Healthy Diet

Question
Dear Sandra,

Are these ok to feed to my rats??  I tried to follow an online rat food mix.  What is the BEST food and the best water to give my ratties? I want them to be super healthy!   
Kashi Organic Promise Cereal Strawberry Fields -- 10.4 oz
Eden Foods Vegetable Spirals Pasta -- 12 oz
Eden Foods All Mixed Up Nuts & Dried Fruit -- 4 oz
Nature's Path Organic Flax Plus Cereal -- 13.25 oz
Eden Foods Wild Berry Mix Nuts, Seeds and Berries -- 4 oz
Arrowhead Mills Organic Steel Cut Oats -- 24 Ounces
Arrowhead Mills Organic Puffed Kamut Cereal -- 6 Ounces
Arrowhead Mills Puffed Rice Cereal -- 6 oz
Bare Fruit Organic Dried D'Anjou Pears -- 3 Ounce

I also heard about feeding a rat baby food and dog food.  Please help, I know how great you are with rats because I have emailed you before!!
Thank you for your time,

Heidi


Answer
I recognize the brand names you mention and they are all healthy organic cereals. Go ahead and mix them for a yummy diet for your rats. There is a lot to talk about when it comes to feeding rats and every expert seems to have their favorite diet for their own rats. Feeding rats also has a lot to do with what is available to you in the area in which you live.

I give my rats water that has first gone through a Britta Filter.

Yes, rats can eat baby food and dog food. Baby food is used as a training treat and a snack, but most people use baby food for old and ailing rats where soft food might be the only food these rats are able to eat at this stage of their life. Dog food has to have optimum ingredients and be low in protein. I use Nutro Lite.