2 mixes and some questions.

by Snootietoots Wed 14 Sep 2016, 8:49 am

So, I am looking for some advice, as I haven't had a mouse before and worrying is one of my specialties. I feed him Vitakraft MENU for parakeets, as they did not have Vitasmart in any of the stores.

Ingrediants are: White millet, Oat groats, Red millet, Ground corn, Dehulled white millet, Canary grass seed, Golden German millet, Steam-rolled oats, Wheat middlings, Dehydrated coconut, Corn gluten meal, Dehulled soybean meal, Rape seed, Flax seed, Safflower seed, Ground wheat, Calcium carbonate, Dicalcium phosphate, Monocalcium phosphate, Dehydrated mountain ash berries, Ground oat groats, Salt, L-lysine, Vegetable oil, Potassium chloride, Magnesium oxide, Vitamin A supplement, Choline chloride, Algae meal, Yeast culture, Dehydrated orange peel, Ground steam-rolled oats, DL-methionine, Dried Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product, Dried Lactobacillus casei fermentation product, Dried Enterococcus faecium fermentation product, Dried Bifidobacterium bifidum fermentation product, Dried Aspergillus oryzae fermentation product, Torula dried yeast, Yucca schidigera extract, Fructooligosaccharide, Vitamin D3 supplement, Vitamin E supplement, Niacin supplement, Vitamin B12 supplement, Riboflavin supplement, d-calcium pantothenate, Menadione sodium bisulfite complex, Biotin, Folic acid, Thiamine mononitrate, Pyridoxine hydrochloride, L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate, Zinc sulfate, Ferrous sulfate, Manganese sulfate, Manganous oxide, Copper sulfate, Potassium iodide, Cobalt sulfate, Sodium selenite, Colour added (yellow 5, blue 1, red 40, titanium dioxide).
Guaranteed analysis:
Crude protein (minimum): 13.0%
Crude fat (minimum): 7.0%
Crude fiber (maximum): 8.0%
Moisture (maximum): 12.0%
Calcium (minimum): 0.5%
Calcium (maximum): 1.0%
Contains a source of live (viable) naturally occuring microorganisms.

Is this a good mix? What else should I give him?

There is also Brown's Tropical Carnival Hamster and Gerbil sold in-town. What are thoughts on this mix? I have not purchased this one.

And lastly, I would like to feed him fresh foods such as broccoli and apple. Are these good choices? How often should such foods be given?

Sorry for all the questions, I just want what's best for my little guy.

by River Wed 14 Sep 2016, 10:15 am

I don't know much about the ingredients, but the irst five aren't too bad.
The protien is quite good.
Fat is on the higher end of okay...I don't believe it's recommended for it to be over 5% fat, but I've seen 5-7% before. Not bad, not great.
I think fiber is fine, but I don't know much about that.

Browns hamster + gerbil is fine. A lot of membrs use it with great results. Some have received moldy bags and opted to stay away. It does contain a lot of "treat like" foods in my opinion, though, so I'm hesitant.

I try to give fresh foods 1-2 a week. Those are good choices! My mice appreciate cilantro and mushrooms.

by MesaMouse Wed 14 Sep 2016, 10:34 am

Vitakraft Menu for Parakeets is fine, as is the Brown's Carnival for Hamsters and Gerbils. With the latter, just be sure to remove all peanuts, raisins and striped sunflower seeds.

by Snootietoots Wed 14 Sep 2016, 12:34 pm

Thank you very much! Would it be okay to mix the two, or would it be better to have only one?

by comeandsee Wed 14 Sep 2016, 12:41 pm

I'd think mixing them would be great. Both are good foods, and your mice will have even more variety Smile

by Snootietoots Wed 14 Sep 2016, 12:45 pm

Well, perhaps I'll see about doing that then. : )

by comeandsee Wed 14 Sep 2016, 1:29 pm

Just an idea: Another thing you could do is have two small bowls, one with each type of food. Observe and see what he likes. Just don't fill them too full, making sure to adjust the amount in the bowl after each refill, according to how much was left behind. Ideally, the dishes will be almost or completely empty (aside from seed shells) before you refill them.

Most likely, he'll take some from each bowl. You can put the two dishes in separate areas of the cage, too, for a little added foraging. Cookie

by CallaLily Wed 14 Sep 2016, 5:03 pm

Both are good. If I had to choose one, I'd go with the vitakraft. Crude fat is fine under 10%, though like River I've also seen 5-7% being recommended. Crude fiber I've seen recommended under 10% as well.

If it were me with my mice, I'd probably also give them other grains, seeds, and nuts here and there. Oats, barley, rye, hemp seed, pumpkin seed, walnuts, etc. Insects too, like dried mealworms or crickets. My mice also love bits of toasted coconut and nori.

I try to offer fresh foods twice a week. Broccoli and apple are good. My mice seem to really like dark leafy greans. Eggs are usually a welcome treat too.

by scaredymouse Wed 14 Sep 2016, 11:02 pm

I prefer the vitakraft mix as well. I used to get both and mix them together but the quality of the Browns food has since diminished, so now I just stick with the Vitakraft parakeet food. It really is a high quality food, you don't need to pick anything out, and the mice love it. And rather than type everything out again.... I agree with all the additional food that Callalily listed. I add all of those things to my mousie diets.