Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I was given 40 lbs. of cattle feed, 32% protein, blah blah blah. When I got to the bottom of the supplement list, it said "added copper".

1: Should I be worried about neurological or other effects on my rat colony (ie: don't feed at all)?

or

2: Start looking for a trade.

No speculation please, only fact or experience.

Thanks in advance, Quinton.

I would wonder if rats can even digest everything that would be in cattle feed, cattle being herbivores and having a quite different digestive system than rats.

True.

However, processed grain, molasses products, vitamin A suppement, veggie oil and the likes don't seem to be the problem...

It's that darn added copper that has me worried.

It's that whole, "you are what you eat" that bothers me the most.

Are there any studies that show added copper(or any other heavy metal) have an adverse effect on reptiles?

I sure would hate to lose a critter from heavy metal poisoning, bi-proxy.

Thanks again, Quinton

Is alfalfa an ingredient? I know rats can't process alfalfa. though whether that would just produce more waste or they would just not eat it, I don't know. Sorry can't help on the copper. If it were me I wouldn't risk it just to save a few bucks.

Coppper compounds are used in the dairy industry all the time, and I assure you that copper in enough quantity is more poisonous to cows than it would be to humans due to the way they digest.
As a matter of fact, 2 different chemicals are designed to stop the digestive action of the rumen to allow access to the next stomach for medicines that would be dangerous if allowed to enter the rumen.
One of them is a designed copper overdose, IIRC. The overdose is administered WITH the antidote, dolomite. Otherwise known as a 'drench'. It also kills most of the worm burden in the gut as well. Another, more common is a relative of anti-freeze, glycol.

Copper sulfate is prolly the most used compound to prevent foot rot, though applied topically.

Most cows are given copper as a suppliment in their feed to avoid poisioning them with a copper overdose when the gut burden becomes severe. Ounce of prevention, pound of cure sort of thing.

As to if it would be poisonus to rodents, I doubt it.
Would it be poisonous to SNAKES, quite possibly.
I would avoid using copper compounds, until you have confirmation that it's ok.

caz,
Great info, thanks!

I guess I'm gonna have to go looking for a trade.

Thanks again, Quinton

Do they add the copper to retard spoilage? I hate the thought of commercial feed containing copper, which will end up in the bodies of the prey we feed on. Maybe it only goes to the bones, or liver. Ugh. I wonder if they feed heavy metals to chickens. I avoid beef, but I eat lots of chicken breast.

Roger

No idea on the chickens, in fact it prolly wouldn't matter as much, since the copper levels in the feed are so low, as to take a cow a whole year of eating supplimented feed to get enough copper in their body to prevent the formation of worm type parasites in the gut.
I wouldn't think that chickens would live long enough to worry about gut parasite burden, esp. not those suseptible to copper.
The chickens raised for meat only live a few weeks/months.
The chickens' system is foreign to me, as I never had to deal with them, so take my word on it with a few tons of NaCl.

Add to the reasons why not to bother, that if you have a feed store nearby 50 pounds of the highest quality rodent food costs about $18...
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