# lab blocks



## wyliegirl (Dec 23, 2009)

Is is ok my mouse only eats less then 1 block a day


----------



## moustress (Sep 25, 2009)

Lab blocks come in irregular sizes, but, no there's nothing wrong with a mousie eating half a block a day. You could try breaking up the chunks so you don't have waste, if that's a concern.

I stopped using lab block as it contains corn and other corn by-products, which can cause cancer in meeces, especially does.


----------



## Jack Garcia (Oct 9, 2009)

The corn used in lab blocks is a higher grade than that used in most animal food. This is because lab blocks are used in research labs and scientific institutions and the blocks must be formulated exactly for experiments and such. There are also a few different manufacturers of lab blocks. I recommend and use Mazuri brand. What I do is, the day I clean cages I feed only lab block for a day or two, then add the other foods. This way the mice are forced to eat the (nutritionally complete) lab block at least a couple days so that they won't ignore it and go for the less complete stuff like millet or sunflower seeds. It's the equivalent of making a kid eat his brussels sprouts before he gets a doughnut!


----------



## moustress (Sep 25, 2009)

The corn itself it responsible for increasing the rates of cancer in meeces due to a reaction between stomach acids and corn, which forms the carcinogenic substance. (I think it's nitrosamines; it's been awhile since read that article and the site is no longer up.)


----------



## lindberg4220 (Oct 30, 2008)

I didn't know that thing with the corn and don't think any other danish breeders know either. Do you have a link til the article, then i'll post it in the danish forums 

BTW; my mice eat both Altromin (both the basic and Fortified) and a mice/gerbil/dwarfhamster-mix called Multifit and they seem to be thriving 

I have some does only getting Altromin to keep their weight - they get really fat when eating Multifit. They just like food alot + they are pretty lazy girls too :lol:


----------

