Labdiet vs Mazuri vs Oxbow

[Annieo]

So I have about 3lbs left of the hi-fiber rabbit pellets left that I get from my vet. I found out it is LabDiet Hi-Fiber #5325. Some folks have recommended I use a more chinchilla specific food such as Oxbow or Mazuri.

I did this little spreadsheet of Oxbow, Mazuri and the LabDiet. I see there are some difference, but a lot is the same. I'm wondering if I should ditch the LabDiet of which I have 3lbs left of in favor of slowly integrating Mazuri or Oxbow into Handbag's diet, finish what I have then switch, or not switch at all.

Most of this is pretty foreign to me in terms of evaluation but I thought it would make sense to someone with more knowledge.

I posted the file at:
files.me.com/motohottie/6z3i57

The password is chinchilla.

I'd appreciate any input. Let me know if I set it up wrong and you can't acces the pdf. If you don't have Adobe Acrobat Reader, it is free at http://get.adobe.com/reader/

 

[Annieo]

This might be easier to view for those without Adobe Reader.

 

[RDZCRanch]

There was a discussion a while back in a feed thread on here about the lab diets. The general consensus is that they do not contain the right ingredients for a chinchilla. While it would be nice to have the consistency of a lab diet, they are not formulated with chinchillas in mind and often have ingredients I would not recommend.

For me, this particular lab diet has too little protein, 16% would be as low as I'd be willing to go and that would be pushing it. I also really don't like that cane molasses and ground yellow corn are the fourth and fifth ingredients. The higher on the list an ingredient is, the higher the content in the food.

 

[Linda]

In my opinion, one of the big advantages of the lab diet is that it is a constant nutrition food. That means that they don't vary the ingredients with the seasons and with whatever food is cheapest on the market at any given time. If you look at people's experiences with the other feeds, you'll see that they are often switching from food to food as the ingredient mix changes trying to find something suitable for their chins. These other brands regularly shift the ingredient mix for the bottom line and not because they believe the ingredients are better for the animal.

I use lab diets for my other rodents, and the consistency is wonderful, and I very much appreciate the fact that each and every batch of the food is tested before any bags are sold. It's quality control beyond what you'll see in most feeds, and we've had trouble with the quality control in Oxbow in other rodent feeds.

Do you buy the lab diet in 50 pound bags?
Linda

 

[Annieo]

No Linda, I purchased 5 lbs and have 3+ left. My vet is Dr. Jenkins at the Avian & Exotic Animal Hospital in San Diego.

Tabitha, I didn't see the other thread. I searched for Lab Diet rather than Labdiet. I see the thread now and I'm reading through it.

 

[RDZCRanch]

While the consistency of a lab diet would be nice, I don't recommend them for chinchillas. Until there is one that is formulated specifically for chinchillas it is not a suitable diet. You have to keep in mind though, their ingredients still are not 100% consistent across the board year round. It's common knowledge that different plants grow at different rates, etc. year round so while their nutrition analysis and amount of ingredients may be the same, you can't gaurantee that each batch is 100% the same as the last.

I have recommended Oxbow to many people for chinchillas. No one has had a problem with it that I know of. I also have three boys here that I am fostering that are on the Oxbow pellet. It consistently smells fresh and the pellets look the same. I would probably feed Oxbow to my entire herd if it didn't cost an arm and a leg to feed 70 chins with it.

 

[cindyv3737]

I don't know anything about labdiet. However, I feed Shelly Oxbow. She loves it and I've never had a problem with it. You can order from Sandi. She has great prices and ships fast.

 

[menagerie]

Of the three choices, I would go with Oxbow. They have been very consistent with the quality of ingredients and formula in their chin food. Oxbow is also the only one of the three that does not contain corn.

 

[Jenn]

I don't know enough about the breakdown of the food and the nutritional needs of chins to offer an opinion, but I have never had a problem with either mazuri or oxbow. I tend to stick with what works for the majority of the people who use them.

 

[Annieo]

I don't have a problem with switching foods. I love to learn new things about Handbag and how it can help him live a happy and healthy life.

