What mix do you feed?

[purple_x]

I'm hoping lots of people contribute to this thread :)

Now the hamster mixes are currently unavailable on RR I'm stuck as to what to feed my hamsters, luckily I have some food left so have a little time to sort something out.

So please list what food you feed your hamsters.
What goes in to their dry mix?

Please don't list treats. I would just like to know what goes into your main hamster food :)

[Tutu]

I'd like yo know too:)
I give my syrian 50/50 mix of Harry hamster and burgess dwarf super hamster harvest. Even though she is syrian my hammy doesn't like big pieces of Harry hamster. So burgess dwarf is good for her:)

[bonkers4hamsters]

Mine get mostly harry hamster/selective with added locust beans and then also a little burgess dwarf with burgess herbs and dried apple

[kyrilliondaemon]

Syrians - 700g Harry Hamster, 600g JR farm hamster, 600g JR farm dwarf
Whizz, Muffin and Dusty - 700g Harry Hamster, 600g JR farm hamster, 600g JR farm dwarf, 700g burgess supahamster dwarf
Diabetes prone hams - science selective
Plus we use the mix Vectis uses for her diabetic hamsters with one cage (diabetic Ghost and his cagemate Peep), but thats mixed at home.

[Buttons]

I use Harry Hamster :)

[shazzy]

Jester my Syrian is being weaned off RR and onto a mix of Harry hamster and JR Farm hamster feast

My robo and cambells are on 50/50 RR dwarf mix and JR Farm dwarf hamster feast

[HollyHamster]

I use Harry/Hazel Hamster food, sometimes "watering it down" with Ecotrition as I can't always get to Petsmart when I need ham food.

In fact, I recently ordered a few bags of HH online, which was much cheaper than at Petsmart, and am eagerly awaiting for that package to arrive.

[Bekki2308]

Half commercial ham mix, half birdseeds etc etc worked out mathematically to contain sensible protein, high fibre and reasonable fat levels. Right now its mr johnsons supreme/versele laga hamster nature and some other bits and bobs as the half commerical mix and various seeds

[Susie]

I do harry hamster, versele laga hamster crispy, science selective and broken up dried banana in the syrians mix.
The dwarfs get JR dwarf hamster feast, science selective and harry hamster

[iwasbornwright]

Wolverine has the Premium P@H muesli but he's such a bad selective eater. I've no idea what to try next.

[PatricksMum]

I feed Harry Hamster and Science Selective. He is a bit picky with some of the Harry but seems to like the Science Selective (which is great as each biscuit is complete). I might buy a bag of supahamster dwarf to mix to add a bit more variety.

[Pompompoms]

Harry Hamster

[GhostsInSnow]

My Syrian gets 50/50 Harry Hamster and Selective Science and my Robo gets Harry Hamster, a couple of Selective Science Biscuits broken up and JR Dwarf Hamster Feast

[linford27]

Harry Hamster is the best in my experience, but I have never tried Science Selective.
iwasbornwright - maybe you could try and wean wolverie onto harry hamster? the P@H stuff isn't best for hams. To stop selective feeding, just don't feed anymore until he polishes off everything. Alternatively, you could try him on Science Selective Hamster, which prevents selective feeding, and just supplement it?

[Kaztrekie]

I just use Harry hamster with fresh veg every few days the big bits tend to be annoying as I have to break them up before am will touch them

[LawaRawr]

at the moment im using burgess, harry hamster and the selective pellets.
the syrians are on 50/50 harry hamster and burgess with 4 selective pellets whilst the dwarfs get burgess dwarf mix with 2 selective pellets because they are not too keen on them.

[HorseyMandz]

I feed Harry Hamster, with a bit of whatever else I have left over mixed in xD Minnie did like the Burgess Syrian mix so I might get some of that next time I need food. :)

[LuckySaffron]

At the moment my syrian is on Burgess Supahamster syrian mix, but I've found that she seems to leave more of that than when she was on Harry Hamster, so I'm going to be moving her back onto that. She seemed to prefer the larger biscuit pieces in that, rather than the smaller ones in the Burgess food.

I had considered making a 50/50 mix of the two for more variety, but most of the time I only ever find one or the other in local pet stores.

[Scampi16]

Mine get a mix of four foods at moment.
Still got the P@H muesli they came with and mixed in three other types: P@H Premium Muesli, Harry Hamster and Science Selective.
I mixed in the Science selective because my syrian never eats the orange or green biscuits and none of them eat the pellets, so thought if I got some sort of all in one mix they would get the bits they miss from their selective feeding.

[Susie]

As of yesterday my syrians get a mix of harry hamster, versele laga hamster crispy, science selective pellets, broken up dried banana, linseeds and hemp seeds. It is a great variety of foods... It goes down really well.. polished bowls the majority of the time

[Kissa]

I am watching this thread with interest :) My two are currently on a mix of P@H premium, Burgess dwarf, Tesco and some finch seed mix, but Darla avoids the pellets. Annie eats most of it but I'd rather they both had something they eat all of and enjoy! I've been looking at JR Farm with interest, but I like variety so would probably mix it with at least one other mix.

