What do hamsters eat?

Hamsters are dearly loved by children, so in many families they are raised as pets. These are cute and funny animals that seemed to gnaw everything that comes their way. However, owners should understand that feeding a small rodent has its own subtleties.

In nature, food hamsters directly depends on the characteristics of the habitat of animals. Under natural conditions, these small animals prefer to live in the field, because their main food is cereals. If there is a village or another settlement not far from the area - the animals must visit it, look for places to store the collected fruits and vegetables. They are also looking for food in gardens and orchards, they are eagerly eating grapes, apples, raspberries, strawberries and other human-grown crops.

In the warm season, greens become the basis of food, funny fluffies eat young juicy grass, shoots and leaves, and if on their way they meet worms or spiders - be sure, they will not disdain them.

Feeding hamsters in captivity should be close to natural, which is why 70% of the menu usually consists of cereal feed, including oats, millet and buckwheat. It is best to buy ready-made mixtures in pet stores - they are enriched with vitamins, micro and macro elements that are important for the health of a small rodent. However, you can make a grain mixture and independently, having bought several types of cereals on the agricultural market. In such a case, it will be necessary to add vitamin and mineral supplements to the diet.

In houses, hamsters with great pleasure gnaw the most various vegetables, sweet fruits and juicy berriesthey always like boiled chicken, pumpkin seeds and sunflower seedsand besides dry crumbly curd, chicken, duck or quail eggs - these products are not injected into the diet every day - 2-3 feedings per week are enough.

Vitamins and minerals are usually added to cereal feeds of animals, mixing with fruit - however, it is necessary to monitor the reaction of the organism of the rodent, as it is not uncommon for hamsters to be allergic to one or another component of the complex.

Be sure to be present in the menu of the animal young greens - Vitamin supplements from dill, dandelion and milk thistle are very useful for pets.

As you know, hamsters are mainly nocturnal, so the evening has the main reception of the feed. Although the feed should be offered to the animals twice - usually in the morning they are given 1 tablespoon of dry grain feed, and in the evening vegetables, cereal, protein feed and meaty fruits are added to the cereals.

Should remember that for any rodent, food is not only a means of subsistence, but also a source of replenishment of its food supply. If you notice that the food you offer is starting to disappear from the trough at a tremendous speed, this does not mean that the hamster eats too much - most likely, he simply hides the food for a rainy day.Therefore, from time to time it is necessary to revise the contents of the cage and remove all unnecessary products, and in order for your pet not to be so sad to part with the accumulation, leave in its pantry some seeds and cereal grains.

Special attention is given to the nutrition of little homyachats In the overwhelming majority of cases, their feeding lies on the female, and even self-feeding the cubs, which are necessary for her cubs, she herself delivers to the equipped nest. But there are situations when the mother dies or, for some reason, shows aggression towards the children and refuses to feed them. In such a situation, the care of the kids lies entirely with the breeders.

No need to be upset - in any pet store you can buy specialized mixes for feeding newborn kittens, they are quite suitable for homyachat. They are bred on ordinary water to the consistency of milk, this solution is given to the young with a plastic pipette or a thin brush for drawing at intervals of 2 hours. After each feeding, it is necessary to massage the tummies of crumbs in a circular motion clockwise - this will help avoid problems with digestion.

When a newborn is 2 weeks old, the menu can be supplemented with wiped porridge cooked in plain water without sugar and oil; on the third week, you can add vegetable or meat puree to the menu (any suitable for feeding children can do, for example, Subject or Agusha) ). Closer to the month, you can add frayed cottage cheese, boiled egg yolk and pumpkin. During this period, you can gradually transfer the hamsters to adult food, but up to one and a half months the mixture should remain the main feed.

Caring owners choose ready-made feeds for their pets - they are sold in any pet store. Such a cereal mixture already contains the necessary amount of useful substances, micro- and macroelements, depending on the manufacturer, even pressed herbs can be included in the composition.

The advantages of the finished grain feed are obvious:

• no need to pick up the grain and mix them in optimal proportions, everything is already compiled and balanced;
• convenient to follow the dosage;
• This food will not deteriorate when stored in the "pantry" of the animal.

In nature, hamsters often eat various cereals and nuts, therefore, in captivity, you can offer your furry pet:

• sunflower seeds, as well as pumpkins and melons, However, these components can be included in the menu infrequently, they are too high in calories and fat;
• green peas, lentils, chopped chickpeas and other legumes;
• the nuts - It is best to use walnuts, as well as peanuts, hazelnuts and cedar grains;
• corn - suitable for all species of rodents, except Campbell's hamsters.

However, not all nuts can be safely entered into the diet of homemade fluff. Hamsters categorically contraindicated:

• almond - it causes poisoning of the animal;
• Brazilian nut - the product is too heavy for the digestive tract of a hamster;
• fruit pits - they contain poisonous hydrocyanic acid and dangerous toxins.

