I also chose this food b/c of its low protein content. I have an older chin that has not been growing for many years. I know about the excepted rabbit foods and why. Based on Timothy hay as a main food source the rabbit food should contain 16 to 20% protein 1:2 ratio on phosforus and calcium low fat no more than 4% preferably and contain comparable vitamin and mineral content to chin feed. I'm not new to this. I understand NO ONE on this forum likes the mixed foods. I undestand why. I know that to much sugary or high fat food is very detrimental and also that to much Vitamin A encourages yellow fat which is very hard on a chinchilla's liver. However My question isn't about the treats in this feed. I've already said I'm carefully controling his treat intake. It was about the alfalfa/protein content. I was currious as to the quality of a pellet with low protein but had wheat midlings and then alfalfa listed in the ingredients as opposed to it being timothy first and then wheat middlings in a low protein pellet. I'm also going towards hay being his primary source of food and treating feed as a very small portion of that daily consumption. He gets no more than two table spoons daily. I only feed the feed for it's vitamin mineral and nutrient content. I'm not sure if alfalfa hay alone would provide adequate nutrition. I have heard of many vets that only feed hay period I think one of the consulting vets on this forum do this. I've been considering this option myself but again I need to know that he is getting what he needs.
Minus the treats the ingredients list is essentially very similiar to the more excepted feeds. The first part of this was the basis of my question. Minus the treats can anyone answer if this would be ok for now with alfalfa as a primary hay being a low protein feed, which is what I'm looking for, with alfalfa in its ingredients list. thank you for your responses thus far.
Ingredients
Wheat middlings, soybean hulls, dehydrated alfalfa meal, cane molasses, dehulled soybean meal, flaxseed meal, salt, lignin sulfonate, timothy hay, ground limestone, clipped oats, choline chloride, DL-methionine, oat groats, dried carrots, soybean oil, dried papaya, dried pineapple, orange peel, roasted green peas, vitamin E supplement, sodium selenite, pumpkin seeds, raisins, roasted soybeans, dried cranberries, dried bananas, ferrous sulfate, magnesium oxide, rose hips, niacin supplement, vitamin B12 supplement, flaxseed, manganese sulfate, sugar, calcium pantothenate, zinc oxide, dried peppermint, thiamine mononitrate, pyrioxine hydrochloride, copper sulfate, rolle oats, biotin, vitmain a acetate, cobalt carbonate, corn syrup, zinc sulfate, riboflavin supplement, palm oil, ethylenediamine dihydriodide, menadione sodium bisulfite complex, mineral oil, ground corn, vitamin D3 supplement, folic acid, dried parsley, ground blueberries, natural flavoring, sunflower oil, rosemary extract, canola oil, mixed tocopherols.
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Guaranteed Analysis
Crude Protein (min.) 13.5%, Crude Fat (min.) 4.0%, Crude Fiber (min.) 16.0%, Crude Fiber (max.) 18.0%, Moisture (max.) 12.0%, Calcium (Ca) (min) 0.47%, Calcium (Ca) (max.) 0.76%, Phosphorus (min.) 0.53%, Salt (min.) 0.22%, salt (max.) 0.5%, vitamin A (min.) 5000 IU/lb, vitamin D (min.) 500 IU/lb, vitamin E (min.) 50 IU/lb, Omega 6 fatty acids (min.) 1.6%.