# Share your home made diets



## Isamurat (Jul 27, 2012)

I’m interested in how this varies and seeing if there’s any good ideas I can add into my rats diets. I am pretty into the rat nutrition side of things and do try and work hard to give my boys the best they need. I feed this mix as it gives me the ability to offer my rats a diet that changes from mix to mix (a batch lasts me about 2 months at the moment) but still offers them the nutrition they need. It also gives them a massive variety of ingredients which adds interest and keeps them mentally satisfied as well as nutritionally. I’ve been developing and refining this diet for about 5 years now and it keeps constantly evolving and in most cases improving. I take a lot of feedback from the rats as to how it’s going as I strongly believe half of getting rat diet right is an art rather than purely a science (which reflects the fact that each rat has a slightly different requirement to the scientific average). This lets me adapt my diet to the rats I have at the time, their ages, illnesses etc as well as judging it from their physical condition (coat, weight, tail, body tone etc).

This is what I currently feed with a group of 4 lads, 1 x 2.5 year old who to be honest doesn’t eat much of the dry anymore, 1 x fit and active 15 month old, 2 x mad and very active 8 month old boys. It’s flexible enough to cover most mixes I’ve made up, the only exception is when I have babies here, in which case they get a special mix with higher protein.

*Dry mix*
I mix my own food along the same spirit as the Shunamite diet (well known in the uk) but with my own take on it.

_Minimally Processed Grains/base mix – 50-55% _
I use this to act as the main carbohydrate content of my diet. Aiming to have a good amount of low processed carbs as this not only makes it more of a challenge for them to eat, it also makes it a little more challenging to digest which helps keep them slimmer. Here’s the kind of thing I add, the mix always contains barley and rice as it’s major ingredients as they are very kidney kind grains and I try and protect my lads kidneys as long as possible.
Flaked barley, Paddy rice (rice in It’s husk), Flaked Corn, Flaked Peas, mixed millet, whole maize (popping corn), Quinoa, millet sprays, Bruised Oats, Buckwheat, dari, etc – this mixture is then mixed 50:50 with Harrisons Banana Brunch (ingredients - Cooked Flaked Peas, Cooked Flaked Barley, Oats, Cooked Flaked Maize, Cooked Flaked Beans, Mixed Wheat Discs (with vitamins), Banana Chips, Flaked Carrot, Banana Essent, Vitamins & Minerals. Nutritional Analysis - Protein 14%, Oil 2%, Fibre 5%, Ash 2.5%, Vitamin A 5000 iu/kg, Vitamin D3 1000 iu/kg, Vitamin E 26iu/kg, Copper (Cupric Sulphate) 5 mg/kg,)

_Processed Grains – 15-20% _
This section I use to add in some easier to digest grains as well as those already enriched with vitamins. I’ve found this to be fairly important especially with very young or very old rats or those unwell. I try and have at least 4-5 grains present in different shapes and textures. This section changes a little every time
Rice Flakes, Brown Rice, puffed rice (supermarket own brand), Shredded Wheat, pearled barley, cous cous, bulgar wheat, Cornflakes (supermarket own brand), Pasta (currently white with Limi being older), riveta, rice crackers, no added sugar muesli, puffed spelt, puffed millet, and anything I see that is low sugar, not too processed and low protein and fat. 

_Vegetables, Herbs and fruit – 10%_ 
This is mainly there for flavour and variety, as I feed a fairly comprehensive fresh/frozen veg mix as it is, however it does add a little extra vitamins into the overall mix too. I tend to major on the veg and herbs/leaves, with a small amount of the other bits and bobs in. I also try and make sure I always have something with immune system boosting properties in it.
Dried Vegetables (typically 5-6 of carrots, leek, swede, peas, beetroot, bell peppers, potato, parsnip, nori (seaweed) sheets, cabbage), Dried herbs/leaves (3-6 of of; dandelion, plantain, bramble, lemon grass, mint, basil, peppermint, echanacia, nettle, thyme, herb mixes sold for rabbits, etc), berries ( at least one of; rose hips, Currants, mountain ash rowan, hawthorn, juniper, cranberries, goji), dried mushrooms (shitake, black fungus, portabello, chestnut etc), 

_Seeds – 5% _
I used to have this a fair bit lower to keep the diet low fat, but i quickly found my rats lost condition because of it, i've found as long as i keep the fats high quality they do very well about this level. The seeds section typically includes; Linseed, Hemp seed, pumpkin seeds, pine nuts (all seeds in shells where possible), mixed meadow seeds, fennel seeds, cumin seeds, etc. In autumn I tend to add a few edible bits and bobs that I find locally like dried beech masts and acorns

