Emma Jones
Not everything that tastes good or is good for us is also healthy for the hamster. Read here which toxic foods and plants your hamster should not eat and how to react correctly in the event of poisoning.
Many are aware that chemicals, insecticides, glue, paint, medicines, and cigarettes are poison for a hamster. But also many foods and plants are incompatible or even poisonous for hamsters. We have put together a list of all the foods and plants that are unhealthy and toxic for hamsters.
Processed foods: Toxic to your hamster
In general, hamsters should not eat anything sweet, salty, or spicy. Processed foods, which are often a treat for humans, are also difficult for hamsters to digest and will harm your pet. This includes:
- Chips (salt causes kidney damage; spices also harm the hamster)
- Drops (contain too much sugar)
- Fruit yogurt and quark (contain too much sugar)
- Gummy bears (glue the cheek pouches together)
- Cookies (contain too much sugar)
- Salted nuts (salt causes kidney damage)
- Pretzel sticks (salt causes kidney damage)
- Chocolate (glues the cheek pouches together)
- Sweets (glue the cheek pouches together)
Animal products and products such as egg yolk or pork also have no place on a hamster’s menu. Meat contains too much fat, egg yolk too much cholesterol.
Poisonous fresh food for hamsters
A balanced diet for a hamster includes fresh fruit and vegetables. However, there are restrictions here as well, since many fruits contain acid, for example, which damages the hamster stomach.
Poisonous fruit for hamsters
Hamsters cannot tolerate the following fruits:
- Pineapple (causes hyperacidity)
- Apricot (causes hyperacidity)
- Honeydew melon (contains too much sugar)
- Currants (cause hyperacidity)
- Cherry (causes hyperacidity)
- Kiwi (causes hyperacidity)
- Nectarine (causes hyperacidity)
- Peach (causes hyperacidity)
- Plum (causes hyperacidity)
- Stone fruit (causes acidosis)
- Stone fruit kernels (contain hydrogen cyanide; poisonous)
- citrus fruits (contain too much fruit acid)
Poisonous fruit for hamsters
When it comes to vegetables, you should not feed your hamster the following types:
- lettuce (too heavy)
- Beans (difficult to digest; poisonous)
- Bean pods and seeds (toxic)
- Iceberg lettuce (overloaded)
- lamb’s lettuce (too heavily loaded)
- Potatoes raw (difficult to digest; poisonous)
- Garlic (causes gas; poisonous)
- Kohlrabi (causes gas)
- Types of cabbage (cause bloating)
- Leeks (causes gas)
- Swiss chard (difficult to digest)
- carrot leaves (too heavily loaded)
- Rhubarb (difficult to digest)
- Beetroot (difficult to digest)
- Lettuce (too heavily loaded)
- Spinach (difficult to digest)
- tomato leaves
- Savoy cabbage (causes gas)
- Onion (causes gas; poisonous)
Dangerous herbs for hamsters
When it comes to herbs, you must also be aware that some species are not compatible with hamsters.
This includes:
- Bear Claw (poisonous)
- Holly berries (poisonous)
- beechnuts (poisonous)
- acorns (poisonous)
- Sorrel (difficult to digest)
- Chives (causes gas)
- deadly nightshade (poisonous)
Poisonous plants & gnawing material
Basically, it is important to provide your hamster with enough gnawing material to ensure tooth abrasion. But the gnawing animals like to nibble on other plants that are in your apartment. However, this can be dangerous as some woods contain toxins that can seriously harm your hamster.
Make sure that the following plants in your household are out of reach for the hamster, or do not offer the branches as gnawing material:
- Bow Hemp (poisonous)
- variegated root (poisonous)
- Dieffenbachia (poisonous)
- ivy (poisonous)
- yew (poisonous)
- oak + acorns (contain prussic acid)
- Feinblatt (poisonous)
- elephant ear (poisonous)
- flamingo flower (poisonous)
- Spotted Hemlock (Poisonous)
- laburnum (poisonous)
- Ranunculaceae (poisonous)
- Autumn crocus (poisonous)
- Hydrangea (poisonous)
- cherry tree (poisonous)
- butt thread (poisonous)
- Lily of the valley (poisonous)
- Conifers (contain resins or incompatible oils)
- Yucca (poisonous)
- plum tree (poisonous)
- dandelion (poisonous)
- oleander (poisonous)
- Rhododendron (poisonous)
- horse chestnut + chestnuts (contain hydrogen cyanide)
- Narrow-leaved mountain laurel (poisonous)
- snowdrop (poisonous)
- Black nightshade (poisonous)
- Deadly Nightshade (poisonous)
- holly (poisonous)
- Tulip (poisonous)
- poinsettia (poisonous)
- Spurge family (poisonous)
- Room Aralia (poisonous)
- Room calla (poisonous)