# What's wrong with Vitakraft Rat Menu?



## BlueSkyy (Sep 27, 2007)

It doesn't have corn or alfalfa...

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2754962&cp=2767038.2769315&sr=1

I know everyone says almost all "bag food" mixes have a flaw, but I can't seem to find anything horribly wrong with Vitakraft Rat Menu...

I'm feeding it, along with lab blocks and fruit pieces, to my boys and they eat all the pieces.
Figured it was a good choice since most mixes have both corn and alfalfa nowadays.


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## glindella (Sep 9, 2007)

? The number one ingredient is corn flakes


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## BlueSkyy (Sep 27, 2007)

i thought it was the whole corn kernels that were bad for them since they can grow fungus?

or is it just corn in general?


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## DFW_Rat_Luvr (Aug 29, 2007)

would corn flakes be the bad thing? I mean sue bees is the best and it is comprised of mainly cereal.

I dont know the answer to this - but it is a good question and I will be interested in seeing where this thread goes.


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## BlueSkyy (Sep 27, 2007)

the mix itself looks mostly like "raw" oatmeal and corn flakes cereal with some raisins, nut-looking things, and some little green cereal puff things

there's a bunch of stuff in it 
but no corn or pieces of corn that i've ever seen


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## Schmea (Sep 21, 2007)

I have nothing to say about the food itself, but the bag art is just all kinds of awesome.

I particularly like the "...feel cool" above the rat's head.


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## BlueSkyy (Sep 27, 2007)

Schmea said:


> I have nothing to say about the food itself, but the bag art is just all kinds of awesome.
> 
> I particularly like the "...feel cool" above the rat's head.


very true - it definitely gets your attention right away!


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## Forensic (Apr 12, 2007)

Corn is generally a filler, though dried whole kernel corn poses the threat of mold. Raisins are somewhat suspect, as they are toxic to dogs many people avoid them for their rats as well, and peanuts can pose a choking hazard, I believe...


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## cjshrader (Feb 15, 2007)

I give my rats raisins and peanuts all the time. (Roasted peanuts) Have you seen anything to back that up? I'd like to know if it's something I should stop.


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## reachthestars (Feb 27, 2007)

Peanuts are extremely fatty and peanut butter poses a serious choking hazard. Unrosted peanuts are also toxic, if I'm not mistaken.

Personally I stay away from all store bought petfoods, especially when they come in bags like that. The way I see it, if they have a good product they shouldn't need flashy packaging, they use it lure people in. Plus, with homemade mixes such as Subee's you can control exactly what your rats get and at a fraction of the cost.


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## BlueSkyy (Sep 27, 2007)

aren't roasted nuts part of the Suebee's mix?

i use this site to figure out what is good/bad for rats...

http://www.ratfanclub.org/diet.html

i know it's not Suebee's but it has worked for her.


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## BlueSkyy (Sep 27, 2007)

panda will only eat his meds with peanut butter, but i spread it on a cracker so he won't choke on it. i think if you're careful when you feed the peanut butter, they won't choke unless they get a huge mouthful. heck, i would choke on peanut butter if i got a mouthful.


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## mamarat (Sep 21, 2007)

For most seed mixes, check the protein and fat content too.


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## BowlTipper (Mar 21, 2008)

BlueSkyy said:


> panda will only eat his meds with peanut butter, but i spread it on a cracker so he won't choke on it. i think if you're careful when you feed the peanut butter, they won't choke unless they get a huge mouthful. heck, i would choke on peanut butter if i got a mouthful.


When I give my girls peanut butter, I give them only a tiny little dollop on my fingers. We also use Extra Chunky PB in our house so I think there's less of a risk because they have to chew those chunks of peanut.


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## CaptainFlow (May 16, 2007)

As far as I know, any corn can grow that mold. 

But the real main issue is that it IS a mixed food- your rat can pick out whatever they want and leave the rest, thus they may not be getting optimal nutrition. That's why lab blocks are preferred. And yes, that could happen with Suebees (which includes _roasted_ nuts (which I personally leave out)), but I personally haven't seen any bit of Suebees not get eaten by my girls, they go wild for it. 
There's no corn in Suebees, just cereals.


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## Nicotine (Jan 2, 2008)

I'm curious about this, too. The ingredients don't look too bad (better than grains and seeds like you see in a lot of bag-bought mixes, anyway) and you could always mix in what it lacks or supplement it otherwise. Additionally, the protein is lower than a lot of mixes I've seen. Looks similar to Suebee's, to mee, like some other people said. As for the corn, if it's kept in the proper conditions, the mold shouldn't be as large of a problem, should it?
As for selective feeding, that'll happen with any diet that's not solely blocks.. and actually, even then, back when I fed Alice ONLY lab blocks, she refused to eat them until they were three days old in the bowl, and even them she just mainly stashed them.

I suppose I'm not the most knowledgeable person to be talking about it, though.


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## RatAttack_2007 (Apr 7, 2008)

My rats eat only lab blocks, and then I give them otehr stuff as a treat, but their main diet is the blocks. They get no peanuts or peanut butter because of a family members allergy to it thats very severe. The blocks I use don't contain peanuts.They get the mix occasionally as a snack and some yummy chicken to make up for the lack of protein for not having peanuts, though my rats have never liked it when them when they eat the mix anyways, but i have to make sure my relative isn't going to be around for a while when I feed it to them :lol:


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