Dwarf Hybrids, food and treats

[BorisPasha]

I came across a list of foods suitable for WW and Campbells but wondered if there was anything on the list we should avoid for hybrids? I'm thinking that we should avoid all the fruits mentioned?

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We're keen to feed our two little fluff balls as varied a diet as possible but we don't want to give them anything that could/would compromise their health. At the moment we are feeding them the Burgess Dwarf hamster mix.

What sort of treats would be good to give them? We have a couple of shop bought treats, the Rosewood Carrotys and the Little Hearts are these safe for them?

Any advice would be appreciated

Boris & Pasha's owners!

[cypher]

Burgess dwarf mix is fine & they should do ok on that, they generally enjoy small seeds so I try to keep treats as natural as possible, a bit of millet spray (although that mix does have quite a lot of millet already they still enjoy stripping the sprays) a few sunflower of pumpkin seeds in the shell, hemp seeds also in the shell, flax & sesame seeds all make good healthy treats in moderation, a few extra mealworms usually goes down well too & is a good source of extra protein. You could also try a few dry oat flakes.
A little bit of plain cooked chicken once or twice a week is another good way to give a protein boost, mostly needed when they're young.
I have had the carrotys & little hearts in the past but mine all ignored them!
I generally avoid shop bought treats tbh with the exception of shrimp cookies but even those are still only an occasional treat.
A piece of dog biscuit (I use biscrok) left in the cage to chew on & Whimzee or Antos dog chews are good too.
That list includes soft foods like baby foods which should generally only be fed to ill or elderly hams, mine do get a tiny bit of porridge about once a month as a special treat but stick to hard, natural foods mostly.

Peanut butter is definitely a no no, it can get stuck in their pouches, a whole monkey nut on the other hand is a good treat & one of those lasts my dwarf hams a couple of weeks!
Cheese & other dairy products should only be given very rarely if at all too.

That veg list doesn't mention that sweet potato must be cooked, the same with normal potato too, tomatoes are a bit controversial, a tiny amount of very ripe flesh, no seeds or skin & definitely nothing green is ok but they are very acidic so shouldn't be given often if at all.
Generally best to avoid fruits, anything acidic or high in sugar isn't good for them.
Some veg can be surprisingly high in sugar too so best given in moderation only.
Favourites do often seem to be things like broccoli, cucumber & spinach but you need to experiment to see what they enjoy & try to give lots of variety if possible.
This is my veg list if it helps.
Safe veg, those marked * are relatively high in sugar so only feed to diabetes prone species as an occasional treat if at all.
Asparagus
Basil
Broccoli
Brussels sprouts
Common or red clover
Cabbage, green or red
Carrot*
Cauliflower
Celery
Chard
Coriander
Courgette
Cress (not mustard & cress as commonly sold together)
Cucumber
Dandelion leaves & flowers
Endive/chicory
Green beans/runner beans
Kale
Pak choi/Bok choi
Parsley
Peas/mange tout/sugar snap/snow*
Peppers, any colour
Potato/sweet potato cooked only*
Radicchio
Spinach
Squash/pumpkin*
Swede
Sweet corn/baby corn*
Turnip

[BorisPasha]

Thanks so much Cypher that is a brilliant help. Will be looking forward to trying out all these different foods. Have tried Brocoli, cucumber and cooked chicken with mixed results so far, but am guessing that maybe it might take a couple of attempts to get them used to something different from their regular food.

Have attached a photo of Boris trying a bit chicken. He was being lazy and wouldn't even hold it himself. Had a few nibbles at it then pulled a face and his tissue back across the entrance to his house lol.

[cypher]

That's what I call being pampered lol!