Hamster food mixing and calculating guaranteed analysis
Mixing hamster food by myself? Calculating Guaranteed Analysis? This may all sound very daunting, but not to fear, we are here!
In our previous articles, we touched on the three key aspects of a good hamster diet, namely Nutrition, Quality, and Variety. We also introduced the concept of “Guaranteed Analysis”.
In this article, we will walk you through the basics of food mixing, as well as how to calculate the Guaranteed Analysis (GA) in hamster diets, in order to ensure that you are providing the best possible nutrition for your hamsters.
What is food mixing and why does it matter?
Food mixing is the idea of mixing different types of foods together to provide hamsters with adequate amounts of nutrition, with sufficient amounts of variety and quality.
Some pawrents regard food mixing as something unnecessary, often saying things like “Isn’t giving seed mix more than enough?”
However, there might be some inherent problems that come with only giving your hamsters one particular seed mix. Let’s take a closer look together.
Let us assume we have a hamster aged 6-18 months? What should the Guaranteed Analysis of proper diet look like? (link)
According to Pipsqueakery, it should consist of:
Protein: 17-18%, Fat: 6-7%, Fiber: 10-12%
Here is the GA of the Marukan Hamster Balance Mix Food – significantly below recommended amount.
Protein: 13%, Fat: 6%, Fiber: 9%
As you can see, the protein provided by this seed mix is significantly below the recommended amount, and the fiber levels are also inadequate. If your hamster is overweight, you should also feed it with a seed mix with lower levels of fat.
So let us assume again that we have a 6-18 month old hamster who is slightly too round.
What should we do to increase the percentage of protein and decrease the percentage of fat in our fluffball’s diet?
That’s right, we do some food mixing! In this case, we are aiming to introduce ingredients with high protein values and low fat values into the mix. Lab blocks are usually a good source of low-fat, high-protein nutrition!
The most popular lab blocks in Singapore are the Science Selective Hamster Food and the Mazuri Rat and Mouse Diet.
The Science Selective Hamster Food has a protein level of 19%, while the Mazuri Rat and Mouse Diet has 23%. These lab blocks are packed with protein, thereby increasing the overall protein percentage when added to your seed mix.
Not all food mixes are equal
We have used Marukan’s Hamster Balance Mix Food as an example to illustrate how certain seed mixes in Singapore have insufficient protein, fat, or fiber, and how these can still be “salvaged” by food mixing appropriately.
However, certain seed mixes are so inferior that even food mixing cannot make them suitable for hamsters. In order to guarantee the minimum GA for your hamster, we recommend sticking to one of these HSS approved, safe and healthy mixes: Bunny Nature Hamster Dream Expert (both the Syrian and Dwarf versions).
Nutrients as calculated by the GA are vital, but they are not the be-all and end-all of a hamster’s diet. The quality and variety of the food is also crucial, which we will take a closer look at in Part Three of this Hamster Diet Series, where we evaluate the various commercial seed mixes available in Singapore.
Food mixing ABCS
Food mixing is not rocket science; all you need are your target GA values, some basic math, and simple common sense. For example, the higher the proportion of protein-rich food in the mix, the higher the protein percentage will be. Conversely, the lower the proportion of food in the mix, the lower the fat percentage! Easy peasy.
Before we get to the how, let’s figure out the what. To get started, prepare the following items:
- A weighing scale
- A large bowl
- An airtight container
- Food mixes you want to mix
A weighing scale is absolutely necessary because all nutritional values are calculated based on weight, not volume. We recommend weighing scales used for baking or selling goods, as those for larger, heavier objects are often not accurate enough (i.e. no bathroom scales please).
Next, the bowl has to be large enough to hold the final mass of the seed mix you are preparing. If you are mixing three seed mixes in equal amounts of 250g each, you will need a bowl large enough to comfortably hold 750g of seed mix, because you will need space leftover for stirring.
Finally, pour your custom-made, well-stirred seed mix into airtight containers to ensure they stay fresh and nutritious as long as possible.
Now that you have conquered the What of food mixing, let’s take a crack at the How, very calmly and one step at a time!
Now, let’s assume we have a young hamster below 6 months old. Take a look at the numbers for Versele Laga Hamster Nature and compare it to the recommended GAs provided by Hamster Hideout and Pipsqueakery.
| Food Name | Weight of Food (g) | Food Proportion | Protein % | Fat % | Fiber % |
| Versele Laga Hamster Nature | 500 | 0.5 | 18 | 9 | 8 |
| Mazuri Rat & Mouse Diet | 500 | 0.5 | 23 | 6.5 | 4.5 |
| Total | 1000 | 1 | 20.5 | 7.75 | 6.25 |
| Hamster Hideout (<6 months) | 20-24 | 4-7 | 6-15 | ||
| Pipsqueakery (<6 months) | 19-20 | 7-8 | 8-10 |
As you can see, the protein percentage is too low, while the fat percentage is too high. This is why we add an equal amount (500g) of the high-protein, low-fat Mazuri Rat & Mouse Diet to bring up the overall protein percentage from 18% to 20.5%, and bring down the overall fat percentage from 9% to 7.75%
Note that this still leaves us with a fibre percentage is at 6.25%, which is barely scraping the minimum for the Hamster Hideout recommended GA and less than the minimum for Pipsqueakery’s. In this case, dry food alone is not sufficient to provide adequate nutrition for your hamster. That is why fresh foods, such as vegetables, are recommended as occasional treats to supplement a hamster’s daily fiber intake.
