# Healthy junk food?



## basmati (Feb 13, 2009)

I've been following the threads, and have made many changes and additions in my little one's environment including her diet, thanks to this forum. When I got her as a rehome, I also got 1 and 1/2 bag of Brown's, 1 bag of Pretty pets, and a 1/3rd bag of kitten kibble (Nutrience). After reading these threads, I weaned her off of the hedgehog food and added CSFS light. *or I should say, Bas did that herself, I just added another option, and the HH food was no longer eaten. In another month, I'll add one more quality food. I am using the Nutrience as her "junk food", which she still eats. As the % of fat is higher in it, 20%, I would like to add a better "junk food". She is a runner, but I'd rather feed her more insects rather than a higher fat% from kibble. 

I know Reaper's food list is the best type of food out there, with the least harmful chemicals. As far as a "junk food", what would you recommend?


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## azyrios (Feb 2, 2009)

natural balance duck and pea seems to be a favorite for some hedgies. 
It does not have a primary ingredient of meat, but i believe the hedgies find it tasty.


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## basmati (Feb 13, 2009)

Thanks for the tip. I was actually thinking of adding that one as my second 'good one'. Since the first ingredient is not meat, it may not be as rich, as Wellness seems to be for some hedgies. I'd like to try to avoid the "stink" if possible :lol: while keeping her healthy.


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## azyrios (Feb 2, 2009)

ya. I am trying to ween vex off of the wellness, but he doesn't want to Budge. Ifi put less wellness in his bowl he will just eat less of it.

I am gonna try smashing it all up tonight to see if i can trick him into eating other stuff and eventually take out the wellness and replace it with something of similar shape that is not as rich


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## Immortalia (Jan 24, 2009)

I believe NB is a "good" food, even if the first ingredient isn't meat, as it's still a healthy diet. Mine LOVES it, more so than his wellness. He'll always finish his NB every night.

From what I remember reading, Reaper adds Spike's Delight Hedgehog foods as the "junk" food. The top 6 of the commercial hedgehog foods are safe to feed as "junk" food. 
1. Spike's Delight Hedgehog foods (all formulas)
2. Sunseed Hedgehog food
3. Brisky's Hedgehog foods
4. 8in1 Ultra Hedgehog food
5. L'Avian Hedgehog food
6. Hedgehog Complete by Exotic Nutrition


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## azyrios (Feb 2, 2009)

ahh okay, i thought NB was a healthier junk food that was included because a lot of hedgies like the taste.

I don't think vex likes the size of the NB pellets compared to the wellness, so i am gonna try breaking them down tonight into small er pieces.


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## zoologist (Sep 2, 2008)

Cloud hates his wellness, but at 11 bucks a pop he's gonna eat that whole bag, lol.

as his 'junk' food i give him nutri balance (or something close to that) wet food. It helps soften up his food for him since he has bad teeth. Oh, and he gets a good heaping amount of small mealworms on top too


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## dorasdaddy (Dec 23, 2008)

Have you tried Halo Spots Stew? Very small kibble size, all natural...the only reason it isnt on the list is because it has 16% fat....bot of our girls love it. We use the Sensitive Cat (chicken) and Indoor Cat (Turkey) varieties and our girls nom it up.


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## basmati (Feb 13, 2009)

Thanks for the ideas. It is odd to think of healthy junk food, selecting the fries, in a non-trans-fat, low sodium kind of way.


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## azyrios (Feb 2, 2009)

Dora could you give me more information on that food? Vex is slightly underweight so i have been trying to use a slightly higher fat content (closer to 15).

Are the pellets as small as the wellness ones?


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## Reaper (Aug 22, 2008)

Natural Balance Green Pea and Duck isn't a "junk" food. Originally it was Venison and Green Pea. If the recipe calls for 1 ton of duck meat and 1 ton and 1 pound of green peas the 1st ingredient listed is green peas. Due to duck being very oily it probably has to be mixed with more peas to balance it out. It was developed for cats who are allergic to the majority of cat foods so the ingredients are very limited and not normally found in pet foods. As for quality it is right up there with Wellness, Blue Spa, Chix Soup, Castor and Pollux, Innova, Solid Gold etc. Natural Balance lite version is now on the list as well. Also they make foods for animals found at zoos and not kept as pets. So I personally would rank Natural Balance right up there at the top.


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## azyrios (Feb 2, 2009)

thank you for the clarification reaper, much appreciated!


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## basmati (Feb 13, 2009)

OK--back to the Green Pea and Duck, Natural Balance.....
I picked some up today, and just noticed something:
under the analysis, crude protein is a MINIMUM of 30% and fat is a MINIMUM of 12%. The key word being MINIMUM, not MAXIMUM. I will try to find out what the max range is, as that is the main concern. Perhaps this is the reason this brand is such a hit with the hedgies.....


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## Reaper (Aug 22, 2008)

All foods list the minimum.


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## basmati (Feb 13, 2009)

Ahhh--thanks for the clarification...I feel like a goof now. I had it in my head that 30 and 15 were maximums for protein and fat.

Although, now I am more confused. It would seem that hedgies have to have a certain % of protein and fat in their diet, which makes sense for the minimum rule, just like adequate nutrition standards for humans or other animals for that matter. However, from past history, as I understand it, many suffered from having too much protein, and too rich of a diet. If a minium is given, how do we know what the maximum percentage is? 

I am thinking of a popcorn analogy. If you pour butter on popcorn and not stir it, some of the kernals will have a lower or higher % of butter. A minimum coverage of butter may be 3%, but many of the kernals may be up to 80% covered.

There is probably much more to the guidelines about the set up of pet food that I am unaware of. Could you please explain?


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## basmati (Feb 13, 2009)

FYI

I got a quick reply back from Natural Balance:

Please know that the Green Pea & Duck Dry Cat formula has a maximum protein of 35.5% and fat of 19.5%. 

It is a great feeling when a company can inform you of this so fast. It would be interesting to see other maximums, to get the range of each food type. Perhaps with time.


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## basmati (Feb 13, 2009)

To go with the information, I just got a phone call as well (these guys are awesome), the foods are produced to meet the minimum that is required for the animal the food is designed to meet. There is a variance in that, and it tends to be 1.5 -2% for Natural Balance. So--there is no fear of a kibble with 80% of whatever. A learning lesson for me that I am sharing with you.


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