8 weeks and hates blocks

[Kbroset]

I searched up rat toys on amazon and bought an array of things but two of his non-wood favorites is either a roll of toilet paper or a pair of my clean folded socks. He wrestles and rolls all around with them, just like he does my poor scratched up hands. But the tp he’ll shred as well and cram as much as he can into his nest.

My husband and I will actually play chase with him through the house. We’ll run (more jog actually) and he’ll catch us and a run circles around us then jump off on something nearby and go again. I have to wear a jacket for this or I’m bleeding from neck to knees. He usually jumps high enough to catch my shorts, but heaven forbid they aren’t long shorts and my thighs pay the price! This game started by accident after he kept following us to the bathroom. A squirrel running circles around you trying to bite and wrestle your hands in that situation is well... not exactly fun for mom or dad!! ��

Note: he can go from the end of the dining room to the end of the kitchen without ever touching the floor due to desk, cages, chair, kitchen bar, kitchen counters and then kitchen table. That’s his favorite track and several places he can pounce me if I’m not fast enough. We try to avoid areas that’ll put him scurrying around our moving feet for fear we could step on him.

We have a huge utility room so with cosmo (my 1st one) we turned that into his room and I would go in and hangout with him when I got home. we have dogs so we can't let them run in the house. ill definitely look up some toys and see what I can find. right now he has several little stuffed toys he wrestles with. he just has so much energy!! and my hands are the same way. I had to take a pair of my husbands long socks and cut them to fit like gloves to cover my arms when I feed him because he wants to climb me while he eats.

[Sottinger]

We have a huge utility room so with cosmo (my 1st one) we turned that into his room and I would go in and hangout with him when I got home. we have dogs so we can't let them run in the house. ill definitely look up some toys and see what I can find. right now he has several little stuffed toys he wrestles with. he just has so much energy!! and my hands are the same way. I had to take a pair of my husbands long socks and cut them to fit like gloves to cover my arms when I feed him because he wants to climb me while he eats.

That’s such a great idea! Thanks for sharing. It’ll be much cooler than a coat and also help the tops of my hands.

[cava]

the one Sottinger posted. Its almost just like the one TamiKakes does too but without the powdered formula which I may do when he stops taking less of his formula.

1 cup rodent block ground to a powder
1/2 cup nuts (I used walnuts, almond, pecan) also ground to a near powder
1 tsp of coconut oil
Then added enough fruit/veggie baby food to get the consistency I needed to form little balls.
Bake at 350 for 10min.

Hey guys, just a friendly head's up that this recipe has a pretty high ratio of nuts to blocks and without adding the formula which would balance some of it out, with added calcium, it still won't cancel the phosphorous heavy nuts being used. You can make them with nuts, but more like 2.5 c blocks to 1/4 c nuts and with added calcium if you want to be super safe.

The recipe listed above is like giving 1/2 nut to every one whole rodent block which if free fed (the way rodent blocks and boo balls are meant to be used) this is going to cause major dietary issues.

[Kbroset]

Hey guys, just a friendly head's up that this recipe has a pretty high ratio of nuts to blocks and without adding the formula which would balance some of it out, with added calcium, it still won't cancel the phosphorous heavy nuts being used. You can make them with nuts, but more like 2.5 c blocks to 1/4 c nuts and with added calcium if you want to be super safe.

The recipe listed above is like giving 1/2 nut to every one whole rodent block which if free fed (the way rodent blocks and boo balls are meant to be used) this is going to cause major dietary issues.

Oliver is still on formula 3 times a day so will that be okay for now? I’ll make them different next time if it’s okay for him to have the batch I just made for now. And another question is if he’s eating formula 3x a day and eating a couple of balls a day when do I cut out his middle feeding and get him on some veggies?

[cava]

We know that the formula offerss complete nutrition and will protect them from health issues so we let them eat the formula for as long as possible. Most babies will start to push the syringe away as they self wean and that's when you remove one of the feedings. If he's happy to have three syringe feedings a day still, lucky you, keep it up. One day he'll turn his nose up at it.

Also, at 8 weeks he still needs that three times a day formula.

This is also when we say introduce and get those blocks established.. The only problem with feeding the ones you made now is that when you change to the less nutty ones he may turn his nose up at them. When I start babies on blocks, they get the plain block and learn to eat that, then I make boo balls (home made doctored blocks) later on.

Yes, at this age you can start on one or two veg fro the list and see how he does poop wise. But don't make numerous dietary changes at once. Write down everything. So if he gets diarrhea you can look back.

[Kbroset]

Okay so I’ve made the balls a couple of times and now they are too wet. I’m not sure exactly what I did. I want to start adding formula. I just need a recipe that tells me the exact amount for everything. Crushed blocks, formula, baby food, and whatever else. I really don’t want to add but maybe a little extra nuts. I just don’t want to try and make another batch and mess up and waste the Henry’s blocks.

[cava]

Why are you using the Henry's blocks to make boo balls, out of curiosity? They are usually well liked. Most of us are making boo balls out of the less tasty rodent blocks, which if you mess up a batch, it doesn't matter too much.

I have never tried it with Henry's but I will say they are already baked and this may be your problem. Also, they already contain nuts, so careful adding even more nuts. And finally, they are supplements to a diet, not THE DIET, so you can only feed two of them a day. You can free feed doctored up rodent blocks (not henry's) as the base of the diet with veg and wild greens added.

I provided a link in this thread to my exact amounts and baking times for my boo balls. They are made with rodent block (harlan-teklad).

[Kbroset]

Why are you using the Henry's blocks to make boo balls, out of curiosity? They are usually well liked. Most of us are making boo balls out of the less tasty rodent blocks, which if you mess up a batch, it doesn't matter too much.

I have never tried it with Henry's but I will say they are already baked and this may be your problem. Also, they already contain nuts, so careful adding even more nuts. And finally, they are supplements to a diet, not THE DIET, so you can only feed two of them a day. You can free feed doctored up rodent blocks (not henry's) as the base of the diet with veg and wild greens added.

I provided a link in this thread to my exact amounts and baking times for my boo balls. They are made with rodent block (harlan-teklad).

I guess I shouldn’t have said boo balls. He won’t touch the Henry’s picky blocks and if he does he just picks the big pieces of nuts out so I thought if I mixed them with some organic baby food he may eat them and he did but this time they didn’t turn out right. And I use them because that’s all everybody says they need to eat. And this isn’t his diet he eats vegetables and a lot of stuff from outside also. But I’ll figure out what I did wrong. Thanks for the reply.