Seed Mix/Treats for Young Dwarf

[Willow27]

Hi all,

I've spent hours on hours looking at multiple seed mixes for my new winter white. I know they are prone to diabetes so I am careful to look for mixes without sugar/excess starch. I already use Oxbow pellets which have a protein breakdown of 15%, plenty of fiber, and fat of 4.5%. Current treats include sunflower seeds, dried papaya treats (no added sugar), and millet buds.

I have been searching for a seed mix that has more protein, but perhaps I should just look for one with a larger variety. Any suggestions (US brands only)? Also any suggestions on Add-ins for her diet? I am thinking of adding mealworms for protein but how often?

Additionally, what are some other treats to give to help taming (and how often)?

How often should she get a sunflower seed/millet bud?

Thanks in advance; I've been going crazy trying to find all the right information.

[Willow27]

Throughout the day I have gathered this breakdown.

Oxbow Essentials: 39%
VitaKraft VitaNature: 42%

Sunflower Seeds: 2.5%
Mealworms: 4%
Chicken treat: 4%
Millet: 3%
Lentils: 3.5%
Chia seeds: 1%
Papaya treats: 1%

Overall analysis:
Protein: 18.86%
Fat: 6.04%
Fiber: 14.15%

Thoughts/opinions?

[Cinnamon Bear]

I use Vita kraft vita smart from Pet Smart temporarily until my supply is gone then I'm going to switch to Higgins Sunburst from Pet-Co. They say that combining Higgins with Mazuri lab blocks for rat & mice has same ingredients that they used to make for hamsters? Honestly I'm a little confused myself cause I really like Kaytee Forti diet without seeds cause as soon as they get seeds the stash it all & forget about the pellets. Then to make matters worse, they pick out their favorite seeds & expect that every night. I'm tempted to put them all on Kaytee Forti Diet & just a little bit of seeds. That way they can have the best of both worlds.
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I don't know how much they like the Mazuri lab blocks, it's really hard to tell but I know they like Kaytee lab blocks.

I also supplement with meal worms (dried) nightly & dried crickets too. Robos don't like the crickets though & the hamsters will let you know when they've had am enough crickets, sometimes one a day is too much!

I use millet occasionally, more than a treat than anything else, but I have millet seeds from the health food store, along with flax seed that they like but again, I don't know how much they are actually eating due to their stashes.

I find the stashes are hard to keep up on & some of my hammies don't stash, so far 3 out of the 6 stash.

So I think I'm leaning towards Higgins Sunburst & Kaytee Forti Diet which is what Pet-Co feeds all their animals so Kaytee must be doing something right!

[cypher]

Your overall analysis in the second post sounds pretty much spot on & really healthy, not sure about the papaya, I don't think they need it nor is it particularly suited to their digestive system but other than that it sounds fine.

[CMB]

Erin's guide to feeding dwarfs prone to diabetes.

DIABETES IN HAMSTERS & *DIET - YouTube

[Willow27]

Originally Posted by cypher

not sure about the papaya, I don't think they need it nor is it particularly suited to their digestive system but other than that it sounds fine.

She probably won't get the full 1% of it but its a little treat I got for her and added it in..I spent a good amount of time researching some other seeds/add-ins but between oxbow and vitakraft, she really only needed the protein. I got tired of working out the percentages so I threw that in.


@CMB: Thanks! I've seen that video but the main feeds are only sold in the UK. I did add in some protein and the diet overall has high fiber and both of my main feeds have oats high in the ingredients list.

[cypher]

I know what you mean about working out all those percentages, I recently made my own mix & the calculations took me forever, I was seeing numbers in my sleep lol!
I think you've got a great mix there so just go with it