# a Free sample bag of dog food, ok for rats??



## bubsybob (Apr 1, 2007)

so i got a free small bag of dogfood at the grocery store.. will it be ok for my rats?? 


Cesar for small dogs

crude protein min 29%
crude fat min 16%
Crude Fibre max 4%
calcium 0.7%
Vitamin E .350IU/KG
OMega 6 fatty acids 2.0%
omega .25%

ingredients: chicken, chicken meal, chicken byproduct meal, brewers rice, corn gluten,ground corn, ground barley, oat groats, animal fat, flax seed, drieg egg powder, veg oil, vitamins

thats about all. what do you think??


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## thegrotto (May 11, 2007)

As a treat sure. Not as the only food they get.


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## bubsybob (Apr 1, 2007)

ok, sounds good. 

its a pretty big bag, so as a treat it should last me a long long while.


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## Night (Feb 23, 2007)

No, you shouldn't feed that to your rats, or even to a dog. The ingredients are sub-par, as Cesar is a crappy brand of dog food. I'd throw it out or donate it to a shelter.


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## jimmy_portsmouth (Jul 2, 2007)

rats can digest soap i really doubt that dog food will hurt them in small does's as a treat now and then... they have such strong stomachs its unreal and if they enjoy it then why not.( before you keyboard warriors start... its not a crime to give rats a treat... i dont know what you americans class as crap dog food but its quite a good brand in uk


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## Lesath (Jul 14, 2007)

I've heard of people giving Hills Science Diet (veggie formula) to their rats as a supplement. My dogs eat ProPlan, Salmon and Brown Rice formula, I give peices of those to my rats as treats. They love them. Just be careful not to feed too much, as others have said. And cat food is apparently way too high in protein, from what I've heard from others. Not even ok for treats. Can anyone else add to that?


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## camel24j (Feb 27, 2007)

there is a worry about purina pro plan and purina one brands right now a lot of dog breeders have had lots of problems with that food but it is not totally confirmed yet. i cant find the story right now but just a thought. 

and i dont see how given as a treat how it would hurt the rats at all but what do i know right how many of you give your rats a piece of salty greasy chips every now and agian. come on really.


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## Lesath (Jul 14, 2007)

Hmm very interesting! All my dogs have eaten for 10 years is ProPlan. I'll have to look for this information about problems people are having with it.


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## kancerr (Apr 7, 2007)

i know there was a bunch of cat/dog food that was causing liver failure or something in quite a few pets because of a bad batch(in quite a few different dog/cat foods that were processed in the same plants) but it was only in wet dog/cat food not in the dry. think its all been taken care of now too. only problem with the food i see is the nutrional values, but as a treat dont see any problem.


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## chrisstrikeagain (Apr 10, 2007)

Ceasares is bad. Purina is bad Hills science diet is bad. (vets get commision off hills. so they recomend it)

I work at a pet store...and i know my dog foods. iv researched the topic thoroughly.

If your gonna get a dog food, please research it. check ingreadients. 

Wellness, Solid Gold, Vets Choice, Back to the Basics, Merrick. and a few other Holistic & Natural foods. 

I mean, if you shouldnt feed it to your dog, why to your rat?


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## Stephanie (Mar 25, 2007)

bubsybob said:


> crude protein min 29%
> crude fat min 16%
> Crude Fibre max 4%
> calcium 0.7%
> ...


those are really bad ingredients. the whole animal fat thing really bugs me as well as how high in protien it is. There are chicken by-products in it as well. Would you eat chicken by-products??? do you know what they are?? I wouldn't feed that to a starving rat not even as a treat.


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## sonoma (May 26, 2007)

As an occasional treat I doubt it would hurt them. The protein looks a bit too high for rats for regular feeding. 16-20% (with 20% being on the high side) is good I believe â€¦someone feel free to correct me if Iâ€™m wrong. 

I see where Night is coming fromâ€¦what bothers me about the ingredients, and why I wouldnâ€™t feel comfortable feeding it to my own pets, is this:

Chicken byproduct meal- could be anythingâ€¦feathers, beaks, whatever
Brewers rice- processed rice product thatâ€™s cheaper (and missing many of the nutrients) of whole grain rice
Ground corn- cheap filler
Corn gluten- byproduct of human food processingâ€¦basically a residue left behind when manufacturing corn starch/syrup 
Animal Fat- from what animal (in what condition) is anyoneâ€™s guess

Donâ€™t mean to write a book or anything, I just spent a lot of time researching dog foods because I have a dog with severe food allergies. :wink:


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## camel24j (Feb 27, 2007)

that Purina was never recalled but there is a lot of dog breeders who have had dead and deformed pups well feeding Purina and when the switched foods they didnt have this problem any more i wish i could find the link to the story. and one of the breeders i talk to all the time she didnt know what was wrong and took the still born pups for a necropsy and they said they died of salmonella she switched foods after that and every thing has been fine but nothing has been definitely linked to the food but it seems weird that breeder all over the U S has had the same problems and they all feed them 2 kinds. 

if you are really concerned take a look at all foods you feed pets and your self and you will find that most foods are poorly made and not good the sad fact is most new people to pets be it rat or what not trust any food that says it is good for the pet but in reality most foods just plain suck. sorry for being off topic


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## mopydream44 (Jun 10, 2007)

_Proximate Analysis

Crude Protein %14.50

Crude Oil %4.00

Crude Fiber %4.50

Product Descriptionâ€”Teklad Global 14% Protein Rodent Maintenance Diet is designed and manufactured with the same high quality ingredients in both the United States and throughout Europe. 2014 is a fixed formula, nutritionally balanced, non-autoclavable diet containing 14% protein and 3.5% fat. Scientific publications report that low fat, low protein diets promote longevity and normal body weight in rodents. 2014 does not contain alfalfa or soybean meal, thus minimizing the occurrence of natural phytoestrogens. Absence of animal protein and fish meal eliminates the presence of nitrosamines. For autoclavable diet please refer to 2014S Teklad Global 14% Protein Rodent Maintenance Diet (Sterilizable). All Harlan Teklad Global DietsÂ® are available certified._

this is from the teklad website. This is the info for one of their rodent mixes. I use this information when looking for a good dog food for my ratties, as I do not have adequate means of getting teklad. 

a member suggested Nutro Natural Lite

Crude Protein (minimum) 14.00%
Crude Fat (minimum) 6.00%
Crude Fiber (maximum) 6.50%
Moisture (maximum 10.00%

I'm still researching different foods but I am currently using H. Blendz.


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## chrisstrikeagain (Apr 10, 2007)

Nutro is a decent food. better than the big foods.
keep an eye out for a formula change in it tho. nutro was bought out and that ussually is followed by a formula change lessening the quality.

chances are if you see a commercial for the dog food, its bad. that rule hasnt failed me. if they put the money in advertiing, its not goin towards the food.


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