Reddit reviews Oxbow Essentials Adult Rat Food, 3-Pound Bag
We found 15 Reddit comments about Oxbow Essentials Adult Rat Food, 3-Pound Bag. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
Contains 1- 3Lb BagContains Vitamins And Minerals Including Antioxidant Nutrients Like Vitamin ATriangular Shape Supports Tactile Eating
The food in the picture is not appropriate for rats. The pellets are alfalfa and rats won't don't like them. I don't know of any seed/grain mixes in the US that are any good. I'd probably avoid a mix and get a pellet/kibble instead. I'd suggest feeding them something like Oxbow Essentials. It's about $11 for a 3 lb bag that should last about a month and a half.
Your rats don't look malnourished.
I just ordered this stuff. It has rave reviews:
Oxbow Regal Rat Food
*If you read the reviews make sure to sort them by most recent. The formula has changed so that rats find it tastier in addition to being very healthy
Whatever you decide to get, please don't buy from a pet store. Look for a rescue or a reputable breeder instead. Rat/hamster/guinea pig mills are just as bad as puppy/kitten mills.
If you want to know more about these mills and ruin your day, go here and here.
Reputable breeders will be working to reduce the instances of respiratory infections, tumors, etc in the lines they breed, which saves you money on vet bills in the long run. Rescues can give you a health history and also let you know about the individual animal's personality, as well. You can look for adoptable small animals on Petfinder.
But back to your question, I would definitely vote for rats over hamsters (having owned both), especially if there will be young children around.
I would not leave them for 1-3 days without having someone at least drop by to check on them 1-2 times a day. That's way too long if something goes wrong (for example, if they push all the food out of the cage, or if a water bottle fails, or if they fall and injure themselves inside the cage, etc).
Free roaming is great if you can fully rat-proof the area (or hamster-proof, guinea pig-proof, etc). No wires on the floor, no questionable things they might eat, no small holes in the wall they could squeeze into, and so on. If you can't provide that, then enclosing a safe space would be the better option. I used the bathroom as a free ranging space for a while until I had a fully rat-proofed room for mine to roam.
In addition to the great info that triskadancer provided, I want to add a few things...
A good lab block means, not Kaytee. The top three I know of are Oxbow Regal Rat, Mazuri's Rodent Breeder 6F, and Harlan Teklad/Native Earth (there are different varieties, you want the higher protein for babies and lower protein for adults).
Rats tend to live 2-3 years, in my experience. 3 years is awesome, 4 is just short of miraculous. None of my rats lived much past 2 years. However, I had males and I believe females tend to live a little longer.
You can reduce females' risk of tumors by getting them spayed.
Rats are sensitive to dusty bedding, and it is never safe to use pine or cedar (this goes for hamsters, too).
I'd say so. I have 8 boys in a critter nation. They're (somewhat) litter trained but i do a spot clean every day. that takes only about 10 minutes. And i do a big clean on the weekends which is just the spot clean plus throwing the fleece liners in the washing machine. I give them a few scoops of Oxbow Rat food with a few scoops of brown rice in the morning, and some mixed veggies at night. And of course treats. But i try not to over feed them with the treats.
But, there are all kinds of cage options. Obviously you wouldnt need the cage mentioned above having like 2 or 3 rats. (but you must have more than 1 rat otherwise they get depressed and lonely).
As /u/Sykirobme mentioned, I would suggest using a prepared food as a base diet and adding a supplemental vegetables on top of that.
I haven't had a lot of experience getting rats to change diets, but we adopted an older male a couple of years ago who had no real problem with the switch.
Us: Oh yeah, all of ours love Cheerios as a treat!
Previous Owner: No, all he eats is Cheerios.
Us: Oh ...
Even though he had been fed only plain Cheerios for over a year, it only took a few days to convince him to try triangles (Oxbow Regal Rat Food). After he realized that other foods existed, he even started turning down Cheerios in favor of fruit and vegetable treats. (The other rats thought he was insane and were happy to take the extra Cheerios.)
Rats are wonderful little companions, and fairly easy to care for. Keep them happy and healthy, and they'll repay you by loving you like crazy.
This is a good guide that will help you understand what your rats are doing and why, and explains some of the ways rats communicate with each other and with you.
Here's a list of foods that are safe to give to your rats. Enriching your rats' diet with fresh fruits and vegetables is important to their health, and they love it. If you buy packaged treats from the store, make sure you get one that doesn't contain dried corn, as that can be harmful.
For their food, I recommend Oxbow brand. It's very good nutritionally, and my girls love the taste. For two rats, one bag will usually last several weeks.
For their cage, you'll want something that gives them plenty of space to go about their business. Generally, the rule is 2 cubic feet per rat. So for two, try to find something that's at least 4 cubic feet. Use paper bedding as opposed to wood shavings, as wood shavings can cause respiratory problems.
You should also get some accessories for the cage to keep them entertained, such as a house, a hammock, things to climb, and some toys. All can be found at most pet stores and is pretty inexpensive.
