What Kind of Nuts Can Hamsters Eat?

Hamsters are among the most adorable animals on the planet. They can be your perfect pet choice while living in the U.S. Whether you reside in New York or Philadelphia, you can find Syrian hamsters at pet shops.

While keeping them as house pets can be fun, feeding hamsters an appropriate diet can be challenging. If you wonder what kind of nuts hamsters can eat, we have covered all the details to help you get started.

If you face difficulty feeding hamsters at home, there are many diet combinations you can try. However, hamsters like to feed on nuts.

You may want to try feeding them cashews, macadamias, pine nuts, Brazil nuts, and more. Let’s dive into the details for a better understanding.

Table of Contents

Best Nuts for Hamsters

Here is a list of some of the best nuts for hamsters with their details.

Brazil Nuts

Brazil nuts are South American breeds popular across the globe for their valuable health benefits. You can find them commercially available in the nearby supermarkets.

These nuts are nutrient-rich, with some of the most vital health benefits for humans and animals. You can feed Brazil nuts to your pet hamsters for their healthy growth.

Brazil nuts contain protein, selenium, copper, zinc, manganese, fiber, phosphorus, magnesium, thiamine, and Vitamin E. All these nutrients play a vital role in the healthy development of the body’s organs.

An added advantage of feeding Brazil nuts to hamsters is their antioxidant nature. Antioxidants ensure the healthy function of the body’s immune system.

To feed Brazil nuts to hamsters, you may want to cut the nuts in half due to their larger size. The large size of the nuts is due to the presence of saturated fats.

Read: Can Hamsters Have a Heart Attack?

Almonds

Almonds are the most common nuts worldwide. You can find them in different types depending on their breed. Almonds have many health benefits. You can restore the lost health of your hamsters by feeding them almonds.

Their small size and relatively soft texture make them suitable for hamsters. You can easily find them in nearby grocery stores and supermarkets.

Almonds are rich in nutrients that promote healthy organ function in the hamster’s body. They can reduce cholesterol levels, improve heart function, and boost immunity.

The rich presence of magnesium and vitamin E in almonds strengthens hamsters’ bones and maintains optimal blood sugar levels.

California is one of the largest almond-producing states in the U.S. You can find large varieties of almonds and other nuts in different cities of California.

Hazelnuts

Hamsters love hazelnuts for their perfect shape and size. They are among the best nuts for hamsters. Hazelnuts have multiple benefits, making them ideal for good health.

Like most nuts, hazelnuts are fatty nuts rich in nutrients. They are an ideal source of omega oils. When hamsters eat hazelnuts, the omega oils boost the hamster’s cognitive functions.

Hazelnuts contain valuable nutrients, including protein, fiber, magnesium, thiamin, vitamin E, copper, and manganese. They also act as antioxidants, promoting healthy immune and organ functions.

Like other nuts, you can find hazelnuts in nearby supermarkets and grocery stores. Since they are fatty nuts, you may want to feed your hamsters sparingly.

Cashew Nuts

Cashew nuts are globally famous for their taste and health benefits. They are rich in nutrients and promote healthy organ function in humans and animals alike.

Cashews originate from India and the Ivory Coast. They may be slightly more costly than other widely available nuts. You can find some of the best forms across California, U.S.

If you want to feed your pet hamsters healthy nuts, cashews can be an ideal fit into the equation. They contain essential fatty acids, antioxidants, potassium, oleic acid, and phenolic compounds.

One of the vital benefits of feeding cashews to hamsters is their ability to reduce bad cholesterol (LDL) and improve the hamster’s body’s good cholesterol (HDL).

Although they are rich in nutrients, you may want to feed them sparingly to avoid the negative effects.

Macadamia Nuts

Another healthy food for hamsters is macadamia nuts. These nuts originate from Australia and circulate worldwide due to their ever-increasing demand.

Macadamia nuts are an excellent source of vital nutrients for hamsters. They share similarities with Brazil nuts in terms of the saturated fats present in the nuts.

If you wonder about the nutrients in these nuts, you can find potassium, protein, fiber, sugars, vitamin C, B6, and magnesium. All the nutrients play a crucial role in the healthy growth of hamsters.

