Is all of this stuff okay for my Russian?

[Takahashi]

heyo everyone. Health/Diet Question: I've read somewhere that Russians can have nuts. My girl LOVES Walnuts, I give her the chopped up kind, once a day or once every few days, or meal worms.*I also smear peanut butter on her chew toys to let her know she needs to chew them (she wont chew them otherwise) but I put very little on there and smear it thinly, so it doesn't gather in her pouches. Once a day I also give her a tiny piece of cabbage and a piece of shredded carrot. Is this all okay for her? She loves it all.

[AmityvilleHams]

I wouldn't feed cabbage daily as it is more of a gassy food.Mealworms don't need to be added if you're feeding a species appropriate diet(Burgess dwarf for any dwarf species,it already contains mealworms and is the best dwarf food).Walnut daily is a bit much,keep it to every 3-4 days in small amounts.

Peanut butter is a very complicated food though.Some would be fine(natural kinds with no additives)while others have artificial sweeteners and other ingredients that are unsafe.There should be no added sugar either.

[Takahashi]

Originally Posted by AmityvilleHams

I wouldn't feed cabbage daily as it is more of a gassy food.Mealworms don't need to be added if you're feeding a species appropriate diet(Burgess dwarf for any dwarf species,it already contains mealworms and is the best dwarf food).Walnut daily is a bit much,keep it to every 3-4 days in small amounts.

Peanut butter is a very complicated food though.Some would be fine(natural kinds with no additives)while others have artificial sweeteners and other ingredients that are unsafe.There should be no added sugar either.

Geez! I'll stop feeding her cabbage, what about carrots though? She isn't eating that right now (low on funds) she's eating a mix, it has bird seed looking stuff in it and sunflower seeds and stuff like that. Well, do you have any suggestions about how to get her to chew on her sticks then? I was told to use peanut butter or honey.

[AmityvilleHams]

Unfortunately cheap generic hamster mixes are rarely if ever safe let alone suitable You really need to invest in a good food,otherwise you'd end up with more problems because of an unsuitable diet(like vet bills that cost far more than just buying the Burgess every 3-6 months).A lot of cheap foods have dangerous ingredients too,like artificial colors and flavors as well as cancer causing preservatives(BHA/BHT/ethoxyquin).

Honey definitely isn't a good idea for diabetes prone species including hybrids(which your hamster most definitely would be unless from a breeder with a pedigree).However,Whimzees dog chews are more popular with hamsters than any wood chew.They're very high quality all natural chews with safe ingredients,which happen to be extremely cost effective in bulk.Unfortunately the overwhelming majority of other dog products tend to be either unsafe for hamsters or unsuitable for diabetes prone hamsters(especially in the UK where it's pretty much impossible to find dog biscuits that have specific and safe ingredients,whereas in the US and most likely Canada as well it is a lot easier to find safe biscuits).

[cypher]

What country are you in?
If you're in the UK a bag of Burgess dwarf hamster harvest food doesn't cost much at all so it would be well worth getting your ham some.
It is important with Russian hybrids to feed the right mix & to be careful with extras due to them being prone to diabetes.
I wouldn't use peanut butter at all, most hams don't like so called chew toys tbh, as Amity says whimzees/antos dog chews are a far better option, you can also give dog biscuits, biscrok are safe & commonly used. You can also give sunflower seeds (always in the shell & not too many) pumpkin seeds again in the shell & only in moderation & monkey nuts (peanuts in the shell, nothing added) make a tiny hole in each end of these & give no more than one a week, these will help to keep teeth trim as well as being healthy treats, with a proper mix the teeth will get some wear anyway so chew toys aren't essential.
Definitely no honey or shop bought treats with honey or sugar either.
Walnuts are loved by all my hams too but a small piece one or twice a week is plenty.
Meal worms are a huge favourite & even if your mix has them you can give one or two a day extra although I wouldn't give more than that.
Cabbage is ok occasionally but not too often, carrot is a bit high in natural sugars & should only be a rare treat.
You need to give a wide variety of veg, something different most days so rotate a few of the safe veg.
This is a list of veg you can give.
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

[Takahashi]

Originally Posted by cypher

What country are you in?
If you're in the UK a bag of Burgess dwarf hamster harvest food doesn't cost much at all so it would be well worth getting your ham some.
It is important with Russian hybrids to feed the right mix & to be careful with extras due to them being prone to diabetes.
I wouldn't use peanut butter at all, most hams don't like so called chew toys tbh, as Amity says whimzees/antos dog chews are a far better option, you can also give dog biscuits, biscrok are safe & commonly used. You can also give sunflower seeds (always in the shell & not too many) pumpkin seeds again in the shell & only in moderation & monkey nuts (peanuts in the shell, nothing added) make a tiny hole in each end of these & give no more than one a week, these will help to keep teeth trim as well as being healthy treats, with a proper mix the teeth will get some wear anyway so chew toys aren't essential.
Definitely no honey or shop bought treats with honey or sugar either.
Walnuts are loved by all my hams too but a small piece one or twice a week is plenty.
Meal worms are a huge favourite & even if your mix has them you can give one or two a day extra although I wouldn't give more than that.
Cabbage is ok occasionally but not too often, carrot is a bit high in natural sugars & should only be a rare treat.
You need to give a wide variety of veg, something different most days so rotate a few of the safe veg.
This is a list of veg you can give.
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

Thank you very much. I am in the US actually, I was very much looking forward to buying the Burgess feed, but I am not looking into buying Higgins Sunburst.

