Fat Preserved with BHA,
Cane Molasses, Wheat Middlings

Guaranteed Analysis:
Crude protein not less than..........................16%
Crude fat not less than................................6.0%
Crude fiber not more than ...........................6.0%


General conclusion: High in grain, little to no meat content. Low protein, very low in fat, fairly high in fiber.

Next up - low quality dog kibble.

Purina Dog Chow
First five ingredients:
Whole grain corn, poultry by-product meal, animal fat preserved with mixed-tocopherols (form of Vitamin E), corn gluten meal, meat and bone meal

Guaranteed Analysis:
Crude Protein (Min) 21.0%
Crude Fat (Min) 10.0%
Crude Fiber (Max) 4.5%

General conclusion: High in grain, mid-meat content (from vague/questionable animal sources). Mid protein content, slightly higher in fat, low in fiber.

Next up - high quality kibble (with grains).

Nature's Variety Prairie (Chicken Formula)
First five ingredients:
Chicken, Chicken Meal, Oatmeal, Brown Rice, Barley

Guaranteed Analysis:
Crude Protein (min): 22.5%
Crude Fat (min): 13.0%
Crude Fiber (max): 6.0%

General conclusion: High in meat content, mid grain content. Mid protein content, high in fat, mid fiber content.

Just looking at the first food, it would seem rats do best on a diet with no meat (fat is not considered a meat product), high in grain, low in fat, and low in protein. A high quality dog kibble is the exact opposite of that. It seems that if anything, if you're going to choose a dog kibble, it'd be best to go with a LOW quality kibble. They're full of grains as cheap fillers, they're low in meat content, and lower in fat. Seems to be closer to a rat's diet than a good quality dog food. Not to mention cheaper.