Anything but Mazuri

[I-KandyReptiles]

When I started raising rats, I fed dog food. I soon stopped because it didn't seem good for the rats. They were skinnier and had greasy fur.

With the hog feed and bird seed mixed they seem to be doing much better.

[Aes_Sidhe]

This Is What i found about Tekland Harlan 2018 Lab Block with Rich in RBI sells looks like is higher in Protein and lower in Fiber than Mazuri...

http://www.reptilebasics.com/harlan2018

2018 Teklad Global 18% Protein Rodent Diet
Crude Protein	18.6%
Fat (ether extract)	6.2%
Crude Fiber	3.5%
Energy Density	3.1 kcal/g
	13.0 kJ/g
Calories from Protein	24%
Calories from Fat	18%
Calories from Carbohydrate	58%

Link to PDF with full spec: http://www.reptilebasics.com/manuals/2018_datasheet.pdf

[Konotashi]

18.6% is still pretty low protein content (compared to dog foods, anyway).

When considering protein, you also have to consider the source the protein is coming from. In that 18.6%, very little (or none) of that is derived from animal/meat sources. It's all from plant matter.
Versus a dog food, where some (or most, depending on the quality of the kibble) is being derived from meat.

I don't know as much about rat dietary needs as I do dogs', but if they can't properly digest meat proteins, then the food with protein derived from meat will be less useable for them. They'll have to eat more to get the nutrition they actually need, and they'll waste more as well.

[satomi325]

I know people who feed poor quality dog food (Walmart kind). Their rats were really smelly and their fur was very oily like BobbaFett described.

When switched to a proper diet, these rats improved greatly in body condition, odor, productivity, and litter numbers.

I've taken dog food fed rats and saw the same improvement when switched to a rodent production block diet.

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[SquamishSerpents]

Yup, dog food = gross rats

[D&G]

I use Doggy Bag from tractor supply. I have tried Mazuri and hog feed. They smell much worse with the hog feed. They eat less of the Mazuri than the dog food but the price is way too high for Mazuri. My rats look and smell the same on Mazuri or dog food. I use 1200 lbs a month at .33 cents a pound. Can't beat the price.