Does anyone feed milk thistle seeds? Nibbles loves them. My vet told me to feed them as a treat, of course not daily. They are excellent for the liver and full of vitamins and nutrients. As Nibbles is picky I was happy to see that he loved these seeds. I take them myself, so I already had them at home. I also checked on dried Butterfly pea flowers. Apparently they are also suitable for hamsters and healthy. I drink the tea a few times a week. I have not tried these yet, as I think it might be too much. He was only used to standard hamster food. I am a bit confused that he will not eat meal worms and would appreciate if someone could advise me an alternative. I read about freeze dried chicken, should I try this?
Supplements & supplementary foods
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They are good for hamsters yes 
They are often included in some of the mixes with the most variety as part of their daily diet. I haven't heard of Butterfly pea flowers to be honest - is it just a flower from a variety of pea? Some hamsters don't like mealworms. If it's for topping up protein then personally I prefer fresh human food - a bit of chopped hard boiled egg goes down well (or scrambled egg without milk), and the occasional half a walnut goes down a storm. Nuts are good for protein as well, but not too often. Monkey nuts are popular. You start a little hole at one end the shell and the hamster cracks it open to get the peanuts.
There has been a lot of debate about freeze dried chicken on here. Because most of it is raw, and we thought it was unsafe, but one member recently did some great research on two particular brands and found that although they were raw, they were pasteurised so safe. It's on this thread
www.thehamsterforum.com
They are often included in some of the mixes with the most variety as part of their daily diet. I haven't heard of Butterfly pea flowers to be honest - is it just a flower from a variety of pea? Some hamsters don't like mealworms. If it's for topping up protein then personally I prefer fresh human food - a bit of chopped hard boiled egg goes down well (or scrambled egg without milk), and the occasional half a walnut goes down a storm. Nuts are good for protein as well, but not too often. Monkey nuts are popular. You start a little hole at one end the shell and the hamster cracks it open to get the peanuts.There has been a lot of debate about freeze dried chicken on here. Because most of it is raw, and we thought it was unsafe, but one member recently did some great research on two particular brands and found that although they were raw, they were pasteurised so safe. It's on this thread
Safe freeze-dried chicken options
Hello everyone! I have a 3 month old female Syrian hamster, named Sybil, that doesn't eat dried insects. I originally planned to give her the Getzoo Goldhamster Basic Menu and supplement it with insect protein + some Science Selective, since I've been pretty concent with this in the past, but I...
www.thehamsterforum.com
They are good for hamsters yes
There has been a lot of debate about freeze dried chicken on here. Because most of it is raw, and we thought it was unsafe, but one member recently did some great research on two particular brands and found that although they were raw, they were pasteurised so safe. It's on this thread
I looked to see if hamsters can have butterfly pea flowers, they look similar to dried corn flowers, this is what I found:They are good for hamsters yes
There has been a lot of debate about freeze dried chicken on here. Because most of it is raw, and we thought it was unsafe, but one member recently did some great research on two particular brands and found that although they were raw, they were pasteurised so safe. It's on this thread
Safe freeze-dried chicken options
Hello everyone! I have a 3 month old female Syrian hamster, named Sybil, that doesn't eat dried insects. I originally planned to give her the Getzoo Goldhamster Basic Menu and supplement it with insect protein + some Science Selective, since I've been pretty concent with this in the past, but I...
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I Germany the mix I ordern at the seed farm gives you various options of dried insects. But they deliver the seeds and the insects in separate bags. They say it’s better to store them separately. I put the worms in his food bowl and with seeds to forage. He picks them up, sniffs them pulls a funny face and throws them away. He clearly thinks they are disgusting. I will try again soon.
Mind you they do stinkWell that’s pretty decisive!there are definitely things that Mr Maggie absolutely will not touch in his mix so if say it’s definitely possible that your wee guy just simply does not like mealworms!
