Hamster Food

[cavy-cool-crazy]

What is the best diet for a hamster? My dad has a little cutie called Sonic and she gets the same old thing every night and is now getting bored with it.
Every night she gets cucumber, apple, lettuce, kale (when in available), carrot and babycorn. A couple of times a month she'll get a bit of cheese or yoghurt.
Any suggestions?

[bunnyluv17]

She can also have a bit of plain cheerios, pear, or even milkbone.

[daftscotslass]

Apart from regular food like pellets, they can have a little bit of plain chicken, raw tofu or, if you have a strong stomach, live mealworms. The things you're giving her are fine, but I wouldn't feed them lettuce.

[kimberly78]

watch the cucumber too much can cause loose stools.

[Percy's Mom]

On the same track - Do any of you know of a particularly good brand of hamster food? I know we recommend KM's, Oxbow, or Mazuri for the guinea pigs, but I know absolutely nothing about what makes good hamster feed, and I'm looking at getting a couple in the near future.

[Plummie]

I use Mazuri for hamsters/gerbils and give fresh fruits and veggies each night.

[Percy's Mom]

I'll look for the Mazuri for hamsters and gerbils. Thanks for the suggestion Plummie.

[Fluff_n_roll]

Originally Posted by cavy-cool-crazy

What is the best diet for a hamster? My dad has a little cutie called Sonic and she gets the same old thing every night and is now getting bored with it.
Every night she gets cucumber, apple, lettuce, kale (when in available), carrot and babycorn. A couple of times a month she'll get a bit of cheese or yoghurt.
Any suggestions?

Well I would give too much veggies.

Here is a good list of things you can try also somethings to stay away from.

Delicious Treats

Besides the basic hamster mix, you can also supplement your pet's daily diet with a moderated amount of treats. Below are some delicious and healthy treats for your hamster.

• Dog biscuits
• Chopped hard boiled eggs
• Apple
• Carrot
• Corn
• Water Chestnut
• Broccoli and cauliflower
• Plain oats
• Health food (usually oil free and salt free) products such as museli, nuts and seeds.
  
• Cheese and other milk products for strong bones
• Cereal
• Bread (you can spread a thin layer of peanut butter)
• Diluted honey fed with a plastic spoon
  
  Foods to avoid
• Chocolates
• Henbane
• Oak leaves
• Buttercups
• Laurel leaves
• Hemlock
• Garlic
• Onions
• Junk food
• Sticky/sharp food as these may cause trouble in your hamster's cheek pouch.
  
• Sweet and oily food as they causes obesity.
  
• Vegetables and other high moisture content food should be fed in moderation to prevent diarrhoea.
  
• Although hamsters are omnivorous, it is better and healthier to stick with a vegetarian diet. Some books had also suggested that consuming meat encourage the cannibalism of young by adult hamsters
  

Hope this brings joy to Sonic!

[Fluff_n_roll]

Originally Posted by Percy's Mom

On the same track - Do any of you know of a particularly good brand of hamster food? I know we recommend KM's, Oxbow, or Mazuri for the guinea pigs, but I know absolutely nothing about what makes good hamster feed, and I'm looking at getting a couple in the near future.

Pretty Bird is a really good Brand that is what i use altough it doesn't have seeds and other goodies in it, but then i use anther brand and mix them together so she gets the goods she needs.

[daftscotslass]

Originally Posted by Fluff_n_roll

• Although hamsters are omnivorous, it is better and healthier to stick with a vegetarian diet. Some books had also suggested that consuming meat encourage the cannibalism of young by adult hamsters
  

I completely disagree with this. What books say this? Hamsters can live on a vegetarian diet, but they are not herbivores. They need much more protein than a vegetarian diet can suitably provide. If you feed too many nuts and pulses that are fatty, it will merely make them obese and cause nutrient deficiences. Now, I'm not suggesting to feed them a big juicy steak (realistically, where would they be munching on a cow in the desert?), but there is nothing to say why their diet cannot be supplemented with a bit of plain chicken or mealworms. In the wild their diet consists(consisted?) mainly of insects and vegetation.

I've seen very few places that say feeding meat causes cannibalism. It is merely speculation - where's the proof? Hamsters will cannibalise young for a variety of reasons, but the above reason is complete conjecture.

Peanut butter is not a healthy treat - it is full of salt and sugar. Cheese must be fed in moderation. Boiled eggs are a very healthy treat but spoil quickly, so they must be cleaned out of the cage within a day after it was given.

http://www.petwebsite.com/feeding.htm gives a very good and comprehensive list of things to feed.

[Fluff_n_roll]

Originally Posted by daftscotslass

[/list]I completely disagree with this. What books say this? Hamsters can live on a vegetarian diet, but they are not herbivores. They need much more protein than a vegetarian diet can suitably provide. If you feed too many nuts and pulses that are fatty, it will merely make them obese and cause nutrient deficiences. Now, I'm not suggesting to feed them a big juicy steak (realistically, where would they be munching on a cow in the desert?), but there is nothing to say why their diet cannot be supplemented with a bit of plain chicken or mealworms. In the wild their diet consists(consisted?) mainly of insects and vegetation.

I've seen very few places that say feeding meat causes cannibalism. It is merely speculation - where's the proof? Hamsters will cannibalise young for a variety of reasons, but the above reason is complete conjecture.

Peanut butter is not a healthy treat - it is full of salt and sugar. Cheese must be fed in moderation. Boiled eggs are a very healthy treat but spoil quickly, so they must be cleaned out of the cage within a day after it was given.

http://www.petwebsite.com/feeding.htm gives a very good and comprehensive list of things to feed.

Depending on how much you give it is fine. True you dont give a spoon full, but you can give a dap. That was mearly stating that meat is not always the best choice.
I got that info of www.hamsterhideout.com
Hamsters can eat things that have salt and surgar as long as you watch the amout that they consume.

[Percy's Mom]

I've also seen mealworms for protein. Do any of you use mealworms at all. Seems a little gross to me, but anything for a healthy hamster right?

[Pigaroo Mama]

[quote=Fluff_n_roll].

• Although hamsters are omnivorous, it is better and healthier to stick with a vegetarian diet. Some books had also suggested that consuming meat encourage the cannibalism of young by adult hamsters
  

Gee, I wish I have known about the cannibalism thing when I was a kid. I had 2 teddy bear hamsters (male & female obviously... what was my mother thinking?) that bred & me, being young & uninformed knew nothing of this baby-eating. I started out with 14 babies & by the next day, was down to 7. Daddy had been snacking all day.

[daftscotslass]

Originally Posted by Pigaroo Mama

Gee, I wish I have known about the cannibalism thing when I was a kid. I had 2 teddy bear hamsters (male & female obviously... what was my mother thinking?) that bred & me, being young & uninformed knew nothing of this baby-eating. I started out with 14 babies & by the next day, was down to 7. Daddy had been snacking all day.

It was probably just down to the stress of being housed with another member of the same species since Syrian hamsters are solitary!

[Fluff_n_roll]

Originally Posted by daftscotslass

It was probably just down to the stress of being housed with another member of the same species since Syrian hamsters are solitary!

Once a syrain has sexually matured you souldn't house it with another because it can kill the other or they can fight to death. It's sad you'd think they'd want some to roam with. But it's for there own good to be kept Solitary.

Sorry about your past hamsters Pigaroo Mama

[oologahyoko]

I feed my hamsters little blocks... Can't remember what they're called. The problem with most food for hamsters is that it has things like sunflower seeds and stuff like that in it along with little pellets and other stuff. Hamsters will pick otu what they like and not eat the rest. This could cause your hamster to die since it wasn't getting the right food.