# Oxbow - Regal Rat, Mouse/Young Rat & Nursing Mothers/Babies



## RatAtaT2693 (Apr 23, 2016)

So, I'm doing some research on foods. I've seen mixed, though mostly great, reviews for Oxbow, but with the caveat that you need to feed them Regal Rat (RR) instead of the actual "mouse" food. I'm located in the US, if that helps.

I know, for rats at least, that Oxbow is among the two top brands to feed (the other being Harlan Teklad). I've had all of my rats on RR since five weeks, and they've all been pretty healthy and exceeded their expected two year lifespans. However, I was never satisfied with the Young Rat (YR) formula and usually supplemented the protein requirements with a hardboiled egg and some crickets. My rats weren't very amused by the Oxbow YR either, and between YR and Regal Rat, they chose the latter.

I didn't know if that was the same for mice. The one time I did have mice, they were on some crappy seed mix since I didn't do enough research.

If I did feed them RR, would I need to supplement the protein? I already buy it in 20lb bags - on special from my local pet store, so this would be the most ideal situation for me.

Is there another brand that I'm missing altogether?

They'd be getting an opportunity at fresh veggies and foods, so I'd like to avoid seed mixes as well. So much mess, and they pick out all the nuts.

What would I have to alter for breeding does?

I also have large dogs, so getting dog food wouldn't be much of a game changer.


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## Laigaie (Mar 7, 2011)

I would feed Harlan Teklad aka Native Earth before I paid through the nose to feed mice Oxbow. When I fed HT, I used a high-protein dog chow (EVO Weight Management) so that I wasn't using a ton of kibble in the mix. More kibble usually means you're upping the fat content of your mix, and mice can get greasy on high-fat diets. I also don't feed fresh fruits ever (sugar), and rarely offer fresh veg. If I do, it's something like pumpkin seeds in October/November, or gourd peelings. If you decide to go with HT, petfooddirect.com or pet360.com are good for deals for it.

I'm a big fan of Mazuri. I feed the 5663 formulation, which is a high-protein breeding block. Mazuri ships relatively quickly direct from their website, and it needs no supplementation for breeding or growing animals. It also includes yucca extract, which has in studies been shown to reduce aerosol ammonia (make your mice's pee stink less). If you have mice that are obese (brindles, Ay reds), you'll want to dilute this feed with plain oats, since the high protein can be hard on a diabetic's kidneys. You might dilute it for your retirees as well if you keep retired breeders.


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## RatAtaT2693 (Apr 23, 2016)

I like the prices for Mazuri and HT/NE, but, at least for (pet) rats, I've heard Mazuri's not the greatest. I can't say much - I've fed RR and nothing else, save for those cheap seed mixes. But as I'm finding out, there's a lot of differences between the rats/mice. My (rat) rescue requires either Native Earth/HT or Oxbow, so I'm more inclined to feed HT.

I'll definitely be keeping the retirees, especially since mice don't live long. They'll have worked their arses off. Those and a few that have good color, etc.

I can't believe the prices on Oxbow from the petfooddirect site. I get 20 lbs for around $35 USD through my local pet store. No shipping.

Is there a best strain to breed? I'm not looking for mass quantities, at least to start off with.


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## Laigaie (Mar 7, 2011)

There are a ton of varieties of Mazuri. 6f is a great choice for pet rats. I wouldn't use the 5663 for most rats unless you're doing purely feeders and you only feed it to the breeding moms and growing litters. It's a lot of protein for a rat. Fortunately or not, mice aren't rats. If you're going to use the HT/NE, I really do recommend the EVO Weight Management. It's the most protein for your dollar, outside of growing your own mealworms.

As far as breeding "strains" or lines, it depends entirely on what you want them to do. Do you want big litters of pinkies, do you want big litters of weanlings, do you want the biggest individual weanlings, do you want the biggest adults, etc etc. Most of that is to do with feeder breeding, mostly because people who aren't feeder breeding don't have a "best" in that same kind of way. Show mice breeders often ship or travel long distances to get the best stock for the variety they want to breed, and pet breeders who are really dedicated to starting off right will often go to shows or meetups to get mice from docile lines. Feeder breeders end up in a sort of bind: other feeder breeders often don't want to sell breeding stock. Some won't sell females at all. But how do you start with good lines if everybody has to start from scratch every time? :/ It's not a great system.


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## mich (Sep 28, 2013)

My mice do not enjoy the brand "Oxbow" and just sniff it and walk away. I dont think it has a lot of taste to it. But that is just my opinion. :roll:


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## RatAtaT2693 (Apr 23, 2016)

Sorry, haven't been on much. I'd imagine I'd probably want large litters of weanlings. My main concern is ending up with too many mice and not enough customers. I don't have any of my own reptiles, so surplus is really just waste after a while.

To my knowledge,I'm not really competing with anyone in the area. Strangely enough, Petco sells both sexes at my local store...

On a scale from one to disaster, how bad of an idea would Petco be?


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## Laigaie (Mar 7, 2011)

Petco...for what?

To buy food? Okay, if you do your research.
To buy mice? Hit or miss, and you'll want to have Baytril on hand, but it's better than nothing if it's your only option.
To sell mice? They use a contracted company, so your best bet would be to advertise on their cork board.


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