[olga]

Zooplus VERSELE LAGA Hamster Crispy which I give to dwarfs. No pesky pellets in it which HH has. I also mix in mixed bird seed.
Anyone else use it? I’ve not seen anything on the forum about it apart from 1 review from Mark in Croatia. I see Susie on this thread uses it with other makes.

[Kissa]

I've always discounted Versele Laga because I've never been able to find a comprehensive list of ingredients :)

[Susie]

I'm not overly keen on the versele laga hamster crispy because it has so, so many sunflower seeds in it, but it works well as a part of a mix :)

[gellerbing]

i use harry hamster, only problem is he refuses to eat the brown bits

[Queen Of The High Teas]

I use a mix of Harry hamster, burgess dwarf, pets at home premium, cockatiel mix and a whole bunch of different seeds/grains off RR which I mix all together. I just remove the corn and pea flakes for those who need it as I'm doing the daily feeding. Might get some science selective as well, though I'd need a bigger bag than what I got last time:oops:

[Lougarry]

I've always discounted Versele Laga because I've never been able to find a comprehensive list of ingredients :)

Here are the ingredients as listed in the Dashing Hamsters food list (Dashing Hamsters: Search results for Versele (http://dashinghamsters.blogspot.co.uk/search?q=Versele)):


Versele-Laga Hamster Nature Complete

Ingredients:
Grains (9% corn flakes, oat flakes, and popcorn), vegetables (18.5% of which 1.5% carrots and 5% beetroot), derivatives of vegetable origin, seeds (11%), fruit (7.5% of which 9.5% apricot, 9.5% pineapple, 12.5% banana, 12.5% papaya, 12.5% raisins and 38% carob.), vegetable protein extracts, nuts (5%), minerals, yeast, FOS, herbs, calendula., vitamins A, E and D3, copper, E320, E321, E102, E132, E110, E124.

Guaranteed Analysis:
Protein 17%
Fat 8.5%
Crude Fibre 7%

This mix is rather high in fat content and is a tad low in fibre content. The protein is on the lower end as well. The ingredients highlighted in blue indicate that this mix would not be ideal for hamsters prone to diabetes or for those that have diabetes. The packaging of this brand only provides limited information on ingredients as well, which is not altogether helpful for analysing the quality of the mix. Overall I would not recommend this mix mostly due to the high fat content. It could be alright for Syrian or Roborovski hamsters if no other more suitable mix was available.

Versele-Laga Mini Hamster Nature Complete

Ingredients:
Barley, wheat, maize, oatmeal flakes, maize flakes, rice, puffed maize, puffed wheat, puffed rice, peas, beetroot, carrot, tick bean flakes, pea flakes, wheat bran, soy meal non-gmo, sunflower seed meal, sunflower, pumpkin seed, linseed, safflower, carob, bananas, papaya, raisins, apricot, pineapple, cranberry, elderberry, apple, soy protein non-gmo, peanuts, calcium carbonate, monocalcium phosphate, salt, brewers’ yeast, fructo-oligosaccharides, marjoram, oregano, thyme, mint, garlic, calendula, vitamins A, E and D3, copper, E320, E321, E102, E132, E110, E124.

Guaranteed Analysis:
Protein 14%
Fat 7.5%
Fibre 6%

This mix is too low in protein, too high in fat content and too low in protein. It is not suitable for diabetes prone/ diabetic hamsters either due to some of the ingredients present (bolded in blue). The addition of garlic in the mix renders it unsafe for any species of hamster too as garlic is hard on their kidneys. I would not recommend this mix for any species of hamster.

Versele-Laga Hamster Crispy

Ingredients:
Wheat bran, soy meal non-gmo, sunflower seed meal, wheat, barley, buckwheat, maize, puffed wheat, puffed maize, puffed rice, peas, pea flakes, carrot, calcium carbonate, monocalcium phosphate, salt, sunflower, safflower, pumpkin seed, linseed, carob, peanuts, vitamins A, E and D3, Copper, E320, E321, E102, E132, E110, E124.

Guaranteed Analysis:
Protein 15%
Fat 10%
Fibre 7%

This mix is low in protein content as well as fibre content. The fat content is a bit too high as well. The mix itself is rather basic, with several ingredients that are not beneficial to diabetes prone/ diabetic hamsters. Overall I would not recommend this food for any species.

[Lougarry]

^The commentary above is from the Dashing Hamsters blog, btw. I don't agree with all of it as I have found no evidence that protein should constitute more than 15% of a hamster's diet.

I am currently mixing Harry Hamster, Burgess, P@H Premium, Trill, finch seed and dried herb mixes as well as feeding lots of fresh supplements and so far everyone seems happy and healthy with such a varied diet.