Metal and deficiency?

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PuddingBear

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Good evening,
How would one know if their hammy had a mineral deficiency?
We had the hamster pudding who was eating at the metal bars so we changes enclosure we have noticed in the last few days he has found the metal structure at the sides and is repeatedly licking it like mad?!

Could this be a deficiency? Do the salk blocks work? Are they ok for them?

Thanks
 
Salt blocks aren't necessary if your hammy is getting a good hamster food, Muesli or pellets. It could be that he is licking as the metal is too smooth to chew if it is a large piece of metal. He is very restless, but understanding the cause is difficult. It could be a hormonal surge, "Spring fever". Does he have lots of deep bedding? Tunnelling often helps channel restlessness. He will probably mellow as he matures and become less restless.
 
He has only been in the new enclosure for almost a week so potentially it could be this. But he was super calm when he first went in. He has really deep bedding (its a bucastate) and he has lots of burrows too he has made. Will keep an eye out on him.

Ooh what is spring fever? We have noticed he has these mad episodes which can last about a week and then he is calm again?
 
It won’t be a deficiency 😊. He might just be missing his old habit! Hamsters also do some odd things sometimes - they are funny little things. He might just be testing it out to see what it is by licking it.

You don’t need any supplements - a good hamster mix contains all the vitamins and minerals they need. A commercial mix contains fortified vitamins and minerals although some need the protein supplementing. What mix is Pudding having?

Spring fever is just an expression really - like lambs frolic in spring and everything starts growing and people can get carried away with the whole new life in spring thing. I don’t think it’s spring fever as it’s not spring yet 😊. But I know what Socks Mum means - he is maybe just having one of those little crazy times.
 
i think you are completely right! He has some crazy moments some days, particularly in the evenings and i think he is sussing his new abode out still too.

He has a crazy critten dwarf mix and some nuggets and we add some of his other favourite seeds into it and he has fresh veg most days which is his favourite

Mealworms too for protein supplemented by the occasional piece of chicken
 
The Crazy Critter dwarf mix is a new one on me :-) Is it this one linked below? If so it has a good range of ingredients, but I suspect not enough protein - it looks like it's relying on lentils for the protein mainly (although there are black larvae flies as well). Lentils aren't the best things for hamsters and sometimes they won't eat them so then they wouldn't be getting enough protein. So it could well be that he's lacking protein in his diet. For the first year they need at least 18 to 20% protein. The protein level quoted is ok but that will largely be from the lentils I think.

Although if you're supplementing with mealworms and chicken as well then maybe his protein is ok. I would supplement the protein two or three times a week - maybe a bit of chopped hard boiled egg as well?

crazycrittertoys.com

Dwarf Blend - Dwarf Hamster Diet

A species-specific nutritionally complete dwarf hamster seed mix with 31 ingredients Formulated for adult/senior dwarf hamsters Feeding directions: 1 teaspoon daily (scatter fed) 250g bag This bag should last one dwarf hamster for approximately one and a half months. Guarantee Analysis...
crazycrittertoys.com crazycrittertoys.com
 
It can be a bit of both from a chopped boiled egg but I find the yolk can be a bit crumbly so it’s easier to just give the white sometimes 😊
 
Maz said:
It can be a bit of both from a chopped boiled egg but I find the yolk can be a bit crumbly so it’s easier to just give the white sometimes 😊
Click to expand...
PuddingBear said:
With the egg is it yolk and white? Thankyou
Click to expand...
Hi,
Egg white is all albumin, which is ok if protein is the only issue, but the yolk provides excellent source of choline and selenium, and a good source of riboflavin, vitamin D, and phosphorus.
 
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