Block food vs the other stuff

[Kiki_3173]

Thanks for the info on the Teklad blocks, Biscotti!! . I ordered a 2lb bag of the 2018 & gave Smudge a couple of pieces along with her Hazel Hamster & she's taken right to it!! . It makes me feel so much better knowing she's getting a balanced diet!

I didn't realize that it comes in lower protein amounts, so I will probably order one of those next time. I don't really know her age & just want to be careful. Do you think the 2018 will be ok for her through this 2lb bag or should I order a lower protein block? Seeing as how she really has never eaten very much of her Hazel, how may blocks in her cage do you think would be good per week?

[Biscotti]

I'm glad Smudge likes her new blocks. It smells pretty good to me as well, so much that I've taken a small nibble before, but alas I'm not meant to be a hamster.

I think 18% protein should be ok throughout a ham's life, I know a lot of people feed their hams HH all through their lives and have little problems. Unless your ham is exhibiting signs of kidney issues (Hamtastic has a sticky topic in the Health section), I wouldn't worry too much about it. I know that some people prefer to lower the protein to 16% as maintenance diet when their hams are around the 1 year to 1.5 year mark as a precaution though.

I tend to replenish the blocks as they're eaten so there's always at least a few around their cage. It's not a very scientific way of feeding but it works for me since it's their main diet so I'm not worried about them over eating.

[LaurenE]

I'm a BIG fan of the HT rodent lab blocks--they've been the staple food for my pet rats for a couple of years now. When I decided to get a hamster again, I did quite a bit of research (I'm a bit obsessive when it comes to the diets I provide for my pets haha), and ended up finding quite a bit of conflicting information as well as recommendations and statements that I really couldn't agree with based on the knowledge I've already gathered over the years about small animal nutrition, different brands of food, quality of ingredients, etc. In the end I chose to feed HT 2018 as the staple/base of the diet and supplement with organic grain and seed mixes that could be scattered around the substrate to encourage foraging along with appropriate fresh foods. While I do like that there are a variety of formulas to choose from (2014, 2016, 2018, etc.) personally I felt that both the nutritional values and ingredients of the 2018 were most appropriate for my Syrian and just like Biscotti mentioned how fiber levels can be increased via supplementation, the total protein and fat levels in the diet can be either increased or decreased depending on foods used to supplement the blocks.

And Biscotti--wanted to tell you that I've actually tasted the HT blocks myself too lol. Every rat I've owned or fostered has LOVED them and my dogs seem to think they're extremely desirable treats, when I had one of the rat cages in the hallway for a while they would all crowd around whenever it was feeding time in the hopes that I'd drop a block or two or some might possibly fall through the bars, and I have to be very careful to keep the bag well out of the way where they can't access it or else I find them all crowded around gorging as quick as possible before being discovered. I've always thought they smelled pretty pleasant, especially when compared to other brands of lab blocks/food and curiosity got the best of me one day and I decided to taste one. While definitely not something I would *choose* to eat lol, to me it really just tasted like some bland, super-healthy, multi/whole-grain cereal basically. But yeah, won't be pouring milk over a bowl of it for my breakfast any time soon

[Biscotti]

Originally Posted by LaurenE

And Biscotti--wanted to tell you that I've actually tasted the HT blocks myself too lol. Every rat I've owned or fostered has LOVED them and my dogs seem to think they're extremely desirable treats, when I had one of the rat cages in the hallway for a while they would all crowd around whenever it was feeding time in the hopes that I'd drop a block or two or some might possibly fall through the bars, and I have to be very careful to keep the bag well out of the way where they can't access it or else I find them all crowded around gorging as quick as possible before being discovered. I've always thought they smelled pretty pleasant, especially when compared to other brands of lab blocks/food and curiosity got the best of me one day and I decided to taste one. While definitely not something I would *choose* to eat lol, to me it really just tasted like some bland, super-healthy, multi/whole-grain cereal basically. But yeah, won't be pouring milk over a bowl of it for my breakfast any time soon

Ahahaha! I didn't know that dogs love them too. Your description of the block is spot on, it tasted exactly like that to me and it was *super* dry! I almost choked on the bits going down as it scraped my throat, had to take a big gulp of water to help wash it down. XD