Food questions

FurFinFeathers · 03-05-2014, 01:58 PM

I was wondering what is the best diet for hamsters, like what brand or treats, or maybe what food you have to mix together to get a good diet. Also, what fruits and vegetables and other foods are safe for hamsters? How often/how much food do you give your hamster? Thanks.

**Bec** · 03-05-2014, 02:47 PM

There is a safe list of foods here which may help:
Safe and Unsafe Food and Plants - Hamster Central WIKI

We have a Syrian and feed him Harry Hamster, little veg-carrot, courgette, and various nuts as treats! Also has a dog bonio bone for his teeth!

**kyrilliondaemon** · 03-05-2014, 04:09 PM

The best advice I can give for diet is to find a good commercial mix (or two) and use that (or those if you want to mix two together). The problem is that its a lot harder to do that in the US than the UK

We feed daily, but how much depends on the ham and can vary a bit to be honest (e.g Nut gets between 1 and 5 pieces of science selective depending on how many he's left in his bowl)

Esmy · 03-05-2014, 06:07 PM

I'm no expert by far but I was using a mix and mine was picking out a few favorites (nuts) and leaving the rest so I had to get a type where all the nutrients were in each piece of food. It looks like dog food/kibble for hamsters. I don't know how pros feel about this but it seems to help.

Kind of like this I guess: Oxbow Essentials™ Healthy Handfuls™ Hamster and Gerbil Food - Food - Small Pet - PetSmart

Then I give her fresh veggies. I haven't figured out how to best supplement the fresh foods yet.

KoPi · 03-12-2014, 10:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FurFinFeathers

I was wondering what is the best diet for hamsters, like what brand or treats, or maybe what food you have to mix together to get a good diet. Also, what fruits and vegetables and other foods are safe for hamsters? How often/how much food do you give your hamster? Thanks.

Hamsters need...

17-22% crude protein
8-10% fiber
3-6% crude fat
-------------------------->

Timothy hay is popular with my hamsters. I mix Vitakraft Vitasmart with a bit of Hazel hamster and sometimes oxbo pellets. Dwarfs except Roborovski dwarf hamsters are prone to diabetes, especially hybrids and campbell dwarf hamsters. Syrians are not prone to diabetes, however the Chinese hamster is prone to diabetes. Fruits still do have sugar in them, so you should watch the amount of fruits your hamster consumes. Cauliflower is popular with my winter whites, I pretend they are giants eating a tree covered with snow. I feed my hamsters fresh new food daily. Good luck