Foods to Avoid

Before you feed your rat any treats beyond their staple diet, check to see if that food is acceptable for them to eat.

Never feed your rat:

- cheese (as much as you want to, rats are generally lactose intolerant!)
- green bananas- oranges (can cause kidney cancer in male rats)
- green potato skins and potato eyes (contains a toxin called solanine)
- raw onions (may cause anemia or an upset stomach)
- raw artichokes (slows protein digestion)
- raw sweet potatoes (reduces thiamin. cooked is fine)
- raw dry beans( (clumps red blood sells. cooked and canned are fine)
- raw peanuts (roasted are ok in small amounts)
- rhubarb (stops calcium processes)
- blue cheese (could contain mould poisonous to rats)
- wild insects (may carry parasites)Use extreme caution (and not recommended)
- carbonated drinks (rats cannot burp. this can make them sick very quickly.)
- peanut butter (sticky so it may clog their throat. Can be fed to them, but I would recommend against it.)
- chocolate (can cause heart failure) (dark chocolate only to be fed in cases of respiratory distress in small amounts)
- general greasy foods (if its not good for you its likely not good for your rat)
- dried corn

What wood is safe for my rats?

Safe Woods (and Wood-like Substances) for Rats

Before you read through this section to see which woods are safe for rats, apple wood is by far the best wood in my personal experience for toys and structures. Ratties love apple wood. It is sweet, they love to play with apple wood toys and chew on the wood, and it is totally safe. 
For bedding, in my opinion aspen is the best wood. It has the least amount of scent, is safe, and is cheap. 
Though there are many safe woods listed below, these are the two that I would recommend using over all.

• apple
• arbutus
• ash
• bamboo cane
• blackberrry
• blackcurrant
• cholla
• coconut shell
• cottonwood
• crabapple
• dogwood
• grapevine
• hawthorn
• hazelnut
• kiwi
• linden
• manzanita
• mulberry
• pear
• pecan
• pine - kiln-dried white with no smell only is the only pine acceptable. If the pine has any scent, it is not safe.
• poplar
• quince
• rose hip
• sycamore