Safe forage mix

[Frida]

I've been on the Happy Hamsters website and they recommend the following forage mix.
Has anyone else used them?
Do you agree they are safe?
You can scroll down on the links and click onto Nutrition & Analysis to read the ingredients.

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[elusive]

The two P@H ones are fine.
The Rosewood one is safe but I would be careful with a diabetic prone species as the dried veg & carob are fairly high in sugar, a small amount now & then would be ok but I wouldn’t give much or often.
I haven’t used those as I make up my own buying individual flowers & leaes separately.

 

[Frida]

Thank you elusive
I will give the Rosewood one a miss.

 

[Maz]

I haven't used any of them. On paper they will be fine but checking contents is important. I've bought things like this before and found a lot of twigs and twiggy bits on leaves, that seem a bit sharp. Instead I just buy the flower petals separately. I got calendula petals, cornflower petals and rose petals from Baldwins herbalists. But now you can buy them in many places. There are Etsy sellers who do the flower mixes. So personally I avoid the "all in" mixes and get the flowers.

 

[Maz]

I was looking at this one the other day that looks nice It's a Uk seller

Botanical Dream Floral Forage Mix for Small Animals - Etsy UK

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Then I'd also buy green oats separately - the hamsters usually love that (at first then they seem to get bored). I had a big bag from Zooplus but not sure if they do it any more. It just looks like wide pieces of dried plant or grass. I think it was this one.

Anyway basically I just made up my own mixes from the flowers and oats or scattered a bit of each. And avoided twigs.

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[Frida]

Thank you Maz

 

[elusive]

I don’t worry too much if they have twigs or stalks in, unless you put big handfuls in it’s easy to remove any bits that might be a bit sharp.
I always find echinacea comes with lots of sharp stalk bit so avoid that.
I’m not keen on green oats either as they’re often a bit sharp & pokey.
Small bits of twig or stalk that aren’t sharp are fine though.

 

[RainbowBrite]

Little Orko loved the twigs and stalks more then the forage itself.

 

[Maz]

I guess experience varies . I think my first Syrian got poked in the eye by a twiggy bit. My green oats were fine - sift and more like thick grass. Just the greenery in that bag - not the actual oats.

Poor Frida is probably even more confused now!

 

[Frida]

I'll just remove anything that I think is very sharp or cut the sharp bit off.

 

[Hank]

I got a boredom breaker box from Etsy and I've actually just ordered another one today.

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I was really impressed with the previous one( it's the same seller), I do pick out sharp bits, but there wasn't much.
Funnily enough I was on Hopes healthy treats as well, if you do get any, please share, I would be interested to know what you think.

 

[Frida]

I'm going to P@H tomorrow to get a few things for Albert.
P@H says the following are safe for hamsters.
Has anyone used these items for their hamster/s?
Are they really safe?

Naturals Luxury 7-Herb Bar Small Animal Treats 7 Pack 80g | Pets At Home

<li>Suitable for rabbits, Guinea pigs, hamsters, gerbils, rats, mice, chinchillas and degus in moderation</li><li>Vegetable, herb and oat bars for a daily treat</li><li>Shop Naturals <a href="https://tinyurl.com/4m39ycb3"target=_blank>here</a></li> is available to buy online at Pets at Home, the...

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Pets at Home Small Animal Treats Hemp Sticks 75g | Pets At Home

<li>Suitable for Rabbits, Guinea Pigs, Chinchillas, Degus, Rats, Gerbils, Hamsters and Mice.</li><li>Great for enrichment</li><li>Find out more about small animal care <a href="https://tinyurl.com/bdzbthhb"target=_blank>here</a></li> is available to buy online at Pets at Home, the UK's largest...

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[Maz]

The first one is safe. I wouldn't give the second one personally as it seems to have a lot of roughage and includes hay. Hamsters don't need hay or too much roughage and it can upset the digestive balance.

 

[elusive]

I agree the first one is fine.
The second one should be ok, I wouldn’t worry about the hay & fibre but I’m not 100% sure about horsetail, I think it’s ok but not totally sure.

 

[Frida]

Thank you Maz and elusive

 

[elusive]

I was only looking at the ingredients but just looked again at the analysis & there isn’t a huge difference in fibre content between the two surprisingly.

 

[Maz]

I still wouldn't give anything with hay in it. It would be better to give actual hay (eg on a carrot cottage hay house). If they actually eat it. I think there are better things to give.

 

[Daisy]

I think the hemp sticks are ok. I'm not sure whether hamsters would be interested in them, but they should be safe.

 

[Maz]

It's quite herb based so I'm not sure if hamsters would like them either. There is only 4% hemp and you could possibly give a pinch of hemp seeds as a treat instead - they usually like those. Hay is quite high on the list of ingredients which is a bit like Oxbow and that's why I'm not keen. Peppermint may be a bit strong.

 

[Maz]

I have these hemp seeds. Pip loves them

Hemp seeds

Holland and Barrett sell them as well.