From what I hear its a very good food and highly recommended, the only problem is that some rats won't eat it

 

never heard of it, but I feed rat nuggets and natures menu puppy food which they love

 

sunbirdx, do you mean Regal Rat? It's a good food. As glindella mentioned, some rats won't eat it. I've also heard reports from a few people that their rats lost weight and continued to drop it while being fed RR until they had to switch foods to put weight back on them.

never heard of it, but I feed rat nuggets and natures menu puppy food which they love

Puppy food has way too much protein in it to be fed to rats. You shouldn't need to feed the dog food at all if they're eating lab blocks, which I assume is what you meant by "rat nuggets". Take them off of the puppy food and start supplementing fresh fruit/veggies and whole grain cereals or bread if you want to give them a treat.

 

You know, I feed the RR with Innova Senior Dog food, to make sure they are getting enough fat. The Regal Rat mentions on the back of the bag that it isn't appropriate for rats under 4 mos. So I haven't had any weight problems, but I think it wouldn't be an appropriate staple diet without supplementation.

I haven't had any problems with the girls not eating it, and I have had 5 rats on it. One of my rat friend's rats won't touch it.

 

You know, I feed the RR with Innova Senior Dog food, to make sure they are getting enough fat. The Regal Rat mentions on the back of the bag that it isn't appropriate for rats under 4 mos. So I haven't had any weight problems, but I think it wouldn't be an appropriate staple diet without supplementation.

I haven't had any problems with the girls not eating it, and I have had 5 rats on it. One of my rat friend's rats won't touch it.

How long have you been feeding it? They are usually crazy about it at first and then start to dislike it more and more. I would just weigh them regularly (always a good idea) and see if you see any severe weight losses.

I am an HT lab block girl myself, with supplementals of course
My rats adore the 2014, even if its low fat and low protein...hehe. I won't tell them its good for them

I don't know much about the Oxbow RR, but check to see if it has vitamin K supplements because the dog kibble won't and rats need the Vit K, otherwise they could have serious issues.

 

I don't know much about the Oxbow RR, but check to see if it has vitamin K supplements because the dog kibble won't and rats need the Vit K, otherwise they could have serious issues.

Yes it does, I just bought a bag today and the bag says "Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex (Vitamin K)" I'm going to try to switch my girl over, so far she loves it, but then again, it is 'new'.

 

How long have you been feeding it? They are usually crazy about it at first and then start to dislike it more and more.

That's so strange, because that's exactly how Bart reacted to it.

 

How long have you been feeding it? They are usually crazy about it at first and then start to dislike it more and more.

That's so strange, because that's exactly how Bart reacted to it.

I think its the apple taste. It's sooo good in the beginning but it palls after awhile. I would assume its like anything sweet to us...its great but after eating it over and over you get sick of it.

 

I don't know much about the Oxbow RR, but check to see if it has vitamin K supplements because the dog kibble won't and rats need the Vit K, otherwise they could have serious issues.

Yes it does, I just bought a bag today and the bag says "Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex (Vitamin K)" I'm going to try to switch my girl over, so far she loves it, but then again, it is 'new'.

Most high quality dog foods will not have Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex (Vitamin K) since questions have risen as to whether or not it's linked to health issues. Dogs do not need the level of Vitamin K that rats do so it doesn't really need to be added in synthetic supplemental form, it was just added as a precaution. A lot of the higher end companies have removed it from their dog foods.

 

Yes, I knew about the menadione (I worked in a very upscale pet food (only) shop for a while) and wondered about that.

My rats have all been on it for over a year. They are still eating it happily. I have also given them the Harrisons, in the past, which they like fine, but then started to ignore.

 

Harlan also uses the Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex, is it ubiquitous in rat foods?

 

Harlan also uses the Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex, is it ubiquitous in rat foods?

Yes, you'll be hard pressed to find a rat food that doesn't contain Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex. This is because while a rats nutritional needs are very similar to ours there are some things that they need a lot more of, and Vitamin K is one of them. I've yet to see a rat diet (other than homemade) that doesn't supplement with Menadione. I talked to Oxbow about possibly looking into safer, more human grade versions of Vitamin K but I do not know if they will make changes on that or not.

 

Not necessarily. It seems that some of the higher quality brands include it however, its not the fact that it is included, but rather, what it is combined with as a 'carrier system' (for lack of better terms at this point in time).
HT is unsurpassed in this area, from what Ive seen. However, since Ive not seen it all, I cannot be sure. I certainly dont want to come across as a crass know-it-all...lol - I cant stand that type of person.