What do you recommend?

[ThereGoesLucie]

Hello, it's been a while!

I feed my syrian Science Selective pellets and she happily eats them but I wondered how many I should give her a day? It doesn't say on the bag how many they recommend.

Also, to those of you that use it too, do you just give that or do you mix it with other food? The vets said to put the food in daily in portions rather than putting enough food in her bowl for a few days (never done that anyway).

But I'd like to hear what you guys do

[AmityvilleHams]

I wouldn't use pellets alone unless your hamster has a health problem that makes them have to be fed mashed food only.It just isn't appropriate to hamster's natural behaviors.

In the UK Harry Hamster is just as good if not better than Science Selective for most Syrians,and it's still fairly affordable overall

Hamsters generally don't overeat like other animals do,so there is no reason why putting more food than can be eaten in a day is necessarily bad.That only really applies to fresh foods which will spoil.

[ThereGoesLucie]

Originally Posted by AmityvilleHams

I wouldn't use pellets alone unless your hamster has a health problem that makes them have to be fed mashed food only.It just isn't appropriate to hamster's natural behaviors.

In the UK Harry Hamster is just as good if not better than Science Selective for most Syrians,and it's still fairly affordable overall

Hamsters generally don't overeat like other animals do,so there is no reason why putting more food than can be eaten in a day is necessarily bad.That only really applies to fresh foods which will spoil.

Ahh thank you! I'm only using it because the vet recommended it for picky eaters. She was only eating certain things from muesli food. I might try some harry hamster food then, with some science selective mixed in?

[AmityvilleHams]

You could try that It would probably be a good idea to mix it at first anyways just to do a gradual transition,that way it doesn't cause stomach upset.

If she continues to eat only certain parts even with Harry Hamster if you use the tough love method(basically leave food and don't refill the bowl until everything has been eaten,but make sure these aren't shells of seeds or nuts!)it might be necessary to use pellets,but in most cases it just isn't an issue with hamsters if dealt with in certain ways.

[pinkneon]

I use both Mr Sweep became picky for a few weeks so added the science selective but now give both for peace of mind! Harry Hamster is pretty cheap depending where you get it (the new version is called Tiny Friend's Farm). It's a mixed muesli mix. You could give a small amount of the Harry Hamster to begin with mixed in of course. But both would provide variety as well as knowing your hamster is getting enough nutrition if you are concerned about her being picky Alternitively you could continue with the science selective but also add a few other things for variety as well as giving some veg?

[cypher]

I would have a go with the HH, use both for a while if your ham is used to pellets but it is a lot more natural for them to eat a muesli type of mix & also means you can scatter feed so they can forage naturally.
The best cure for picky eating is just plain tough love! Don't give more food until it's all gone.

[Fluffagrams]

Science Selective forms part of my hamster's diet in conjunction with a custom mix and extras such as chicken and vegetables and it seems to suit them well. I can't say how much they'd get of them in a single serving as they're broken down slightly before they go into the mix.

I fed Science Selective as a main diet to an exceptionally fussy hamster that did not respond to the 'tough love' methods and she was far happier and was in better condition with Science Selective than she had been on any of the musli mixes. When I used to give it on it's own, I'd give her about five biscuit slightly broken up. She was a Chinese so if you have a Syrian you might be looking at giving a few more.

[Coco61]

I use Harry Hamster but my Syrian is rather picky with it so I add a couple of other mixes in rotation to stop him getting bored. He also loves the Selective Science biscuits as does his cousin who adores them even more. We use them whole but leave them around the cage in different places to be hunted down. No trouble there because of the strong smell and they vanish to be eaten elsewhere. As they are a complete food in themselves I give a couple every other day as I think more would simply be hoarded.