I mix my own food now!

[crazycritter]

You might notice, this used to be a thread asking for recipes for mixing my own food, but I have put together a recipe of my own that I think is excellent, and that the gerbils love!

It has:

Whole Oats
Rolled Oats
Barley
Bran Flakes
Split Peas
Banana chips
Sunflower seeds (small quantity)
Peanuts (small quantity)
puffed wheat
corn flakes
wild bird seed
raisins (small amount)
Kitten food

Kitten food ingredients:

chicken
chicken meal
corn gluten meal
brewers rice
chicken fat preserved with rosemary extract
wheat
dried whole egg
beet pulp
fish meal
flaxseed
brewers dried yeast
whey
potassium chloride
choline chloride,
lecithin
salt
calcium carbonate
ferrous sulphate
inositol
diccalcium phosphate
yucca shidigera extract
Vitamin A, D, and E
Taurine
Zinc Oxide
Niacin
Copper Sulphate
Maganese Oxide
Thiamine Mononitrate
Calcium Pantothenate
Riboflavin
Biotin
Vitamin B12

What do you think? They seem to loooove it. It costs me 25 bucks to make a huge bucket full.

[sweetie]

Hey Crazy,

It looks great. I eventually want to do my own but *now* is not the time. I will keep the recipie for future use. Thank you.

Also what type of kitten food do you use? Mine don't like the *whiskers* that my cat eats. They also don't like the dog cookies or food!!

[queenofthenile]

It would be nice if it had more non-processed grains. I've been including whole corn, red wheat and two types of millet. I got my grains at an aviary near where I live. I just wonder if the baking process destroys some of the nutritional content of the puffed wheat. Do you know about that ?

What is in the wild bird seed? Is it the type with millet and those little sunflower seeds. The recipe seems pretty good overall.

What brand of kitten food is that? I'm just curious now. I can't seem to find an ingredient's list that matches. It's about middle of the road as far as cat food goes. Of course, it isn't a huge part of the gerbils' diet so it is suitable.

[j]

Kitten food isn't the greatest idea. I wouldn't even feed that brand of food to a kitten. Gerbils don't need chicken, chicken meal and things like rice anymore than a cat needs corn.

Need more things like seeds and nuts that would be more natural and closer to a wild gerbil's diet. Seeds and nuts contain other nutrients that aren't listed like EFAS and things. Too many proccessed grains like cereal. Puffed wheat, corn flakes, bran flakes, whole oats, rolled oats..etc..

If you're going ot use "wild bird seed".. better off buying a few different brands of commercial gerbil foods and bird foods and then adding in more things like oats and whatever else with it. They'd be getting a better variety.

Just my opinion. ;D

[crazycritter]

Well, the whole point of making my own food is to cut down on feeding costs. Personally, I think my gerbils are looking a lot better since I started feeding them this food. Their coats look better, for some reason, and they're more active. IT has a lot more variety then their old food.

They really love it.