Opinions on Hamster Feed

[virtualkeith]

Hi Serendipity and Cypher,

No Serendipity, oxbow food does not contain soy. The food looks like dark colored chubby cheerios.
Thanks cypher, Mr. Carlisle is already getting used to the oxbow food. He eats the old food first, but by morning, all of the oxbow food is gone. I suppose he ran out of food in his nest stash.

[HammieExpert]

I was just going to say that you should look for a seed mix with about 17-22% protein about 10% fiber and about 4-6% fat. I also recommend that you mix multiple seed mixes together. Also make sure that they don't have any thing that is toxic to a hamster such as onion and garlic. ErinsAnimals has a great video on youtube and a amazing list of the fruits and veggies are good and bad for hammies. I suggest you check out her videos! I hope this helped!

[Pebbles82]

Wish we could get it in the Uk then!

[Vectis Hamstery]

Originally Posted by WinnieTheHam

The protein is considerably low in Hazel hamster only at 8%, in Harry hamster i think its 19% or 17%. I can't remember.

I've just had a reply from Petco about the 8% protein for Hazel Hamster on their website:

Upon coordinating with the manufacturer and the Web Development and Technical Team, we are told that what is shown in our website is just a typhographical error. There is no change with the content of the item.

This is already being worked on for the correct information to be updated. We sincerely apologize for the confusion this has caused.

Yay for folks in US

[WinnieTheHam]

That's good! I thought it was a bit odd, considering that Hazel hamster is pretty much the same as Harry hamster.

[Penguin]

I would almost go as far as saying please avoid vitakraft ><
I havent ever seen them make a proper mix for pets. All the hamster ones I have looked at lacked protein. And dont get me started on their guinea pig mixes.

I would also not advice any mix stating that the mix fits more than one animal. My experience is that it lacks nutrition for one of the animals advertised.

I have heard a lot of good stuff about Hazel Hamster and it would probably be my choice if I couldnt get the mix I was using now. I am, however, a bit concened about the protein level and would add some extra myself

[barley]

Originally Posted by Penguin

I would almost go as far as saying please avoid vitakraft ><
I havent ever seen them make a proper mix for pets. All the hamster ones I have looked at lacked protein. And dont get me started on their guinea pig mixes.

I would also not advice any mix stating that the mix fits more than one animal. My experience is that it lacks nutrition for one of the animals advertised.

I have heard a lot of good stuff about Hazel Hamster and it would probably be my choice if I couldnt get the mix I was using now. I am, however, a bit concened about the protein level and would add some extra myself

I use Harry Hamster as my base mix (although add lots of other stuff to it too) and was thinking of getting some Vitakraft Menu to add in too. Do you think it'd be ok fed alongside a variety, or best avoided all together?

[cypher]

From what I've seen of the vitacraft menu the ingredients list is very vague, could be almost anything! The protein is low & why do they have to add sugar?
Personally I wouldn't choose to use it.

[Penguin]

Originally Posted by barley

I use Harry Hamster as my base mix (although add lots of other stuff to it too) and was thinking of getting some Vitakraft Menu to add in too. Do you think it'd be ok fed alongside a variety, or best avoided all together?

This post is very subjective

Now I don't want to say anything bad about vitakraft, and will note that most of my experience with their product comes from when I bred guinea pigs - but their food is rubbish. As for guinea pigs, I quickly noticed that their mixes contained ingredients that weren't healthy for a guinea pig at all! Mix contained too much sugar, unshelled seeds that they were likely to get stuck between their teeth, different ingredients than what was listed on the bag (it kinda was a surprise every single time you opened a new bag), and the distribution between the ingredients was completely random. The last bag I saw someone open was at least 60% grain. And guinea pigs shouldn't really eat grain in the first place.
It's kinda the same as viskas for cats. The cat loves it because it's nothing but candy but it's not healthy.

With this experience from guinea pigs I have lost all fate that vitakraft can make something healthy for animals. I did have a brief look at some hamster mixes but decided not to get them as the protein was low, and it contained sugar which I don't believe should be a part of a hamster mix.

So making a TLDR version: No, I wouldn't ever feed any of my pets vitakraft. I would say it's best avoided (:

Originally Posted by cypher

From what I've seen of the vitacraft menu the ingredients list is very vague, could be almost anything! The protein is low & why do they have to add sugar?
Personally I wouldn't choose to use it.

^agreed

[katmick]

Actually just wondering if anyone tried hamster mixes from Rodipet.
The protein levels are adjusted to life stage of a hamster and seeds to different species.Protein levels can be also increased by adding extra protein mix or protein of your choice eg chicken or egg.
Btw I didn't try these mixes yet.