Have you got a little charming hamster or just planning? What are you going to feed? Do you know that it’s not so easy to choose the right diet for a fluffy miracle? There are lots of products that hamsters simply cannot give. Their diet differs from the human, as well as that which forms the basis of the nutrition of brothers in the wild.
Today we’ll talk about the basic rules of feeding these cute animals and analyze the main issues that arise with the owners. The list of what can be given to Dzungarian hamsters is by no means small. But the list of the forbidden is quite extensive, and any responsible reasonable owner must be familiar with it.
What is often asked
Hamster owners most often ask the same questions, for example: What can hamsters be given and what not? Is it allowed to feed furry pets with cheese, milk, bread, bananas, pumpkin, persimmons, apples, grapes? What can be given to a Syrian hamster? Should the animal drink, or does he have enough fluid from the food? What can be given to a dzhungarik hamster, etc.?
As for the cheese, let's say right away - there is no consensus. Somewhere it is said about its negative impact on animal health, other sources do not support this opinion. If you want to eliminate the slightest possibility of trouble, it is better not to use cheese.
Is it possible to give a hamster cabbage? It is impossible - neither white-headed, nor red-headed, nor Brussels. Nevertheless, the Chinese and color (pre-boiled) harm will not bring. The sweet fruits listed above (grapes, bananas, apples) are useful and completely safe for hamsters, in addition, animals love them very much.
Never offer milk to your pet - you cannot either give them a beast or boil porridge in milk. This leads to severe digestive upsets. As for bread, under the categorical prohibition black, white does no harm. Persimmon is shown in small quantities, but it is worth choosing sweet and completely non-astringent fruits.
What you can give hamsters from food
And yet, what is the best way to feed a hamster at home? You must be aware that the animal itself has a poor idea of ​​what it can and cannot do. Therefore, choosing food for itself, guided by the principles of a healthy diet, it is unlikely that it will “hamper” everything it reaches. So the owner develops the diet for the pet, on it is the responsibility for the health and well-being of the ward.
Mandatory components of a hamster's menu are feed (dry and wet), protein supplementation, vitamins with minerals and, of course, water, and achieving the right ratio is not so easy due to the presence of a lot of all kinds of nuances. For example - what can hamsters of different ages be given (young and old individuals eat completely differently)? And with diseases?
What should be dry food
Dry food, perhaps, can be called the basis of a hamster's diet. It is best if he will be present in the trough constantly. The food that can be given to hamsters is not suitable for other animals, and vice versa. It is strictly forbidden to buy food intended for other animals - for example, rats or guinea pigs, as well as parrots and other birds.
Why? All specialized feeds contain a certain type of vitamin supplements, the composition of which is carefully selected according to the needs of the animal's body. That is, the ingredients of different types of such food can be very, very significantly different. Having fed a hamster food that is not intended for this species, you can get very deplorable consequences.
About the importance of fiber
In addition to dry food, your rodent must also receive wet. It consists of fruits, vegetables and herbs. The latter should be added to the feeder on a regular basis. This will bring the necessary variety to the diet.
What can a hamster get from grass? In addition to dill and parsley, he enjoys treating with dandelions, plantain, nettle, lettuce and clover. It is difficult to obtain those valuable substances that contains greens from other products.
As for vegetables, all their diversity must be equally divided into two lists - those that can be fed, and those that are strictly prohibited. Can Dzungarian hamsters be given potatoes? Feed the mushrooms? And onions and garlic? In no case! You can and should offer him carrots, beets, eggplant, zucchini, as well as cucumbers with tomatoes and peas. Hamsters enjoy wheat or sprouted oat grains with pleasure.
Everyone loves fruits!
Next, it should be clarified that you can give a hamster of fruit. Without any fear, you can feed your pet plums, currants, gooseberries, blueberries, dogrose and pitted cherries. From time to time, offer the animal something of dried fruit - for example, a little raisins or dried apricots.
The hamster will not refuse dried apples, pears or banana chips. But do not give prunes to avoid problems. Experiments in the matter of feeding should not be allowed, having decided to replenish the diet with a new vegetable or fruit, consult knowledgeable people.
Fruits are not suitable for abuse due to the excessive content of sugar in them. Nuts should also be given a little (as a delicacy). You can treat the hamster with peanuts, walnuts, cashews or seeds - sunflower and pumpkin.
We are a little carnivorous ...
Protein top dressing is necessary for animals, and many of them are happy to eat such food. Others categorically refuse, so sometimes it can be difficult for the owner to determine what exactly to give to the moody pet. In general, the list of protein source foods allowed for rodents starts with boiled chicken (just don’t try to salt it or add at least some spices). You can also give the hamster a hard-boiled egg (both protein and yolk can be fed), low-fat kefir and the same cottage cheese (zero or one percent fat), as well as bifilin . Sometimes owners feed their pets with shrimp (of course, peeled).
In the pet shop in this capacity, you can buy flour or earthworms, grasshoppers and butterflies. Do not take top dressing of dubious origin and anywhere, since it is not known which additives it contains, and how this will affect the animal’s health. Only in a pet store will you be sold a balanced product, adapted specifically for this type of animal.