_Protein Sources – 5-10% _
I try and add at least one example of the major kidney friendly protein groups which are fish, soya and egg, plus shell fish which is very high in copper and peas/lentils as they are nice and low fat but good protein values. I have recently started adding some kibble in there which also helps supplement vitamins too.
Fish for dogs small bite kibble, Dried fish, garramus and river Shrimp, tubifex, bloodworm, Flaked Soya, Dried Whole Peas, Lentils, split peas 

_Extras and additives _
Dene’s wholegrain mixer (this is a vegitatian high quality dog food mixer) or barely rings (sold as pig or horse feed here, again nice and wholegrain with lots of added wits and minerals) - typically 2-3% of total mix, it adds vits and minerals, especially copper
Then small amounts of Garlic (shredded or powdered), Extra bits and bobs like dog biscuits, egg noodles, anything interesting I find in my cupboards that’s not particularly unhealthy, added in small enough amounts that it’s more for a surprise than to alter the mix balance at all. 

*Regular suppliments*
To this I regularly feed Dr Squiggles Daily Essentials and calcivet/calciform once a week in their water (as whilst it’s pretty comprehensive it may be a little weak in vitamin D, calcium and copper, as are most straights based diets). If I have youngsters this goes up to 3-4 times a week as there requirements are much higher.

Treat wise I feed them for a reason as opposed to a treat, so I don’t feed very much and when I do it’s to try and satisfy a specific need. These can be; liver biscuits (I make them myself and feed 1-2 a week, they add copper and whatever other vitamins I mix in when making them), old dog glucosamin treats (for my old man), high protein puppy treats (for when my youngsters are mid growth spurt and need a little more), blob of nutrical (for my old man as he’s a bit skinny), and so on.

They also get a balanced wet meal (typically either; senior fish/egg based dog food, cooked rice, egg and veg, soakable balanced mix made up with water or soya milk for a treat) about once every 7-10 days which has some of the following added; Oils (salmon, flax/linseed, omega mix, vitamin a extracted cod liver oil), vitamin powder (copper, vitamin d, calcium, blood and bone powder, vitamin c booster etc.). They also usually get some of my old mans oldie supplements as they don’t hurt the younger rats. My old man has a wet meal every day on his own as he needs it at the moment. 

*Daily Veg*
Once a day they get a mixture of veg, I make this up into frozen rat salad as it keeps it fresher and I struggle to keep a lot of fresh veg in the house. I make up daily bags of slightly different mixes about once every fortnight, these all follow roughly this pattern and have 2-3 bits from most sections;
Dark green leafy veg (50%) - kale and dandelion are my faves along with pak choi, spinach etc
Brightly coloured veg (20%) - carrots, peppers, tomatoes etc 
Other veg (20%) - broccoli, cauliflower, stir fry mixes, frozen mixed veg, sweetcorn, peas 
Berries (5%)
Chopped fresh coconut (5%) 
This gets broken up and fed still frozen at this time of the year


----------



## cagedbirdsinging (May 28, 2012)

Love that you made this thread so that us fresh diet folks can share ideas with each other and put more information out there for rat owners that are possibly overwhelmed or anxious about non-block feeding options.

I'll make a post up soon!


----------



## RollingScone (Aug 4, 2012)

Love this! Do you mind me taking this and spinning it for my little babes? I detest the rat food they gave me at the pet store and it appears my friends do too. They don't eat half of it! lol.


----------



## Isamurat (Jul 27, 2012)

Not at all, go for it. I have a low opinion of most rat foods lol. Where are you based, you may struggle to find ingredients in mine if your not in the UK, but feel free to ask any questions if your not sure on anything.


----------



## RollingScone (Aug 4, 2012)

I'm based out in the US and the exotic pet store near my SO's work supplied me with Fiesta Max for mice and rats. The reviews of users are positive, but with mama, auntie and babies, I'd like to make a better recipe from scratch. Not to mention the bags of food they give me are faaaaaar too small to feed them for longer lengths of time. I don't have a drivers license, so getting a new bag almost every two weeks is a major hassle. I'd rather go to a grocery store once a month to make a mix for a month or two at a time, which seems more than possible with home made mixes.


----------



## Lovely Rats (May 14, 2012)

My dry mix includes: 

Reggie's Rat Mix
Essentials Adult Rat Food - Royal Rat
Store Brand Raisin Bran Cereal- Lower Sugar Than Kellogg's Raisin Brand
Rolled Oats
Bits of Uncooked Pasta 
Garlic Powder
Puffed Wheat Cereal 

As an every-other day fresh food:

Lentils
Kidney Beans
Black Beans
Chick Peas
Green Peas
Quinoa 
Soy Beans
Pumpkin Seeds
Sunflower Seeds
Walnuts
Kale
Bok Choi
Spinach
Spring Greens
Red Cabbage
Cucumber
Cooked Pasta
Mushrooms
Strawberries
Blueberries
Cantaloupe
Honeydew Melon
Carrot Shreds
Peppers

Sometimes, in the morning, I'll share my breakfast of:

Oatmeal
Dried Cranberries
Organic Cereal (with some nonfat milk soaked in!)
Low Fat Yogurt
Granola 
Banana


----------



## cagedbirdsinging (May 28, 2012)

Where do I even start?!

