What food brands?

[SnoWolf]

I live in Singapore which is in Southeast Asia and one of the most known and common pet store here is Pet Lovers Centre. I've visited two stores near me and both generally sell the same brands of food. I've been trying to see what food brand suits my hamster as he hasn't been eating much. The brands I've seen are Burp!, Vitakraft, Wild, Versele Laga, Happi Hamster, and Kaytee. I'm using Vitakraft right now but I've seen many recommendations for a brand called Harry Hamster on another forum (hamster hideout forum). Since ordering online isn't an option for me right now I need some help on what brand I should use or whether I should just stick to the brand I'm using right now.

[AmityvilleHams]

Kaytee is definitely not okay,so there's one absolute no for a brand.I do believe Versele Laga is too vague in ingredients to be considered safe,so there's another brand gone!In fact,the brands I know of from that list are not that good and those that are unknown are most likely no good.

A compromise really does need to be made to get a completely appropriate high quality natural food as this is a crucial part in maintaining a healthy animal regardless of species.It's an investment,but it is one of the most important investments you will ever make

Make sure the foods never have any artificial dyes,artificial flavors,unspecified biproducts(digest,derivatives,meat and bone meal of any kind,unspecified liver,animal liver,animal fat,biproduct meal,etc),no unsafe preservatives(BHA/BHT/ethoxyquin which are known to cause cancer),artificial sweeteners or processed sugars(dextrose,maltodextrin,sorbitol,etc),as well as not being made in China or irradiated whether it be the main diet or treats).Keep in mind anything shared with dogs or cats should never have wheat,corn,or things related to wheat(spelt and wheatgerm for example).

[Drago]

Vitakraft isn't really the best food for a ham, but it is suitable. I don't like how many dyes are included in it, and it's overall lack of nutritional value, but the protein is fine for a hamster over 6 months. The fat would be alright for a hamster under 1 year old, but needs to be lowered after that. The fiber is also a bit low in my opinion.

Versele laga is praised by many, and I can see why. The protein and fat levels are good. However, the fiber is low. It's high in variety which is why I like it, and it's easily available to those who can't get hold of better and higher quality mixes.

Kaytee isn't an option unfortunately. It contains too many harmful chemicals to really be considered good. Besides that, it's loaded with artificial dyes and other unnecessary ingredients. I would avoid this as best you can. Kaytee may be a good company for bedding, toys, dishes, wheels, and bottles, but their foods and cages should be avoided.

Happi hamster isn't something I'd say is an option personally. After a long while of looking it up and trying to find info on it, I found a total of one very vague list explaining ingredients. It looks to have too many dyes, unspecified ingredients, and sunflower seeds/corn for me to recommend this. Just looks to be a cheap mix that's best avoided in my opinion, especially since almost no info can be found on it.

I can't find much info again on burp hamster food. The ingredient lists I've found look as though it's made mostly of grass pellets and corn- which isn't ideal. The variety is pretty poor and overall it just looks to be a cheap mix. I'd avoid this one too

The wild hamster food has no info on it at all. I couldn't find any ingredient lists nor the GA. It looks to be full of dyes and unspecified ingredients from my own observations. So again, this one should be avoided.

Your best options here are versele laga and vitakraft. Of the two, vitakraft would be my recommendation. They have less unspecified ingredients and are less expensive as well as higher quality. Good luck choosing your food