YES! strawberries are safe for your hamsters, but moderation is the key. There is a lot more to know while treating your hammy with this delicious fruit. So, let us discuss the things you should know before treating your hamster strawberries.
Who doesn’t love strawberries, they are the first fruit to ripen every season. Since the fruit is so famous, it is understandable to want to treat little furry pet some of it, but can hamsters eat strawberries? What amount of strawberries are safe for them? Can it in any way be harmful to them?
Benefits of feeding Strawberries
Strawberries are considered to be a very healthy fruit for hamsters when fed in moderation. Following is how this fruit benefits out a little furry friend:
Prevent Diseases: Studies have found that strawberries have the capability to prevent diseases like atherosclerosis (which causes fat in arteries). Furthermore, it also prevents oral cancer in hamsters.
Digestive System: Strawberries are rich-antioxidant fruit which makes them very healthy for our hamsters. Anti-oxidants are good for our little pet’s digestive system.
Bone Health: Potassium, Vitamin K and Magnesium are found in considerably good quantity in this fruit and all these minerals are great for strengthening the hamster’s bone.
Better Fur: Feeding strawberries can help your pet to grow more fur, omega 3 & 6, fatty acids in the fruit make the fur grow fast and healthy.
Eye Health: According to vets, this tasty treat helps in improving the eyesight of hamsters. This means your little pet can see you even better by eating strawberries.
Cautions to keep!
The above list of benefits might make you happy, but do know, strawberries can also be dangerous for our little hamsters.
It is filled with a lot of sugar, and every hamster parent knows what excess sugar in the body of hamsters can do. So, you have to be cautious while feeding them. The perfect quantity would be just a few little cubes, once or twice a week, never more than it.
Also, only feed them fresh fruit, rotten fruit can make your hammy seriously sick. Try to use organically grown fruits if possible, and wash the fruit properly before offering it to your pet.
Which breed of hamster can and cannot eat Strawberries?
Unfortunately, there are only a few breeds of hamsters that can enjoy the taste of strawberries, below is the list:
- Syrian Hamsters: This breed can enjoy this delicious fruit occasionally.
- Roborovski Hamsters: You can treat them to a very little portion of strawberries. Since they are very small, it is recommended to not feed them strawberries bigger than their paws, otherwise, it can cause serious health issues.
- Chinese hamsters: This breed of hamster is very much prone to diabetes, therefore it is not safe to feed them strawberries.
- Russian Campbell Dwarf Hamsters: The same criteria of Chinese hamsters apply to these dwarf hamsters too, you must not treat them much sugary fruit like this one.
- Winter White Dwarf Hamsters: Unfortunately, these little guys have diabetes problem, so you know you should not!
Can hamsters eat strawberries?
So, the answer is yes, hamsters can surely eat strawberries, it has numerous health benefits. But if overfed it can cause various health complications too.
Feed them strawberries in the right proportion along with a healthy diet and enjoy watching your hamsters getting healthier and happier day after day.
