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Old 05-14-2017, 07:22 PM  
Drago
The Hamtologist
 
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Join Date: Dec 2016
Location: Southern United States
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Default Re: Feeding a Baby Hamster

Quote:
Originally Posted by AmityvilleHams View Post
I'd disagree on fiber.Too much fiber will cause problems(both an inability to produce solid stools and a harder time producing stool in general,as an example),and most hamsters do perfectly fine with around 7-8%.Some may need slightly elevated levels but that's easy to accomplish between fresh foods,pureed pumpkin(should have high quality probiotics free of any artificial ingredients,unspecified biproducts,and processed sugars like dextrose for added digestive support benefits),and certain extra grains.
Studies have actually disproved the myth that hamsters don't need a lot of fiber. They in fact showed that in this case, it's quite the opposite! Comparing the digestive system of the hamster to other animals, it's quite similar to that of your typical ruminant (i.e. goats, cows, and deer) whose primary food is, grasses! Besides that, a Syrian hamster's natural diet would be in large, grasses (though obviously not exclusively). Studies done on around 60 different hamsters show that the optimum levels of fiber sit around 10%-20% with the gray area being up to several environmental and biological factors. If you'd like to read up on the study itself, I'll link it below. You'll need to flip through several pages to find it. There have been multiple others similar to this one which all have concluded the same results. Plus, higher fiber takes stress off the digestive system. In the end what you feed your hamster is up to you, but it's just my opinion that high fiber is important

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/N...8/#!po=68.6508
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Syrian hamster care guide
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