Recipe - Dried Fruit Treats for Rats

Your rats will probably love these dried fruit treats, but they should be an occasional treat rather that a regular item in your rats' diet. While they are reasonably healthy, the dried fruit and fruit juice makes them quite high in sugar.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup cornmeal
• 2/3 cup dried mixed fruit (no orange or other citrus -- see below for explanation), chopped into small pieces
• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup apple juice (or some other non citrus fruit juice)

Mix all ingredients. Shape mixture into small (1/2 inch) balls. Place balls on greased cookie sheet.

Bake at 250 F (120 C) for 45 minutes.

After 45 minutes, turn oven off and let treat balls cool completely. They should be nice and crunchy once cool.

Store in a sealed bag or container in a cool dry place.

Warning (citrus and male rats): it seems that it might be a good idea to avoid oranges or other citrus fruits with male rats. A compound in citrus fruits, especially the peel, can react with a compound in male rats' urine, and has been linked to cancer in male rats (see RMCA site for more information). As with other studies like this, a large dose of the compound in oranges is necessary for this effect, so don't panic if you have given your rats oranges -- I believe it is just one of those things that warrants a bit of caution going forward.

These treats, in moderation, would also be suitable for other small rodents such as hamsters, gerbils, and mice. You might want to make a smaller recipe and slightly smaller treats (reducing baking time by a few minutes as well) for smaller rodents.