 

[AZChins]

Those ingredients for the Mazuri are from an older formulation. It no longer contains corn and hasn't for some time.

 

[Spoof]

I say if it isn't broke, don't fix it. In other words - if handbag is doing good on the lab diet, stick with it.

The ingredients are more consistent, usually higher quality, and comparable to other feeds I've used. If you start to have problems, switch. I'd use it if it were not so expensive here.

As far as I'm aware nobody has tried using it - it may be a great feed.

 

[ticklechin]

I had chins on a low protein/fat and high fiber diet, meaning a 100% timmy diet for a few months the poo looked great but the fur was dull and to be honest started to look really skuzzy. The lab diet has way too low of protein and fat, I would not even consider it after my experience. Oxbow IMO is your best bet of the three feeds.

 

[Linda]

The fat in the Lab Diet is the same as that in Oxbow. It's Mazuri that has the higher fat content.

Tabitha, I think I heard that you use the Bowen feed for your breeding animals. Could you share the fat and protein content that's in his feed. I would expect to see both higher fat and higher protein needs in animals that are being heavily bred, and that would give us a decent comparison (upper limit) for the needs of pets. I think he and some of the other ranchers have the feed made to their specs, so hopefully they're what he's found, in his experience, to be optimal for breeding chins.
Linda

 

[ticklechin]

I used this pellet and timmy only hay, result: Skuzzy fur with .5% more fat than the lab diet.

Guaranteed Analysis

Crude Protein (not less than) 14%
Crude Fat (not less than) 2%
Crude Fiber (not less than) 18%
Crude Fiber (not more than) 25%
Ash (not more than) 12%
Calcium (not less than) 1%
Calcium (not more than) 1.5%
Phosphorus (not less than) .5%
Sodium (not more than) .75%
Vitamin C (not less than) 93mg/lb

 

[Linda]

It seems that the Bowen feed is 15.9% protein and 3.2% fat.

I think it's generally accepted that breeding animals need more protein than pets, so both Oxbow and Mazuri would be considered high (too high?) for pets. Lab Diet is the only one lower than the Bowen feed.

It's also generally accepted that breeding animals need a bit more fat than pets. It looks like Mazuri is high (too high?) while Oxbow and Lab Diet are the same at 1.5% (too low?).

So just by looking at fat and protein, you're not going to find any of those to be optimal for pets unless it's the Lab Diet which is lower in fat and lower in protein than what the largest rancher in the nation has determined to be optimal for his herd.

And his herd has very good fur quality given those fat and protein levels if you count the placing of his chins as Grand Show, Reserve Grand Show, and many class champions at all levels of competition.
Linda

 

[tunes]

I don't feed any differently between my breeders and my pets. I don't know of anybody who does. I don't see any need to. My feed is 16% protein. My mentor told me ideal was in the 16% range, much lower than that, not great. Since I started out with pet chins from him before I started breeding, I've never felt the need to go higher protein with my breeders. Ideal to me was Tradition, which is 17% protein. If I could get that out here again, that would hands down be what I feed.

When I sell a chin to be a pet, I send along the same feed I use here, and lots of my customers continue to buy this feed because it's readly available at feed stores (thank God).

BTW, I don't like lab blocks/diets for much of anything. They are supposedly "optimal nutrition", but a lab animal isn't treated like a pet, nor is it generally a breeding setting. My rats refuse to eat Harlan Teklad, even though most rat owners will tell you that's the recommended feed.

 

[Ash]

Another thing that bothers me about the lab diet is the fact that corn is the 5th ingredient. If I recall correctly, corn isn't a preferred ingredient in chinchilla feeds, even though it is in Mazuri, but even then it is the 11th ingredient and not the 5th.

For what it's worth, I feed Purina Rabbit Chow Show which has a protein of 16% and fat of 3.5% and my chins do fine on it.

 

[Essentia]

Just as an FYI, Mazuri no longer has corn in it at all. This was an old ingredient list.

This is their new ingredient list.

 

[Ash]

Good to know, Crysta!