Can hamsters eat avocado?
Avocado is a healthy and tasty fruit with a lot of nutrition and is single-seeded fruit that grows on trees and in warm climates. It is rich in fiber, potassium, and powerful antioxidants which are great for health. You can eat raw avocado by adding it to a salad or adding it to any recipe and pudding. Avocado has a high amount of monounsaturated fat which helps in reducing cholesterol, monounsaturated fat is a good and healthy fat that will not harm you and you can take it into your diet also. Avocado is a very healthy fruit for humans, but will it be equally healthy for a hamster? Can Hamsters Eat Avocado? Let us see whether we should feed avocado to our hamster or not.
Read also:- Can hamsters eat oats?
Is avocado safe for hamsters?
Yes, avocados are safe for hamsters, but in very small amounts because they contain many substances that are unhealthy for hamsters. You can feed hamsters some other healthy fruits and vegetables instead of avocado, which will be mentioned in the article below. The outer layer of avocado is very hard which is very difficult to chew and avocado contains a poison called persin which is very harmful to animals so always avoid it.
How should I give my hamster avocado?
In the beginning, you feed the hamster a small amount of avocado to know whether it has an allergy or problem with the avocado. You should not include avocado in the hamster’s regular diet, feed it only on treats or occasionally. Avocado contains a toxin called persin, which can cause vomiting, diarrhea, and constipation if consumed continuously. You will also get information about how to feed avocado to hamsters and which portion not to feed so that you can feed avocado to your lovely hamster properly.
Can hamsters eat avocado pits or skin?
Just like we usually peel off the skin before eating anything, repeat the same process when you feed avocado to a hamster. Try to keep the skin of avocado away from the hamster or else he will try to eat it because it contains persin which is very harmful to health. The avocado pit is not so poisonous, but it can get stuck in its throat, and chewing it can cause bleeding gums, so you should avoid it too. Even normal people do not eat the pit and skin of the avocado, so don’t feed your hamster that thing which he will not be able to digest properly.
How to safely feed avocado to hamsters?
These are some of the steps which you have to do before feeding avocado and feed avocado in very small quantity to the hamster, as hamster’s digestive system is unable to digest it, due to which it causes vomiting, diarrhea.
1- Wash the avocado first, then peel its skin and remove its pit, cut the flesh into small pieces.
2- You can also add avocado to salads or fruits, but do not sprinkle any spices in it.
3- How much avocado should be fed to a hamster, it depends on its breed, you can increase or decrease the amount according to its breed.
4-Avocado has many parts, of which you have to feed only the flesh, the rest of the skin, pit, and leaves are not included in its diet.
5- If you notice any change in your hamster’s behavior after eating an avocado, you should take him straight to the vet.
What should I do if my hamster eats avocado?
If your hamster has eaten avocado, don’t worry, first check how much avocado it has eaten so that you know how to treat it. If your hamster has eaten avocado in large quantities, then these are some of the symptoms that you may see on it such as swelling, vomiting, coughing, and abdominal pain. First of all, keep the avocado around the hamster clean so that he does not try to eat again, then you call the veterinary hospital and give all the information and ask him to come early so that the hamsters don’t get sick.
If you do not see all these symptoms, then don’t worry too much, it means that he has eaten a very small amount of avocado which he can easily digest. But you still keep an eye on him for some time so that if he has any problem then you can take him to the doctor immediately.
What can you feed a hamster instead of avocado?
Timothy hay– You can include this hay in the hamster’s diet because it does not harm him in any way. It helps in the digestion of food and strengthens teeth.
Vegetable – You can feed any green vegetables to the hamster such as spinach, carrot, and broccoli, etc. Always feed fresh vegetables to the hamster or it will not be able to digest it.
Fruits – You should not feed any citrus fruits to the hamster and if there are any fruits with seeds, then you should feed them only after removing the seeds.
The disadvantage of avocado-
Like all fruits have their advantages and disadvantages, in the same way, avocado also has some disadvantages. If your hamster continues to consume avocado, then you will see some symptoms that will affect its health.
– If the hamster will consume avocado continuously, then its weight will increase quickly due to which it will become obese because avocado contains a high amount of fat.
– Eating avocado can also cause allergies to your hamster, so you should first check if he is also allergic. In the beginning, you should feed a very small piece so that you can know whether it is allergic or not otherwise, you can gradually increase its quantity.
– Excessive consumption of avocado can cause stomach problems such as abdominal pain, diarrhea, or constipation. Therefore, do not include it in your regular diet.
– There can be a choking hazard as the hamster is so small that it is very difficult to digest anything. When you feed avocado to the hamster, cut it into small pieces so that it can chew it.
Conclusion
Can hamsters eat avocado? Now all your doubts will be cleared that hamsters can eat avocado but in very small quantities. Do not include avocado in the hamster’s regular diet and feed it once a week or month, otherwise, it can get stuck in its throat and cause vomiting or upset stomach. How to eat avocado is also given in the article, follow the same steps so that it does not have any problem. Apart from avocado, you have many options which you can feed to the hamster, such as fruits and vegetables. Always ask the vet before feeding anything so that he doesn’t have any problems after eating it and he can easily digest it.
