# Is this ok?



## Butters (Sep 25, 2010)

I'm new to the hedgie world and need assistance in assuring my hedgie a healthy diet he's nine weeks old and is it ok to feed him whiskers dry cat food with 31.1% protein, 12% moisture, 13% fat, 4% fiber please respond so i kno for a fact if its ok or not.


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## smhufflepuff (Aug 28, 2008)

Maybe a touch high on fat; seems high in protein too. 
And you also have to think about ingredients that help to make up thoes percentages.

I haven't heard of many people (anybody really) feeding their Whiskas to their hedgies - I'd guess it has to do with both the ingredients and percentages. 

Take a look at the foods posted in the "Dry Cat Food List" near the top of this "Diet & Nutrition" board for some alternatives.

edit to add: Actually that % fat is probably fine for a baby. But, still, think about the ingredients.


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## hercsmom (Jul 6, 2010)

In my opinion this is a very bad food for a hedgehog. I believe the first few ingredients on that one are corn and by-product, both of which are fillers and very bad for a hedgehog. Poultry by-product is nasty; it's beaks, feathers, feet, intestines, and all the other normally discarded parts of the carcass. Also, hedgies can't digest corn properly. Check out the dry cat food list on this forum, it's a really valuable tool for new owners.

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=15&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&hilit=by+product

Also, be careful about switching the food too suddenly, which can cause tummy issues.


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## Immortalia (Jan 24, 2009)

It's a crap food.

Ingredients for Whiskas Dry Adult Food:
Chicken by-product meal, Ground Yellow Corn, Corn gluten meal, Animal fat (preserved with BHA/BHT), Wheat, Rice, Natural chicken flavour, Wheat flour, Potassium Chloride, Salt, Caramel Colour, Vitamins (Choline Chloride, dl-Alpha Tocopherol Acetate [Source of Vitamin e], Vitamin a Acetate, Niacin, Vitamin b12 Supplement, Riboflavin Supplement [Vitamin b2], Thiamine Mononitrate [Vitamin b1], d-Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin d3 Supplement, Biotin, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride [Vitamin b6], Folic Acid ), Turkey by-product meal, Taurine, dl-Methionine, Trace minerals (Zinc Sulphate, Copper Sulphate, Manganese Sulphate, Potassium iodide), Whitefish meal, Calcium Carbonate, Ethoxyquin (a preservative).

First, we get by-product meal, and then lots of corn, and to make things worse, cancer causing agents(BHT/BHA)!

Please check out the link to approved cat foods and find a better food choice. Our hedgies can be prone to cancer as it is, we don't need to add to that to make it worse.


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## LarryT (May 12, 2009)

Butters where are you from? I know in some countries that's about as good a food as you can get.


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## Butters (Sep 25, 2010)

its not whiskas its whiskers cat food


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## hercsmom (Jul 6, 2010)

What are the first 5 or 6 ingredients?


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## nikki (Aug 28, 2008)

I googled Whiskers cat food and couldn't find anything at all. Could you please post the ingredients in it? The ingredients are more important to know that just the protein, fat etc percentages.


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## Immortalia (Jan 24, 2009)

Butters said:


> its not whiskas its whiskers cat food


Then can you show us the ingredients, perhaps a website with all the nutritional values? I tried google, but I only found Whiskers cat treats.

Next closest thing I found is a review http://hubpages.com/hub/G_Whiskers_Cat_Food
Is that the product? If so, seems like the ingredients are crap still, with byproducts and corn.


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## smhufflepuff (Aug 28, 2008)

Butters said:


> its not whiskas its whiskers cat food


Google redirected me to Whiskas when I typed in "whiskers cat food." I, perhaps stupidly, assumed Google "knew" what it was doing. I apologize. 
If you could take a look at the ingredients for Whiskers, it will help you decide if you should keep with it, add another food to your mix (many of us use several brands as it seems no one brand has everything a hedgie needs), or change brands entirely.


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## Butters (Sep 25, 2010)

sorry guys ... gf told me it was whiskers i told her to recheck it was whiskas no worries though i found a cat food corn free no by products ^^ its called newmans own organics its a lil high in fat but my hedgie is still a baby so i figure its ok till he is an adult


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## hercsmom (Jul 6, 2010)

Butters said:


> sorry guys ... gf told me it was whiskers i told her to recheck it was whiskas no worries though i found a cat food corn free no by products ^^ its called newmans own organics its a lil high in fat but my hedgie is still a baby so i figure its ok till he is an adult


This one looks much better based on the ingredient list.  May still be a touch low in protein, you want to try to get protein around 30%. Your hedgie will need all his protein right now to grow up big and strong. Where abouts are you? Are there any larger pet stores or pet supply stores in your city?

Ingredients 
Chicken, Organic Barley, Organic Oats, Organic Peas, Chicken Meal, Organic Sorghum, Organic Soybean Meal, Chicken Fat (Naturally Stabilized with Mixed Tocopherols [a Source of Vitamin E]), Organic Brown Rice, Organic Millet, Organic Rice, Organic Flax Seed, Dicalcium Phosphate, Organic Carrots, Chicken Liver, Sea Salt, Calcium Carbonate, Potassium Chloride, Dried Kelp, Parsley, Zinc Amino Acid Complex (Source of Chelated Zinc), Choline Chloride, Iron Amino Acid Complex (Source of Chelated Iron), Vitamin E Supplement, Rosemary Extract, Manganese Amino Acid Complex (Source of Chelated Manganese), Lecithin, Copper Amino Acid Complex (Source of Chelated Copper), Vitamin B12 Supplement, Vitamin A Acetate, Niacin, Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Ascorbic Acid (Source of Vitamin C), Riboflavin, Folic Acid, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Thiamin Hydrochloride, Biotin, Cobalt Proteinate (Source of Chelated Cobalt), Ethylenediamine Dihydriodide (Source of Iodine), Sodium Selenite, Dehydrated Lactobacillus Acidophilus Fermentation Product, Dehydrated Bacillus Subtilis Fermentation Product, Dehydrated Bifidobacterium Thermophilum Fermentation Product, Dehydrated Bifidobacterium Pseudolongum Fermentation Product, Dehydrated Enterococcus Faecium Fermentation Product.

GUARANTEED ANALYSIS:

Crude Protein................21.0% (min)
Crude Fat......................12.0% (min)
Crude Fiber.....................4.5% (max)
Moisture........................10.0% (max)


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## Butters (Sep 25, 2010)

ur right on ingriedients but wrong on percentages and thank god  crude protein is 34% min crude fat 14 % min crude fiber 3 % min moisture 10.0% max


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