How often to feed a hamster with proteins? It is better to do this once a couple of days or twice a week. It will be nice if you set a specific schedule, and the animal will receive such a diet on specific days. Two days in a row to give him protein is not worth it.
About beneficial supplements
Let's move on to vitamins and minerals. If you constantly feed your hamster exclusively with the expensive dry food of a well-known manufacturer intended for this purpose, then you need not worry. It already contains everything that is useful and necessary for your pet. If you want to know the details - get acquainted with the composition indicated on the package.
When the food is simpler and cheaper (domestic brands) or even hand-made, a couple of times every week the feeder should be replenished with minerals and vitamins. Such supplements are not worth buying at the pharmacy - human hamster vitamins are completely unsuitable. Do not get fooled by advertising stores offering crackers as a vitamin supplement. They are full of chemical impurities that can affect the tiny organism of the animal without exaggeration.
For additives, go all to the same pet store. There they will sell you a safe, healthy and balanced composition of the delicacy, and in addition they will also advise.
Perhaps the least hassle is the purchase of specialized hamster food. Providing the pet with such nutrition, do not hesitate - he will receive all the vitamins and minerals in the right amount.
What to avoid
Why are hamsters contraindicated to feed from the human table? The fact is that the products familiar to us contain a large number of spices, salt and pepper, vinegar, cinnamon. All of them are extremely undesirable to our small wards.
In addition, human food is often too fat for a hamster. This applies to lard, sausage, fatty meat, sour cream and cream. Or it can be too sweet - it's about sugar, jam, sweets or honey. And also salty - there is a lot of salt in canned vegetables, dried and smoked fish, etc. Fine flour, which forms the basis of buns, pastries and cakes, is also not at all useful to your pet.
Avoid giving pitted fruits that may be harmful. Do not toss hamsters into cones or nuts in the shell. Gnawing them, the animal can injure cheek bags on sharp edges, and even poison with the bones of a fruit tree. Likewise, it is not worth throwing a spikelet with grains into the cage, it is better to exfoliate the grains and "set to the table" separately. The fact is that with its sharp edges, the spikelet is able to injure the animal in the process of chewing.
Because without water ...
Any owner of the animal must know and understand that water is no less important for the health of a pet than food. Sometimes, seeing the unfinished water in the drinker, the owner may decide that he does not drink at all. But this is not so - no living creature can survive for long without water. Therefore, its unfinished remains should be regularly removed and poured fresh (not in a bowl on the cage’s floor, but in a special hanging drinking bowl attached to the bars of the grate).
Do not try to water hamsters with distilled or boiled water, it contains practically no beneficial substances. If you care about the health of your little fluffy, replenish the drinker with well or spring water. You can take the usual one - the one that flows from the tap, but pass through the filter.
Rodent Features
As you know, any hamster is a representative of the rodent squad. What does it mean? One of the leading needs of such animals is to constantly grind their teeth on rough solid food. It would seem that there is no problem feeding the hamster, but will everything suit him?
Eating roughage alone will not provide the hamster with grinding teeth. Therefore, the cell must always have a supply of material in the form of thin branches. To harvest them, find a cherry, apple tree, poplar, birch or willow growing far from the road, cut, wash well and boil small branches. Having dried, you can little by little offer the hamster.
When collecting pet grass or twigs, remember the poor environmental conditions of our megacities. It is best on a day off to go further out of town and stock up on pet food.
A hamster of venerable years ...
What to do if your pet is sick or already young? What can be given to a retired hamster? Old and diseased individuals behave sluggishly and can hardly cope with solid food. It’s hard for their stomach to digest whole grains. In this case, increase the proportion of soft foods in the diet.
Grind fruits, vegetables and nuts will help grater and meat grinder, and the grains can be sprouted. But even such hamsters need solid food to avoid digestive upsets. Water the sick hamster with a weak broth of chamomile, changing portions a couple of times a day.
... and baby hamster
And if you have newborn animals? What can be given to a tiny hamster that is completely helpless? Have to stock up on baby food, meat or vegetable. It does not contain additives, soy, salt and sugar. Any dairy-free porridge (also unsalted and not containing soy) will do. In addition, you can take the most ordinary cereals and soak in water or boil rice. The last option is suitable for a hamster of any age in case of indigestion.
Little hamsters can easily get diabetes, so it is recommended to limit sweet fruits in their diet. Like humans, these animals are real sweet tooth, and will never give up on the delicacy. And here we repeat again: you should not rely on the natural flair of the animal, which does not understand what is useful to him and what is not. The owner should take the decision on the issue of healthy nutrition of the animal exclusively in his own hands.
conclusions
If you approach the upkeep of your furry baby not only with care and love, but also wisely, then you will not offer him exclusively hamster "delicacies", for example, very sweet fruits. Feed the animal healthy food, and it will delight you with a healthy well-groomed exterior and active character for a long time.
Sometimes on the Internet there are photos in which hamsters with a funny look absorb the most exotic food. Looking at this, the owners begin to give their pets what horrible, and then bite their elbows. Do not fall for such photos! Most of them are exclusively staged shots. For the sake of a beautiful picture, the unfortunate hosts feed the little fluffies obviously unsuitable and sometimes harmful food.