Since dry food is the bulk content of what hamsters eat, as an owner, you might wonder if fresh food is will be a great alternative to their mainly dried food diet. This article will help you find the perfect fresh food for your hamster, whether it’s Syrian or the Dwarf breed.
Fresh Food For Hamsters
As earlier mentioned, the bulk of food that is sold in pet stores for hamsters is mainly dried. Therefore, you feeding your hamster fresh food is a way of replicating what they would rather eat in the wild. Providing them with a variety of food options, especially fresh ones is a good way of helping them reduce stress and keep them entertained.
However, it is important to note that fresh food does not need to be provided to hamsters every day. But giving them fresh food from time to time will surely keep them healthy.
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The Appropriate Way To Provide Fresh Food For Hamsters
When you finally decide to try out the fresh food option for your hamster, it is important to bear certain things in mind. First is to ensure that you are not giving your hamster frozen fresh food. In a case where you had to keep the excess fresh food in a refrigerator to preserve, it is important to always defrost before feeding your hamster.
Asides from ensuring you provide fresh food that is defrosted, it is also important that the food is ripe. Hamsters struggle with ingesting under-riped and over-riped food. Also, if you are wondering about the food options for your hamster, Omlet, a renowned pet website has provided a list that could guide you.
Where To Get Fresh Food
As a hamster owner or a soon owner, feeding those little furry creatures can be very scary because of their little body. However, just like humans, they need a bit of protein from time to time.
You can get fresh food from your garden, that is if you are a plant person or you could always get fresh food from local stores around. However, it is important for you to ensure that you provide this food to them in a clean and if possible cut form to prevent choking and other health issues. We advise that any fresh food you want to give to your hamster must be properly washed to prevent them from ingesting toxins.
What Kind of Fresh Food Should I Give To My Hamster
Fruits are a great option for hamsters, but giving them to them in smaller quantities is best. Fresh food can provide hamsters with a source of tasty supplements as to the usual dried food sold in most pet stores. Greens are also a kind of fresh food that you can give to your hamster.
However, washing the greens is advised before feeding to a hamster. Therefore, fruits and greens are amazing options to feed your hamster, but doing it moderately is the key.
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How Much Fresh Food Can I Feed My Hamster?
Hamsters are small in size therefore, it is important to always give them whatever food is in small quantities. Excess of anything is not a great feat for your pet’s digestive system. However, feeding your hamster too much fresh food can lead to three main problems.
First, if the fresh food you want to give your hamster is fruit, excessive feeding can lead to dental problems for your pet. Secondly, it is important to note that over-feeding hamster with fresh food can upset their stomach, giving them diarrhea.
The last main problem with fresh food is that hamsters will always try to stuff the food that they cannot finish in a big glut. This is very unhealthy because fresh food can also become stale quickly. Therefore, to prevent health issues that stale food can cause, it is advised to remove leftovers to prevent your hamster from eating them.
Conclusion
Fresh food is a good source of nutrients for hamsters. Since fresh food can be both fruits and greens, excess feeding of these has its consequences as well. However, protein is also a great source of nutrients for hamsters and they can get it from hard-boiled eggs or scrambled eggs.
Regardless, excessive feeding, whether greens, fruits, or protein sources is strongly advised against.