As you know, vitamins will not harm anyone, and hamsters are no exception. For a small rodent, you can use almost all fruits growing in the area where animals live, so let's stop on those fruits that hamsters enter the diet not recommended: citrus fruits (tangerines, grapefruits, lemons, limes and oranges), pineapples, pomegranates, as well as kiwi and avocados.

As for the berries, the recommendations here are similar - less sweet and moderate consumption. Most hamsters fit:

• Strawberry:
• cherry and sweet cherry;
• currant;
• blueberries;
• blueberry;
• gooseberry.

Hamsters require juicy greens, it is desirable to enter it into the menu daily. Everything you need can be obtained in your garden: dill, celery leaves and lettuce, carrot or beet tops. If possible, treat your pets with young sprigs of fruit plants and dandelion leaves, young bamboo will not harm this animal.

But not quite right to treat a hamster with sorrel, mint, basil, oregano, spicy plants. Of course, a simple street grass, especially one whose origin is difficult to determine, should not be given to a beloved hamster.

Once a week you need to treat the animal sprouted with oats or wheat grains - they contain the entire set of vitamins important for the health of the rodent, supporting its full growth and development.

In captivity, the hamster menu must include fresh vegetables; they must be given even in that situation if you buy ready-made cereal mixtures for feeding the animal.

Hamster shown:

• squash and squash;
• carrots and beets;
• pumpkin;
• broccoli and cauliflower;
• leaf salad;
• cucumber;
• a tomato;
• eggplants.

But the taboo on such products as:

• White cabbage - provokes pain in the stomach and intestines;
• potato - contains too much starch.

Of course, the use of canned vegetables is absolutely unacceptable - they contain a lot of salt and vinegar, and they are just as dangerous for a hamster as all the other seasonings.

As we have already mentioned, a hamster is not a cute animal at all, but a real predator, therefore, in order to maintain normal functioning, it necessarily needs proteins at least 2-3 times a week.

As their source are suitable:

• boiled chicken (white meat);
• chicken egg protein (you can replace it with quail);
• boiled white fish without bones;
• dairy and dairy products with low fat content;
• insects (you can buy them at any pet store).

In general, you can already imagine what you can feed your hamster, and what it is not worth it. In addition to all that we have already mentioned, you can additionally include in the list of prohibited products:

• bread - the yeast contained in it leads to indigestion and fermentation in the intestine;
• spices, spicy and spicy herbs;
• all products with high fat content;
• all fried, smoked, marinated and canned.

Rodents are strictly contraindicated any sweets: ice cream, halva, as well as kozinaki, honey, biscuit, sweets and, of course, chocolate, for any hamster they are slowly killing their poison.

The menu should be absent products such as butter, heavy cream, homemade sour cream, yogurt, kefir and milk.

Pasta and breadcrumbs are also dangerous for the pet - they contain ingredients dangerous for your fluffy.

As evidenced by the reviews of individual breeders, their fluffies often take part in "family dinners" - they consume the same thing as their owners. It is quite interesting to watch how the rodent “looks narrowly” at the large dish, but still such feeding is not necessary - human food is often too heavy for hamsters, therefore it is permissible only in small doses.

There is an opinion that, like any other rodents, hamsters are not indifferent to cheese and do not deny themselves the pleasure to nibble this product with pleasure. However, in practice, such food is completely unprofitable for fluffies - it contains too much salt, animal fat and seasonings, and therefore has the most disastrous effect on the health of a pet. However, it is still allowed to consume such a product once a week in the amount of not more than two sunflower seeds.

In nature, hamsters are very fond of eating earthworms - they eat them with great pleasure. However, you should not dig them in your garden - they can be carriers of an infectious disease, and therefore, quite often after such a treat, the rodent gets sick.

Keep in mind, if you make the diet of your hamster from those products that you buy on the market, you definitely risk the health of your pet. After all, you can not know for certain exactly where the young greens, this or that fruit, came from the seller. Perhaps they were raised near a dusty, polluted highway, it is possible that in order to accelerate the growth of the culture it was treated with chemicals that are very dangerous for any hamster.

In conclusion, let us dwell on the question of how to water a rodent. In some guides for the care of this animal there is information that these animals easily manage without water, getting all the right amount of liquid from berries, fruits, and vegetables. This statement is erroneous and even dangerous - water is required for rodents every day, otherwise it will wither away from thirst.

It is desirable that the fluid in the cell be in a special drinker fixed on the bars of the cell. Water is better to use bottled or filtered, Do not forget to change it daily, even if the hamster drank very little.

The question of feeding the hamster must be approached with all responsibility. Each breeder must independently decide how he will feed his pet on the basis of his preferences, financial means and recommendations of veterinarians. remember, that Not only the strength and vigor of the cute Fuzzy, but also its health and longevity depends on the quality of the food offered.

About how to feed the hamster, see the next video.