Do you want to know: can rats eat avocado?
Even though rats are not picky eaters, not all foods can be fed to them, and some might even be regarded as toxic. While the avocado fruit makes for a great treat for human beings, you have to be careful when feeding this type of fruit to your furry little friend.
While it is true that when it comes to picking stuff to eat rats aren’t very picky, this doesn’t mean you can just feed them all the avocado they can eat.
But the question is: can rats eat avocado? What will happen to them if they eat it?
Do rats eat avocados? Things you need to know about rats, avocado, etc.
Rodents are scavengers, and both tame and untamed rats have this ability, which made them indiscriminate towards food.
Since rats will probably eat whatever foodstuff handed over to them, responsible rat owners should be aware of the kind of food to give or not to give them.
Will rats eat avocado? Here are the foods that pet rats can eat in moderation:
Avocados
Can rats eat avocado? Will they eat rats’ food aside from it?
Rats can eat fruit and many other foods; they are not picky about it. And they enjoy eating any of them in warmer seasons because they are tasty and refreshing.
In answering the question: rats eat avocados. They love the fleshy goodness.
Rats forage for food in the wilderness, and fruits are the usual foodstuff they find, which are their basic fare.
More so avocados. Avocado tree owners can attest that rats adore the fruits so much that they need to take measures to protect them since rats can easily climb trees.
Rats are nocturnal creatures, but if you have an avocado tree on your lawn, rats will emerge from their hiding place and try to steal the fruits in broad daylight.
These are wild rats, which no one cares for anyway.
But pet rats are different since rat owners do care for them. And one thing they should know about avocados is that avocado skin and pit are toxic to them.
But rat owners do care for their pet rets and would feed avocados to them already peeled and sliced, without the avocado skin and pit on them.
When rats eat avocados, why do they love them so much?
Rats, either wild or domesticated, love fruits and prefer hotter climates. Avocados especially, whose taste is different from other fruits.
Since they can either be savory or sweet, depending on the preparation.
Thus, rats like eating avocados because of that. They will climb any avocado fruit tree to get their fill and will make a very nice meal out of it.
Avocado fruit is rich in vitamin C, B vitamins, monounsaturated fatty acids, and starch digesting enzymes, which are healthy for people but can be tricky for pet rats if overfed.
If given too much, they will grow fat, and a fat rat is not a healthy one.
But if given in moderate quantities and consumed only a few times in a week, it will enable their fur to be thick and strong, which they will need when colder seasons come.
When rats eat avocados, how much should they be fed? What happens if they are fed avocado skin?
When rats eat avocados, they should only be given in small quantities and not habitually. Experts recommend one to two tidbits only for every two to four weeks.
Its quantity is about fifteen to thirty grams of avocado meat (excluding the skin and pit) from a freshly picked avocado.
Another way to quantify it is one-third or a quarter of a half portion of an avocado.
It was mentioned earlier and to be emphasized regarding the removal of pits, outer layering, and even leaves. It is because it contains a toxin called Persin that can be deadly if consumed by smaller animals like rats.
All in all, your pet rat should only have avocado eaten in moderation.
Carbonated drinks
Some people think that carbonated beverages are deadly to rats. In truth, they aren’t, but they do love to drink it, maybe because of its sweetness.
Besides sugar, it has caffeine and other unhealthy additives.
Also, rats cannot belch, so the trapped gas would not have a way to come out, thus causing much irritation.
Chocolate
Chocolate harms other bigger pets like dogs and is regarded as deadly.
For rats, it can have the same effect in greater doses. It can result in diarrhea, seizures, and demise soon after, especially dark chocolate, which contains more caffeine.
If you like to feed it to your pet rat, be sure it is only a tiny amount.
Citrus
There is a substance in the skin of citrus fruits called d-limonene that sometimes gets included in the juice when squeezed.
If male rats consume it, it will result in damage to its kidney and even cancer. If your pet rat consumes any citrus fruits, be sure to strip the skin off.
Potatoes
Letting pet rats eat potatoes in small amounts is fine, specifically its meaty portion, not the eyes or outer layering. Do not let them eat the green part, which has a poisonous chemical called solanine.
Meats and fatty foods
Since rats are omnivores, they also eat meat, but too much of it in their system can make their fur oily.
And worse, disease of the liver, and even death. Foods rich in fat intervene in their body’s absorption of nutrients, like digesting calcium.
Sticky foods
Sticky and thick foodstuff similar to peanut butter should be given in tiny amounts only. It’s because it has the potential to induce choking.
Chlorinated and or fluorinated water
Your pet rat’s water consumption is also as essential as its solid food intake.
Both fluorine and chlorine are toxic if drank in large quantities, and researchers have also discovered that fluoride causes brain damage.
Be sure to only let it drink tap water that’s not fluoridated, chlorinated, or even unfiltered.
It should be reiterated that all of these foods on the above-mentioned list should be given as treats only and not part of the pet rats’ daily diet.