If you decide to go for it, I think you'll be very happy with rats. And if you do, be sure to share a picture of your new babies with us here!
I share my morning oatmeal with him and he loves almonds but I can not get him to eat any fruit... He absolute favorite treat is kale though. This is the food he eats https://www.amazon.com/Oxbow-Regal-Rat-Food-3-Pound/dp/B000GABM1K is it good?
Hi there. Congratulations on your new boys! I love Rex rats! I've been a ratty mom for over 12 years. I currently have 3 males, all dumbos, one of which is a Rex. The best advice I can give is to make sure to socialize your new babies and let them get used to you, your environment, as well as each other. (I'm glad to hear you got more than one!) Pouches are a great start for that, so you are definitely on the right track. I love playing around and interacting with my boys, but I also make sure to sit back and let them explore on their own, too.
Having a good cage is crucial. I recently got space pods and they love them! Having it be plastic instead of fabric cuts down on smell, too. I always make sure they have a bunch of things to chew on and play with. Make sure they have good bedding as well. I use recycled newspaper and crinkle paper.
Diet plays a big role. I feed my guys mostly Mazuri blocks and Oxbow with some vegetables (they love broccoli and frozen peas). I try to stay cognizant of treats, since they're mostly sugar and fat. (Males are prone to weight gain, so you gotta watch out.) Fruits work really well as a treat for training.
If you have any questions as you guys get adjusted, feel free to PM me.
(Also, sorry all the hyperlinks are to Amazon haha. It's what Google pulls up.)
Congratulations again :)
MidWest Critter Nation Single Level, two level optional depending on budget.
Space Pod
Oxbow Regal Rat food
Water bottles
Litter box
Hammock
Food bowl
I want to say thank you for being receptive to rattit's collective knowledge.
Definitely agree with all that was said by /u/durshka
To add to what has been said:
I'm not sure what country you are in, but in the US there are some great rat feeds. It's crucial you give them this, because rats will pick through seeds and take the carb/sugar loaded things over the protein vitamin stuff. (they are like people)
Oxbow is pretty standard and they look like this you do not want to get stuff like this as their main feed. They will pick through all the good bits (pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, peanuts, dried peas) and leave the fiber which they need. I do have a bag of this and use it as treats!
PLENTY OF FRESH VEG! also remember to wash the veg and fruit off well if you are going non-organic. Pesticides are truly harmful especially to rats which in comparison to us are TINY!
Give them a bit of chicken or tuna etc from time to time. I usually share what I'm eating with them if it's healthy.
Another good treat (and a good way to administer medicine if ever needed) is baby food. Mine love the sweet potato, squash, peas one!
When picking out a cage try and get one with at least 2 floors. Meaning they can climb and have different areas. Rats are super smart, and need space to keep it interesting. Also make sure the flooring of the shelves and ramps is not wired steel, and that it has plating. The bottom can be as long as you have enough bedding on the bottom. Rats can get bumblefoot from wired flooring.
A CAGE LIKE THIS IS IDEAL it's tall rather than wide, which they love!
Oxbow Regal Rat is the one for adult rats; here it is on Amazon. Block food (you'll also hear this referred to as "lab blocks" sometimes) that's intended for rats has a better nutritional balance for them, plus since each piece is the same, they won't be able to preferentially eat the fattier or sweeter bits.
The stuff you're feeding them has too much water and can give them wet tail in large amounts. Get some rat food from your pet shop. They won't over eat if you keep their bowl full all the time. My rats always have food available, they only eat when they are hungry. You can give them all the stuff you've been giving them as treats.
I get my rats this stuff, a bag lasts a long time. From what I've seen a lot of pet stores sell that.
https://www.amazon.com/Oxbow-Essentials-Adult-Food-3-Pound/dp/B000GABM1K?th=1
As far as poop smell, I hardly smell my rats' poop since I have them litter box trained.
Howdy! First off, let me thank you for doing research before you pick up your rodent friend.
First off let me get the disclaimers out of the way: If you were looking for a cheap pet, you have chosen the wrong animal. Rats have a fairly high upfront cost that begins to taper down after the first 3 months or so once the major growth period is over with. Almost any attempt to cut costs on things I'll bring up as essentials is most likely going to end up as a bad move in terms of your pet's health. There are lots of places to save some money, but what I'll lay out here is not the place. Rats are also a very short lived pet. They will live for a reasonable maximum of 3 years, so there will be heartbreak down the road.
Still interested? Good. Let's get a list going then:
Definitely read those two series first. :)
I should have mentioned that the block food we use is 'the triangle stuff', aka Oxbow. But as you said, there are a whole lot of options.
I use Oxbow: http://www.amazon.com/Oxbow-Regal-Rat-Food-3-Pound/dp/B000GABM1K
I don't know anything about the food you're using now; you can probably finish out the bag without a problem, though I defer to those with more ratty nutritional knowledge than I.