food mix

katjacks · 03-07-2013, 05:01 AM

until recently i used rr mix and my hamster loved it i have had no problems with it what so ever but what other people have said has worried me a little, i was giving him harry hamster and rr, iv purchased the bits he likes the most from the mix, the apple, bran sticks, soya, and iv also got him the cereal mix from there and mealworms, could i put harry hamster into a tub and add these things to it? or would i need to give him these seperately? iv also got the suppliments for him as advised on rr so going to give him them aswell, i dont want him getting bored of the hh mix and dont want to deprive him of the things he actually does like the best out of the rr mix

Bekki2308 · 03-07-2013, 05:59 AM

I personally wouldnt mix all that together. Id feed the harry hamster as a base mix and give a portion of something else per day on a "treat" basis but thats just me

vanilla-yazoo · 03-07-2013, 06:02 AM

Heya!
I have also had my concerns over this food too, i wont go into details over it,
I have now changed mixes onto a new mix I am trialing thats sold for rats, i will post a review soon when I have used it for a bit longer.
however
if you want the variety of the RR mixes, but still keep harry hamster, when you are low on food ild add a bag of burgess dwarf/superhamster, the burgess food is full of various seeds and mealworms and a lot of similar parts as the rr, and mixed in 50-50 with harry hamster, will provide a nicely balanced diet. this would still be 18% protein, which is great for young hams, but some older hams find it a bit high, so adding the extra bran sticks, apple and soya flakes would lower the protein a little, myself i would fill the bowl with the combined hamster mixes, then add a pinch of the extra's on top.

I would continue with the supplements, as its good for them anyway, if you offer a small amount of baby food, or fresh veg (or rehydrated if you only have one ham so you are not wasting lots! ) i just add 1-3 drops of baephar vitamins a day, and put their fresh food on a small paper cake case.
this way i can throw the paper case away after, they are really cheep so cost isnt a problem, and no washing up bowls for 9 hams everyday!! also, some of them take the paper case to the nest, and shred it into their bedding after eating the food

hope this helps! x

katjacks · 03-07-2013, 06:10 AM

the other stuff isnt bad for him though and was in rr mix, my hamster will not touch burgess food i tried him with it before rr mix and he wouldnt go near it he just left it all and only ate his harry hamster, thats a good idea about the paper cases though

thanks for the advice x

vanilla-yazoo · 03-07-2013, 06:19 AM

harry hamster is a good mix

if you did want to mix in another one mr.johnsons is pretty good i hear, or even pah premium

harry on its own is not bad! i have used it for years, if my rat mix dosnt work out im going 50-50 harry and mr.johnson, or science selective

np! glad it helps!

iwasbornwright · 03-07-2013, 06:21 AM

Is Harry Hamster better than the Premium Muesli by P@H? I'm assuming so. If so I'm gonna order some x

GhostsInSnow · 03-07-2013, 06:26 AM

Harry Hamster is ne of the best commercial mixes, I'd say it's better than the P@H stuff.
I too, like the others, had my worries about the rr mixes so I switched mine on to 50-50 Harry Hamster and Science Selective Hamster. I just break up the bigger bits for my Robo but both he and my Syrian love the new stuff. It's the first time in months that I've had an empty bowl every day from my Syrian

Kissa · 03-07-2013, 06:31 AM

I'm currently using a mixture of three different hamster mixes and a bird seed mix, as I believe in variety for my hams, although I am watching yaz's trial of the rat mix with interest. My main problem is that my Robo is a picky sod when it comes to pellets!

The problem with just adding stuff is that it can muck up the nutritional balance. It's why I used a pre-made bird seed mix to add variety, rather than just adding random seeds -- the mix had the nutritional analysis on the back of the packet, and I could pick the mix that I thought complemented what I already had in terms of the hamster mixes. Saying that, it is still a work in progress

katjacks · 03-07-2013, 06:44 AM

how can it much it up that much though if they are getting suppliments aswell? surely this would get them exactly what they need? im confused about all this my last 2 hamsters just had hh mix and i gave them veg every 3 days and they both lived long healthy lives both nearly 3 years old, im having to go out and buy the veg just for him as it is because im a really fussy eater myself and dont eat fruit or veg so its a bit of a nightmare lol treat my hamster like my baby though so he has to have the best of everything lol, iv just spent £60 on stuff for him and now thinking iv got him the wrong stuff, im thinking about feeding him baby food aswell and im house bound so just about to spend more money on a tesco shop that i dont even need just to get him baby food, how often can i feed him baby food? and if im feeding him this do i still need to be giving him veg? i dont want to be forcing too many new things on him either as worried he might end up with bad stomach if i do

vanilla-yazoo · 03-07-2013, 06:45 AM

kissa, the rat mix is going great so far, and I am getting empty bowls, weight gain on those who have lost weight, and overal improvement, but I wont do a full review for here till I have used it for at least a month, so i can give a proper view. but so far so good! the pellets are rather big, I will have a good check at wurzels bowl see if he is eating it, but he can chew down a markie, so im sure he can chew on a nugget XD
ofc, i am suplimenting and giving fresh, so its not a review of this food as a complete mix, but it dose contain some vitamins.

i think that some aditional items are fine, but i would try and feed a good amount of a pure mix, even if you scattered millet and porridge oats, yes they will gather it and have the wrong %'s but they will not just scoff it all in one go!

Harry hamster is a fantastic mix, the only thing is the alfalfa sticks, so adding bran sticks would just offer an alternate fiber source, as not that many hams eat alfalfa, it is a good mix other then that, with a nice selection of food

eta:
this is why i use rehydrated veg XD I am funny about food and not all i eat ild give the hams, i have some salad for the buns but I try giving the hams a bit more of a selection.
i looked up dehydrated or dried veg on ebay
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Just-Veget...item27caf3bb78
and other such ones. carrot, broccoli and spinach, which contain a lot of vitamins and nutrients naturally, mine has arrived today so I will let you know tomorrow how it rehydrates