I don’t blame him. But he did eat a tiny bit of strawberry yesterday and he loves his food and especially the milk thistle seeds
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I also think some mealworms stink! And I think that's one of the fun quirks of a barred cage - when hamsters throw things out through the bars . They can toss out food items they don't like and have been known to hurl poops out through the bars as well (sometimes to get attention I think). I think it's so funny! Some mealworms seem to smell worse than others. I just stopped buying them. The Bunny Dream mix has them in but theirs don't smell bad. It's probably the smell he doesn't like. Mind you none of my syrians have liked dried bugs in mixes - and turn their noses up or look horrified. But they all like scrambled egg! Which German mix are you using? I get this one from Mixerama. The protein level is not bad at 16.5%, so only needs supplementing a bit and then no supplementation needed once they're over a year old. It used to cost me a fortune in shipping ordering it from Germany, but thanks to @Yorkie I now know I can get it in the Uk from Hopes Healthy Treats. It doesn't look as nice in real life as it does on the picture! Everything looks more brown in real life. But the hamsters love it - especially the dried courgettes it seems. And the mealworms don't smell bad either that I've noticed. I started getting it because their foods are pressure treated to kill bug eggs and moth eggs (having had moth outbreaks twice before), but I still freeze it as well for belt and braces! It also contains milk thistle seeds. It does contain red clover, so if it was for a female syrian I would get their Goldhamster base mix instead and add your own protein (but Mr Maggie is a boy!).
www.mixerama.de
. They can toss out food items they don't like and have been known to hurl poops out through the bars as well (sometimes to get attention I think). I think it's so funny! Some mealworms seem to smell worse than others. I just stopped buying them. The Bunny Dream mix has them in but theirs don't smell bad. It's probably the smell he doesn't like. Mind you none of my syrians have liked dried bugs in mixes - and turn their noses up or look horrified. But they all like scrambled egg! Which German mix are you using? I get this one from Mixerama. The protein level is not bad at 16.5%, so only needs supplementing a bit and then no supplementation needed once they're over a year old. It used to cost me a fortune in shipping ordering it from Germany, but thanks to @Yorkie I now know I can get it in the Uk from Hopes Healthy Treats. It doesn't look as nice in real life as it does on the picture! Everything looks more brown in real life. But the hamsters love it - especially the dried courgettes it seems. And the mealworms don't smell bad either that I've noticed. I started getting it because their foods are pressure treated to kill bug eggs and moth eggs (having had moth outbreaks twice before), but I still freeze it as well for belt and braces! It also contains milk thistle seeds. It does contain red clover, so if it was for a female syrian I would get their Goldhamster base mix instead and add your own protein (but Mr Maggie is a boy!).
Mittelhamster Gourmet Menü | Futtermischung für Hamster
Futter orientiert sich an den Ansprüchen des Syrischen Goldhamsters.
www.mixerama.de
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I bought the food from a German seed company, it’s a small company but he loves the mix. It’s called the Futterkrämerri. But it is expensive. They also have flower and vegetable mixes. I bought a varietyI also think some mealworms stink! And I think that's one of the fun quirks of a barred cage - when hamsters throw things out through the bars
Mittelhamster Gourmet Menü | Futtermischung für Hamster
Futter orientiert sich an den Ansprüchen des Syrischen Goldhamsters.
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I've heard of them I think The main mix needs to contain everything needed, but the flower mix could be good for forage. Which one do you have? I looked at the Original Goldhamster menu and it does seem to contain a lot of lentils.
The main mix needs to contain everything needed, but the flower mix could be good for forage. Which one do you have? I looked at the Original Goldhamster menu and it does seem to contain a lot of lentils.Oh thank you, yes that’s the one i ordered, so he’s getting a bit of protein thenI've heard of them I think
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The lentils do give protein but tbh I'm always a bit wary of a mix that relies on lentils for protein. They are not digested well by hamsters, and it's thought can prevent the absorption of other nutrients. If the hamster actually eats them. If he doesn't eat them you could supplement the protein with something else. Some people give 2 or 3 science selective pellets daily as well to ensure nutrition and protein levels with non commercial mixes. Personally I won't use a mix with lentils but others do and don't seem to have had issues. As long as they're getting nutrients and protein elsewhere.