Foods that pet rats should avoid eating:
Imagine these types of food have a warning label sticker on them.
The ones that spell danger to anyone who might put them in their mouths and eats them.
The ones on this list should never be given to pet rats or else have lethal consequences like digestive upset or respiratory distress.
Alcohol
If you are the type of rat owner that often brings your pet rat with you everywhere, it becomes emboldened enough to eat and drink out of plates and glasses. It might even try to drink from a glass of beer or wine.
Be sure to keep these kinds of alcoholic beverages away from your rat’s reach.
Drinking them makes the different organs in the body weaker and causes them to die.
Green bananas
Green bananas have enzymes that suppress the rats’ digestion of starch.
Blue cheese
Its mold has toxins that become deadly to rats if consumed.
Caffeinated drinks
These kinds of beverages include the above-mentioned carbonated drinks, including coffee and tea.
Too much of them in the rat’s system will result in arrhythmia, cardiac arrest, quick heartbeats, and other cardiac malfunctions.
Beans (dried or raw)
You can let pet rats eat cooked beans in tiny quantities, but letting them eat uncooked beans is a different story.
Beans in raw form have a toxic substance called hemagglutinin.
It terminates nutrients from enzymes and vitamin A, which aids the digestive system in converting starches and protein.
Citrus peelings
As mentioned above, the peels have d-limonene that results in damage and even cancer of the kidney in male rodents.
Dried or raw corn
These have high amounts of fungal pollutants, and consuming too much leads to cancer of the liver.
Licorice
Consuming too much can result in neurological problems.
Insects
Rats will also eat insects if given the opportunity. But a lot of them are disease-carrying and also have parasites, which are deadly when consumed.
Green potatoes, the outer layer, leaves, and eyes
As mentioned above, these potato portions are toxic to rats, especially if the green will show in the skin.
Keep them away from your pet rat, or have dire consequences.
Sweet potato (raw)
Letting your rat eat a sweet potato is very dangerous because the starch will turn to cyanide when ingested and inside the stomach.
Spoiled food
Anything food spoiled and past its expiration date has toxins that are lethal to rodents.
These foods have bacteria and mold that cannot be seen on the naked eyes, which upsets their stomachs and even cause demise.
Pet rats can eat these new foods when cooked:
- Boiled egg
- Artichoke
- Brussels sprout
- Corn
- Beans
- Meat
- Sweet potato
- Red cabbage
What to feed rats: A pet rat’s healthy diet
Every living creature in the animal kingdom (including human beings) has different nutritional requirements, including rats.
Since they are omnivorous, the new food that their bodies need is similar to humans in the aspect of variety.
They need to eat different kinds of food and not the same stuff every day.
However dissimilar to humans, their nutritive necessities require varying proportions of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats.
According to research, a typical pet rat’s diet consists of:
- Twelve to twenty percent protein
- Seventy-five to eighty percent carbohydrates
- Four to six percent of fats
Also, about eighty percent of the rat’s diet should come from commercial food for rats, which is different from mice or hamsters. Twenty percent can come from vegetables, fruits, and treats.
A piece of a hard-boiled egg or cooked chicken will suffice, but not too much. Or else it can lead to some of the health issues mentioned above.
Here are what your pet rat needs:
- Your pet rat needs a nutritionally balanced and healthy diet along with all the vitamins and minerals, consisting of commercial rat pellets that are made especially for rats.
- Your rat needs to have variety, so along with the commercial rat mix that’s fed daily, include tiny portions of vegetables, seed, grains, dried corn, or a piece of a hard-boiled egg. Not too much, or else it will gain weight quickly and become a fat rat.
- It needs a constant source of freshwater to drink. If it does not have enough water in its body, it will become sick. Put water in a bottle in the cage, not a bowl, because it might get contaminated. If you have more than one rat or two rodents in an enclosure, leave multiple bottles to discourage competition.
- The rat food should be for rats only and do not feet it commercial mixes from hamsters, rabbits, or other herbivorous pets. These do not have the kind of nutrients that rats need.
- Avoid feeding sugary treats that are high in fat to your pet rat. You do not want a couple of fat rats running around the cage.
- Feed your pet rat twice a day, once in the morning and the next meal in the evening. Leave it in open bowls and take away any food not eaten in the cage to keep it clean. Rats mostly eat at dawn and dusk and drink liquids throughout the night.
New York Chipotle story
There was a news story last year about a rat infestation in a New York Chipotle restaurant outlet in a Manhattan borough Washington Heights location, New York City.
The wild rats loved avocados so much they began attacking staff; rodents leaving fungal contaminates and long smooth tooth marks everywhere. Everything was fair game and small potatoes for the rats.
The Washington Heights location closed soon after and did not have much good luck.
Conclusion: Rats eat avocados
Can rats eat avocado? Yes but within limits. Your pet rat is like a member of your family, and their food intake should be given importance. It is perfectly fine for your pet to eat avocados.
By giving it the proper nutrition it needs, it will lead to a long and contented life. Thus, making you happy as a result.
