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AmityvilleHams · 04-23-2017, 10:55 AM

Stick with high quality natural treats

Dog biscuits are very difficult to get in the UK in terms of high quality 100% safe ones(not anything by Pedigree or Purina,as these are not good quality and should be avoided despite their popularity once you understand the ingredients in them and why they just aren't good)however I have found that high quality biscuits do exist for example Lily's Kitchen make at least one safe biscuit

I'm not sure about any potential small brands out there or just brands which in general aren't available through chain stores and popular sources though,but that is worth looking into.Just make sure they contain no corn or wheat if they'll be shared with dogs,as these are safe for hamsters but awful for dogs!

Whimzees(not Greenies as the quality for those is nowhere near as good)are an excellent chew/treat to use.Buy them in bulk if you can,since it is generally more cost effective.Plain puffed rice or wheat is another good option,as well as other plain hamster safe grains and seeds and such.Fresh or freeze dried(not dried with sulfur as this is unsafe)fruits can be good if they're high quality.Make sure nothing is ever made in or sourced from China or irradiated though,as this makes any product unsafe.

Freeze dried(not cooked,as cooked meat has poor nutritional value in comparison to freeze dried which actually keeps the same nutrients as with raw but merely removes the moisture)hamster safe meat is a great idea as well,and really should be added to the diet anyways to make for a species appropriate diet as hamsters are natural omnivores

Make sure no treats include "E&C approved antioxidants" or anything similar,as this is a loophole to include BHA/BHT/ethoxyquin(known to cause cancer especially with prolonged exposure,but regardless not a good thing to feed even rarely)without actually having to specifically state it as such.There should also be no form of unspecified biproducts,labelled as "liver","digest","derivatives","meat and bone meal"(or similar with specified meat source,as this is still unsafe regardless),biproduct meals,etc.Because it can include high quality safe biproducts(highly unlikely)or general slaughterhouse waste(basically anything including things which shouldn't be fed to any animal,including that which is sourced from animals which don't even need to be specified whether it be horse or cow or chicken,or going beyond just that which is intentionally slaughtered with roadkill or euthanized pets).There should be no artificial or processed sugars either,nor should there be any artificial dyes or flavors.

04-23-2017, 10:55 AM
AmityvilleHams PM Fluffy for custom title Join Date: Mar 2016 Posts: 4,545	Re: Where to start? Stick with high quality natural treats Dog biscuits are very difficult to get in the UK in terms of high quality 100% safe ones(not anything by Pedigree or Purina,as these are not good quality and should be avoided despite their popularity once you understand the ingredients in them and why they just aren't good)however I have found that high quality biscuits do exist for example Lily's Kitchen make at least one safe biscuit I'm not sure about any potential small brands out there or just brands which in general aren't available through chain stores and popular sources though,but that is worth looking into.Just make sure they contain no corn or wheat if they'll be shared with dogs,as these are safe for hamsters but awful for dogs! Whimzees(not Greenies as the quality for those is nowhere near as good)are an excellent chew/treat to use.Buy them in bulk if you can,since it is generally more cost effective.Plain puffed rice or wheat is another good option,as well as other plain hamster safe grains and seeds and such.Fresh or freeze dried(not dried with sulfur as this is unsafe)fruits can be good if they're high quality.Make sure nothing is ever made in or sourced from China or irradiated though,as this makes any product unsafe. Freeze dried(not cooked,as cooked meat has poor nutritional value in comparison to freeze dried which actually keeps the same nutrients as with raw but merely removes the moisture)hamster safe meat is a great idea as well,and really should be added to the diet anyways to make for a species appropriate diet as hamsters are natural omnivores Make sure no treats include "E&C approved antioxidants" or anything similar,as this is a loophole to include BHA/BHT/ethoxyquin(known to cause cancer especially with prolonged exposure,but regardless not a good thing to feed even rarely)without actually having to specifically state it as such.There should also be no form of unspecified biproducts,labelled as "liver","digest","derivatives","meat and bone meal"(or similar with specified meat source,as this is still unsafe regardless),biproduct meals,etc.Because it can include high quality safe biproducts(highly unlikely)or general slaughterhouse waste(basically anything including things which shouldn't be fed to any animal,including that which is sourced from animals which don't even need to be specified whether it be horse or cow or chicken,or going beyond just that which is intentionally slaughtered with roadkill or euthanized pets).There should be no artificial or processed sugars either,nor should there be any artificial dyes or flavors.