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Can Hamsters Eat Raspberries?

i raspberries image by Freeze Frame Photography from Fotolia.com

Although the bulk of a hamster's food intake should come in the form of hamster mix purchased from the store, fruits and vegetables are crucial for the species, too. Raspberries are just one example of totally safe and nutritious fruit choice for feeding your cute pet hamster.

Hamster Food

Nutritious hamster mix available at essentially all pet supply retailers is the dietary key to keeping your pet lively and healthy. Hamster mixes typically are blends of elements such as pellets, dried cereals, nuts, seeds, cracked corn and grains. Never allow your pet to eat foods labeled for other rodents, whether gerbils, guinea pigs or anything else. Hamster mix is nutritionally balanced to cater to the species' own dietary requirements.

Fruits

Apart from hamster mix, hamsters require fresh fruit several times a week, according to the ASPCA. Feed your pet tiny pieces of only those fresh fruits that are totally safe for hamsters -- apples, melons, mangoes, cherries, blackberries, bananas, strawberries, cranberries and cantaloupes. All of these fruits make suitable and healthy additions to any regular hamster dietary plan. About a teaspoon a day will do it.

Raspberries

Raspberries are a 100 percent harmless and healthy fresh fruit choice for your hamster pal. As with all other hamster-friendly fruits, make sure to exhaustively wash and rinse raspberries before you serve them to your cutie. Cut a raspberry into tiny, manageable bites. Allow your hamster only two or three small nibbles of the fruit. Moderation is vital.

Inappropriate Fruits

Though raspberries are fine, that isn't the case with all fruits in general. Never make assumptions regarding food safety. For example, make sure your pet never eats any fruits of the citrus family, including clementines, tangerines, oranges, lemons, limes and grapefruit. Since these fruits contain a lot of acid, they can actually trigger digestive woes in your hamster -- think diarrhea. Keep citrus out of your pet's life.

Safe and Unsafe Fresh Veggies

Fresh vegetables are important for any hamster diet. Suitable ones include carrots, lettuce, cucumbers, broccoli, celery and green beans. Just like with fruits, however, some vegetables are possibly hazardous to your animals. Garlic, onions and rhubarb are a few examples. Never feed these veggies to your hamster. Be sure to always receive your veterinarian's enthusiastic stamp of approval before bringing any new fresh fruit or veggie into your pet's life.