What I Feed My Mice

By Cait McKeown

I make my own food mix for the mice so that I can control their diet and the ingredients used. This is important in order to avoid the inclusion of too many preservatives (notably ethoxyquin) and foods that should be used in moderation such as sunflower seeds and corn. I can also avoid more of the unpalatable processed foods used to bulk out comercial hamster/rat foods. The ingredients of my mix are:

• Bailey's Best British Oats
• Bunny Munch Ultra
• Flaked barley
• Wafcol Greyhound Maintenance dry dog food
• Mixed wild bird seed

Left: Bunny Munch Ultra Right: The mix I use

The brands I use are important as I have selected these for their composition and protein levels. The ingredients are also based on what my mice thrive on after trying many different kinds and brands of food. The ingredients are available from farm shops in bulk, meaning they are also good value. At the time of writing it costs roughly 10p a week per mouse to feed this diet!