[AmityvilleHams]

Higgins Sunburst is a good food for Syrians when paired with another appropriate food,but it's not suitable for diabetes prone species or dwarf hamsters(it has some very large pieces,and would be fairly sugary for a diabetes prone hamster).

Dog biscuits are fairly easy in the US,and tend not to be badly priced from Chewy.Just make sure there are no unsafe preservatives(BHA/BHT/ethoxyquin),no artificial colors or flavors,no unspecified biproducts,no onion/garlic/leek/tomato,etc.I don't have a complete list of exact biscuits,but I do know Sojos and Chicken Soup have some safe and diabetes friendly biscuits.Of course,they'll cost you more than cheap low quality biscuits,but sometimes it's worth paying more when the quality is there(sometimes,however,the quality is definitely not there even if a treat is ridiculously expensive).Also look out for anything that is from China or irradiated,as both are quite dangerous.

https://www.chewy.com/chicken-soup-s...ites/dp/129272 The Chicken Soup brand biscuits,as an example,are very nice quality but not quite as expensive as other biscuits.

[Takahashi]

Originally Posted by AmityvilleHams

Higgins Sunburst is a good food for Syrians when paired with another appropriate food,but it's not suitable for diabetes prone species or dwarf hamsters(it has some very large pieces,and would be fairly sugary for a diabetes prone hamster).

Dog biscuits are fairly easy in the US,and tend not to be badly priced from Chewy.Just make sure there are no unsafe preservatives(BHA/BHT/ethoxyquin),no artificial colors or flavors,no unspecified biproducts,no onion/garlic/leek/tomato,etc.I don't have a complete list of exact biscuits,but I do know Sojos and Chicken Soup have some safe and diabetes friendly biscuits.Of course,they'll cost you more than cheap low quality biscuits,but sometimes it's worth paying more when the quality is there(sometimes,however,the quality is definitely not there even if a treat is ridiculously expensive).Also look out for anything that is from China or irradiated,as both are quite dangerous.

https://www.chewy.com/chicken-soup-s...ites/dp/129272 The Chicken Soup brand biscuits,as an example,are very nice quality but not quite as expensive as other biscuits.

Well, I just did some math, and it looks like the Higgins would be $17.68 (online) after tax and shipping (not sure about in stores) and the Burgess would be 13.29 Euros, or $14.11 USD, and if I added a second bag of Burgess onto that it would end up being .08 less than the other food. Now, that's not a lot, but I've heard better things about Burgess, so I'll likely go with that.

Now, are the dog biscuits a MUST? I ask because, I don't exactly have a lot of money, having no job and all.

[AmityvilleHams]

If you're ordering two bags at once it works out nicely,but you don't really need to and in fact it might be a bad idea in terms of the food spoiling before it gets completely used up.However,it would last quite a while regardless!

They're not really a must if you're using Whimzees already,but you can portion out biscuits to make them last and use the lower cost but still good quality biscuits(Chicken Soup for example would be less expensive than Sojos,but still decent quality).For example half or a quarter of a biscuit once a week or so would be fine.With just a hamster you don't go through biscuits quickly,so that size bag could potentially last 3-6 months for one hamster.Whimzees from Chewy in bulk are also cheaper than getting them in store or individually,by the way.

There are definitely lots of ways to save money when it comes to any pet,but there's got to be a balance between quality and cost.For example in the case of hamsters,getting a Silent Runner would be an investment but unlike cheaper wheels they last a lot longer and just happen to be safer and better quality.At the same time though you could budget more for more expensive treats and a high quality wheel and other things that seem more expensive by taking advantage of things like DIY toys,thrift shopping(especially recommended for hideouts and bowls of any sort),getting certain things in bulk when it is more cost effective(like Whimzees and substrate),toilet paper and the tubes(nesting material and toys,kind of in the DIY category),etc.

[Takahashi]

Originally Posted by AmityvilleHams

If you're ordering two bags at once it works out nicely,but you don't really need to and in fact it might be a bad idea in terms of the food spoiling before it gets completely used up.However,it would last quite a while regardless!

They're not really a must if you're using Whimzees already,but you can portion out biscuits to make them last and use the lower cost but still good quality biscuits(Chicken Soup for example would be less expensive than Sojos,but still decent quality).For example half or a quarter of a biscuit once a week or so would be fine.With just a hamster you don't go through biscuits quickly,so that size bag could potentially last 3-6 months for one hamster.Whimzees from Chewy in bulk are also cheaper than getting them in store or individually,by the way.

There are definitely lots of ways to save money when it comes to any pet,but there's got to be a balance between quality and cost.For example in the case of hamsters,getting a Silent Runner would be an investment but unlike cheaper wheels they last a lot longer and just happen to be safer and better quality.At the same time though you could budget more for more expensive treats and a high quality wheel and other things that seem more expensive by taking advantage of things like DIY toys,thrift shopping(especially recommended for hideouts and bowls of any sort),getting certain things in bulk when it is more cost effective(like Whimzees and substrate),toilet paper and the tubes(nesting material and toys,kind of in the DIY category),etc.

Going between this and the messages will be the death of me haha

So, first: I am NOT using any biscuits or anything of the sort, which is why I was asking if they're very important, I can get them, but not right now, not until I can get a job.

second, I believe I'm going to get the Burgess, and I'll only get 1 bag for now until I see if she likes it.

third, I have a lot of toilet paper rolls and paper towel rolls in with her and she loves them.