Guaranteed Analysis (GA) Calculators
To find the GAs of seed mixes and other hamster food, simply perform a quick Google search, or examine the labels and packaging. If you feel confident enough with juggling the numbers, you can create your own personalised excel sheet!
Now that you are familiar with Guaranteed Analysis, which helps you figure out what quantities of protein, fat and fibre your hamster needs, let’s move on to the next two aspects of hamster nutrition, namely, variety and quality.
The general rule when considering variety and quality is, the more the ingredients in two seed mixes are different from each other, the better.
Let’s go back to the two seed mixes mentioned above: Versele Laga Hamster Nature and Bunny Nature Hamster Dream Expert. Let’s compare the first five ingredients for each of them.
Versele Laga: Cereals, derivatives of vegetable origin, vegetables (green peas 12%), seeds (striped sunflower seeds 6%), vegetable protein extracts, fruit (apricot 1.5%, raisins 1%)
Bunny Nature: Plata millet, canary seed, pea flakes, mung beans (6,5%), barley, oats, quinoa seeds
As you can see, there is minimal overlap in the (first/main five) ingredients of these two seed mixes. This implies that they are suitable for mixing together, as it can increase the variety of ingredients that your hamster can consume.
What about quality? A quick look into a pack of Bunny Nature will also reveal an abundance of whole, unprocessed ingredients, such as mung beans. This adds significant quality to the seed mix.
Of course, you may be wondering, “Hmmm. Bunny Nature’s seed mix seems to be clearly superior to Versele Laga’s. Can’t I just use Bunny Nature’s mix on it’s own in this case?” The answer is, yes, dear parents! As we mentioned before, food mixing is about common sense, and here it makes plenty of sense to simply choose Bunny Nature’s mix as the primary source of nutrition for your hamsters, simply because it is superior to Versele Laga in terms of all three aspects of hamster nutrition: quantity, variety and quality.
Treats and nutrient boosters
In addition to the main seed mix, you can supplement your hamster’s diet with some nutritious and yummy treats! While treats are both healthy and beloved by hamsters, remember that these are supplements, and should only be given on an occasional basis to maintain a healthy, stable GA. Treats will skew the GA of your hamster’s diet, so if you do not want to affect the GA too much, give treats sparingly!
In order to carefully moderate the amount consumed, feed them to your hamster in a separate bowl, or offer them as hand-fed treats. We recommend giving the highly nutrient-packed treats on an occasional basis, about once every two days. Alternatively, you can include them when calculating the GA of your hamster’s diet.
Without further ado, here is a list of recommended hamster treats!
Flaxseed (also known as linseed)
Flaxseed is an amazing source of good fats such as Omega-3, fibre, and amino acids and is great for bringing a healthy sheen to your hamsters’ coats. You can find flaxseed in the organic sections of supermarkets like Fairprice, and we recommend feeding approximately 10 whole flaxseeds once every two days in addition to your standard seed mix.
Quinoa
Rolled oats
Pine nuts
Pine nuts are one of the most popular hamster treats. Packed with monosaturated fats, vitamins and minerals (Calcium, prosperous, potassium, zinc, manganese, protein, iron, niacin, Vit A, C,K, E, B6) and magnesium, these tiny nutrition bombs are irresistible for hamsters and great for their little hearts.
Shelled walnuts
If you want a treat and a chew toy in one handy package, shelled walnuts are the way to go! Not only are the nuts nutritious, but gnawing on the shells is a fun activity that also helps hamsters keep their teeth trim and healthy.
Debittered nutritional brewer’s yeast
Brewer’s yeast promotes healthy fur growth, boosts appetite, and reduces stress in hamsters, and debittered brewer’s yeast is the tastier version, so make sure to check the label twice before purchasing!
So many treats, so little money…
As hamster treats are usually in sold in large “value packs” big packs, we recommend going treat shopping with other parent friends to share the cost and “split” the treats. In fact, Hamster Society Singapore occasionally holds attractive sales for our very own custom-made treat packs. If you’d like to support our cause and spoil your hamster with some scrumptious treats, contact us for more information on our limited edition HSS treat packs!
TL;DR
- Food mixing provides a diet with adequate quantity, variety, and quality.
- Guaranteed Analysis shows us the protein, fat, and fiber level of a seed mix.
If you want more helpful advice on looking after your hamster, including tips on food, toys, accessories and accommodation, add a comment below to let us know!
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