Sprays?

[orangetails]

(Still no hamster, still researching!)

I was either a hopeless hamster mummy a few years ago, or a lot has changed in a short-ish time... I used to buy millet sprays, but sprays certainly weren't the norm like I am seeing today. I've only ever seen millet sprays sold (and for birds, generally, not hamsters!) What are the other sprays? Some look like grasses, oats etc! Are they things you can harvest yourself (from clean/suitable sources) or if not where do you get them from?

I've really loved nosing around t'internet and seeing all the hugely enriched cage set-ups! I used to think mine was pretty good (lots of hides, tunnels, substrate etc) but I certainly didn't have all this foraging stuff!

 

[RainbowBrite]

I find Etsy a good place for sprays. Small Sprouts co and Hamsters we Love sell really good quality sprays.

Just to let you know, if you buy some then pop them in the freezer for a week to ensure any bugs are killed.

Popular sprays include different types of millet, oat, flax, amaranth.

 

[elusive]

Flax sprays have always been a favoutie with my hams, the millet sprays you see for birds are fine for hamsters, you can get Rosewoods Pick & fly which is also sold for birds & contains a variety of sprays in one bag but the quality varies a bit sometimes. Otherwise buying online as Rainbow suggests is the best way to find them.

 

[Daisy]

I get these from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B002ST9A2K/

 

[orangetails]

I get these from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B002ST9A2K/

I never would have thought to look on Amazon (or Etsy!) for things like that!! Thanks!

 

[Member ID2]

Remember to check the bird section in pet shops. That's where i buy the pick n' fly and white, yellow and red millet.
Reptile shops can be a good place to find different substrates for digging boxes etc.

 

[Maz]

I think it's quite new really and quite popular at the moment with certain types of natural cage sets ups, plus it does encourage natural foraging. It wasn't a big thing when I last adopted a hamster about 15 months ago - or I'd just never heard of it! I've always had the odd millet spray in the cage but not the amount you see on some set ups now. I think it can work out really quite expensive. I have a few sprays but not a lot. My Syrian just tramples on them or ignores them lol. My robo is mildly interested but maybe I just feed them too well!

They can be quite useful for making a cage feel less exposed in a corner or at a side eg as well. I don't think there is a 100% right way and you can have mix of cage styles and enrichment. What works for you and what works for the hamster. Some people are allergic to sprays so use other types of enrichment.

 

[orangetails]

I think it's quite new really and quite popular at the moment with certain types of natural cage sets ups, plus it does encourage natural foraging. It wasn't a big thing when I last adopted a hamster about 15 months ago - or I'd just never heard of it! I've always had the odd millet spray in the cage but not the amount you see on some set ups now. I think it can work out really quite expensive. I have a few sprays but not a lot. My Syrian just tramples on them or ignores them lol. My robo is mildly interested but maybe I just feed them too well!

They can be quite useful for making a cage feel less exposed in a corner or at a side eg as well. I don't think there is a 100% right way and you can have mix of cage styles and enrichment. What works for you and what works for the hamster. Some people are allergic to sprays so use other types of enrichment.

This makes me feel better, it was a few years back I last had a hamster and I definitely don't remember seeing anything like that then! But I have always been pretty diligent in my pet care so I feel like a whole thing like this wouldn't have just passed me by...

I like the idea of them, especially if they have other purposes such as a screening! I keep ponies too, so nothing hamster-related seems particularly expensive after the cage!

I've been having a lovely time nosing around on Etsy and planning all the things I will get for the hamster I don't have..!

 

[Maz]

I know that feeling .

 

[Zara]

I would never have known about feeding sprays prior to joining the hamster group. Our Syrian enjoys the millet sprays and flax in particular. I only pop 2 flax stems in weekly as I think he‘d devour or hoard the lot if I placed more in at once. Following advice on here, I tried these from Etsy they are fab! from Hamsters We Love

 

[Member ID2]

I find that my dwarfs and Robos are more interested in sprays than my Syrians. Depends on the individual hamster though. Even if they don't eat or harvest them they look nice and provide a shelter or screen.

 

[Veer]

when you put a lot of sprays in the enclosure, don't you unbalance their main food?

 

[elusive]

You would if you put too many in at once & they ate all of it but they mostly just nibble a bit at a time which is fine, maybe with the exception o flax sprays which mine would go a bit mad over!

 

[Maz]

when you put a lot of sprays in the enclosure, don't you unbalance their main food?

That's a good question. It isn't an issue with mine as they mostly ignore their sprays lol! I don't think it does unbalance their diet as they are foraging rather than eating mainly. They will pouch and hoard it mostly. Just as they do with their main hamster mix. They do most of their eating from their hoard. For example I often give a pinch of flax seeds as an extra supplement, as well as hamster mix, their regular diet and a couple of other treats daily. They still eat their hamster mix. A walnut for example, is seen as a prize possession with my syrian but he doesn't eat it - he rushes off and puts it in a special place. He may nibble on it occasionally but half the time I find them uneaten. They are just hardwired to forage and hoard in case there is ever a shortage of food.

 

[RainbowBrite]

For a hamster that will eat their sprays quickly, people usually just limit them to a few a month.