I guess I'll start with my current dry mix which is the main mix that I also happen to sell. It's a basic adult maintenance mix that can be beefed up for youngsters, but requires some "watering down" for seniors and special needs rats, which I do on a custom basis currently.

Barley, wheats, oats, spelt, rye, millet, buckwheat, groats, quinoa, maize, rice, cous cous, puffed grains, sesame seed, flax seed, pumpkin seed, sunflower seed, cashew nuts, whole wheat pastas, split peas, cranberries... The list goes on! Most ingredients have several different sub-ingredients in varying degrees of processing. Each ingredient has a purpose.

For my guys, I take the main mix and add a handful of rose hips, various dried veggies, milk thistle, fennel seed, garlic flakes, parsley, oregano, basil, peppermint... I'm sure I'm missing things. They get fed only enough to last them so that they have a 4-6 hour period in the evening where they do not have access to food. This is usually about a tablespoon of mix per rat.

I'll likely be mixing the herbs together to offer separately on a free-fed basis, but I'm still working on that.

The staples of my "rat salad" that they get every night includes kale, spinach, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, mixed veggies, beans, blueberries, and mixed berries. That is stored in the freezer and whatever special fruits or vegetables I have in the fridge that week are tossed in the bowl before serving for variety.

Fresh proteins include liver and oysters given sparingly. The liver is usually given in the form of a biscuit baked with supplements that I'm still working on. They also almost always have a bone of some sort in the cage for calcium, yummy marrow, and general chewing fun.

I'm working on a good mix of sprouts that are also given daily, usually in the morning.

Special weekend treat is a spoonful of wheat germ mixed into a spoonful of Greek yogurt.


----------



## RatzRUs (Feb 5, 2012)

Caged you just made me hungry lol


----------



## cagedbirdsinging (May 28, 2012)

RatzRUs said:


> Caged you just made me hungry lol


About half of our chest freezer is off-limits to my husband. He tries to steal the rat salad all the time. The sprouts in the fridge are fair game to the whole family, much to his delight.

My brother ate some of the dry mix. I'm told it's actually pretty good. It would probably be better cooked.

I tried the yogurt and wheat germ mixture... can't say that I'm a fan, but the boys love it. I cover my nose and mouth on liver and oyster nights as well as when I make the liver biscuits. Watching liver spin in a blender is not fun.

My personal philosophy on feeding is that they don't get anything that I wouldn't put inside of my body, taste buds willing. (Looking at you, liver and oyster.) The main point being that everything is human grade and comes from the grocery, health food store, and farmer's markets.

_Also, I forgot to add eggs to the previous post. They get whole scrambled eggs, shell and all. I'm sure I forgot tons of other things. I'll add them as they come to me._


----------



## renplusrats (Dec 3, 2020)

Isamurat said:


> _Vegetables, Herbs and fruit – 10%_
> This is mainly there for flavour and variety, as I feed a fairly comprehensive fresh/frozen veg mix as it is, however it does add a little extra vitamins into the overall mix too. I tend to major on the veg and herbs/leaves, with a small amount of the other bits and bobs in. I also try and make sure I always have something with immune system boosting properties in it.
> Dried Vegetables (typically 5-6 of carrots, leek, swede, peas, beetroot, bell peppers, potato, parsnip, nori (seaweed) sheets, cabbage), Dried herbs/leaves (3-6 of of; dandelion, plantain, bramble, lemon grass, mint, basil, peppermint, echanacia, nettle, thyme, herb mixes sold for rabbits, etc), berries ( at least one of; rose hips, Currants, mountain ash rowan, hawthorn, juniper, cranberries, goji), dried mushrooms (shitake, black fungus, portabello, chestnut etc),


Hello I am hoping to get rats soon so I am trying to do a bit of research on what diet is best for them (I think I will probably end up trying to base my mix on the shunamite diet as well). Anyway, in doing my research I found some articles discussing which plants were and were not safe for rats and juniper was listed as an unsafe plant. I notice that you put juniper in the section quoted above so I was just confused by that. Are you referring to the fruit from the genus _Juniperus_? Is it possible that I just misunderstood the article? 

PS: This thread has been very helpful to me. Thanks so much!


----------

