Rodent Diets

As a researcher, you want to have as much control as possible over what goes into your study animals. At Inotiv, we understand that. That is why we developed Teklad Global Rodent Diets^® .

Teklad Global Rodent Diets^® are a special integrated range of vegetarian laboratory rodent diets developed to be nutritionally complete for various life stages from breeding through long-term maintenance. Global rodent laboratory diets contain levels of protein, energy, vitamins and minerals that are more appropriate to the needs of modern biomedical research studies.

Furthermore, in global rodent diets particular attention has been placed on avoiding, as far as practical, ingredients that are reported to have adverse confounding effects on experimental results. This has resulted in a range of Teklad rodent laboratory diets that contain:

No fish meal
No meat meals or meat by-products
No alfalfa meal
No soybean meal or reduced levels
No animal fat

By excluding animal by-products, the presence of nitrosamines (a potential carcinogen) is avoided. Exclusion of alfalfa meal reduces chlorophyll, improving optical imaging clarity. Reduction or removal of soybean meal, together with elimination of alfalfa meal, minimizes levels of naturally-occurring phytoestrogens. Phytoestrogens interact with endogenous estrogens and potentially can affect studies in many research areas. Read more about this in these pieces:

Dietary phytoestrogens, a source of research variation
Ask a nutritionist series: Impact of phytoestrogens on research, Volume 1
Phytoestrogens limit translation of preclinical results to clinical outcomes
Ask a nutritionist series: Impact of phytoestrogens on research, Volume 2

Products

Teklad rodent diets	Non-autoclavable form	Autoclavable	Irradiated
Teklad global 14% protein	2014 , 2014C		2914
Teklad global 16% protein	2016 , 2016C		2916
Teklad global 18% protein	2018 , 2018C	2018S , 2018SX	2918
Teklad global 19% protein extruded	2019	2019S	2919
Teklad global soy protein-free extruded	2020X	2020SX	2920X
Traditional diets	see more	see more	see more

Not all products are stocked locally; extended lead time and additional fees may apply.
Many diets are available in certified format designated by a “C” following the product code. When diets are certified a representative sample is tested for a panel of contaminants. If not stocked as certified, certification can be made available upon request. Minimum order size and additional charges may apply.

Click here for recommendations on shelf life and storage

Traditional rodent diets were formulated decades ago based on understanding of rodent nutrition, ingredients, and diet manufacturing at the time. While traditional diets will supply the known nutrient needs of your laboratory animals, we recommend you consider the use of a diet from our newer global diet line for your modern research needs.

Teklad Global Rodent Diets^® are modern formulas designed to reduce research variables. Specifically, these diets contain more appropriate nutrient levels, and limit or exclude ingredients that are reported to have effects on a wide variety of research endpoints.

Lower, more appropriate protein levels can improve survival and reduce morbidity
Vegetarian with no nitrosamines (a potential carcinogen)
Formulated to exclude alfalfa meal, greatly improving fluorescent imaging clarity
Formulated to exclude or lower soybean meal, thus minimizing the presence of isoflavones, the primary type of phytoestrogen found in lab animal diets
Extruded rodent diets dramatically reduce clumping and hardness after autoclaving (2018SX , 2019S , 2020SX ), and in general result in less diet waste and cleaner cages

Teklad rodent diets are natural-ingredient diets specifically formulated to provide the proper balance of all known nutrients considered essential for the growth, maintenance, and reproduction of rats, mice, gerbils and hamsters. These diets conform to the nutrient requirements for rodents established by the National Research Council (1995).

Teklad rodent diets provide uniform nutrition. They are fixed-formula diets designed to minimize the nutrient variances which otherwise could occur if the ingredient composition of a diet were altered from one batch to the next.

Protein is supplied primarily by plant sources. Supplemental amino acids are added to provide the proper amount and balance of essential amino acids. All rodent diets are fortified with vitamins and minerals to help support the regulation of body fluids and the proper functioning of body systems to ensure the adequate growth, maintenance, and reproduction of research rodents. Autoclavable diets are supplemented with additional vitamins to compensate for losses that occur during autoclaving. Since our diets are nutritionally complete and balanced, it is not necessary to add dietary supplements.

Standard natural ingredient rodent diets are complete diets for rats, mice, gerbils and hamsters, that should be allowed ad libitum access to the diet. Fresh water should be available at all times.