A downside of feeding macadamia nuts to dwarf hamsters is the increased risk of diabetes. You may try feeding the nuts to Syrian hamsters for optimal health.

Since hamsters struggle to absorb some nutrients like phosphorus and calcium, feeding macadamia nuts can make up for the deficiency of these nutrients.

Check: Can Hamsters Have a Heart Attack?

Pine Nuts

Pine nuts are widely popular in wildlife. Dwarf and Syrian hamsters love to feed on pine nuts. You can find them under different names in the market, including pinoli and pignoli. The Asian regions commonly know it as chilgoza.

Pine nuts are an excellent source of vital nutrients for hamsters. They contain optimal nutrients like potassium, protein, sodium, fiber, sugars, vitamin C, B6, and magnesium.

If you have pet dwarf hamsters, you may feed moderate amounts of pine nuts to ensure healthy body function. However, larger hamsters can consume excessive amounts without the risk of diabetes.

One of the added benefits of feeding pine nuts to hamsters is the presence of water content. Pine nuts provide optimal hydration to hamsters, promoting healthy organ function.

Peanuts

Peanuts are equally popular among humans and hamsters. You can find different breeds of peanuts across the globe. In the U.S., peanuts grow on a larger scale in Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Texas, and Virginia.

Also known as groundnuts, peanuts are smaller than most nuts of the same category. Their size makes them perfect for hamsters to eat comfortably.

Peanuts are a rich source of nutrients like potassium, sodium, fiber, protein, vitamin C, vitamin B6, iron, and magnesium. Moderate consumption can boost the healthy function of the body.

Despite its long list of benefits, you may want to feed peanuts to your hamsters with precaution. Salted forms can increase the sodium content in the hamster’s body, increasing the risk of poor kidney health.

To save your hamsters from health problems, you must feed them plain peanuts with no oil and salt applied externally. When fed in moderation, peanuts can improve heart function and boost immunity in hamsters.

Click here: Can Hamsters Get Hurt from Falling?

Pistachios

Pistachios are widely popular in different parts of the world. People consume pistachios in different forms, including desserts, chocolates, and savory foods.

Originating from Central Asia, pistachios are a valuable member of the cashew family. You can feed them to hamsters for their healthy growth and cognitive function.

Since pistachios have a hard shell covering them, you may want to remove them before feeding nuts to your pet hamsters. The hard shell can lead to choking if left on.

You can find pistachios readily available at nearby stores and supermarkets. You may also find salted deshelled forms in the market. However, they may not suit your hamster’s diet plan.

Feeding pistachios to hamsters include healthy cognitive function, optimal blood pressure, healthy joints and bones, improved digestion, and proactiveness.

Walnuts

Walnuts are no less than a treat for hamsters. They like to play with the hard walnut shell until it breaks and reveals the real nut underneath.

The most common forms include the Persian and English walnuts. You can find them readily available at your nearby grocery stores and supermarkets.

Walnuts are a rich source of nutrients. They provide several benefits to hamsters if fed in moderation. Not many may know, but walnuts are among the few nuts which contain all the nutrients needed for the healthy growth of humans and animals.

Hamsters can enrich themselves with protein, fiber, magnesium, phosphorus, vitamin A, vitamin B1, C, E, and K. Moreover, walnuts contain iron, potassium, sodium, and sugars to promote healthy organ function in hamsters.

The vitamins and nutrients in walnuts strengthen the hamster’s skeleton, boost healthy heart function, boost immunity, and regulate optimal blood sugar levels.

Can Hamsters Eat Shelled Nuts?

Since nuts are a delightful treat for most hamsters, many ask whether the tiny adorable hamsters can have shelled nuts. Typically, we remove the shells before eating nuts in any form.

However, hamsters can have nuts with shells. They like to play with the hard covering until it breaks. In some cases, dwarf hamsters may not be able to consume hard-shell nuts.

The shell can get stuck in their throat, causing them to choke. A good rule of thumb is to feed dwarf hamsters with deshelled nuts. The larger ones can take up the challenge of breaking the shell before eating the nut inside.

The Takeaway

If you wonder which nuts hamsters can eat, the information above could help you develop a nut-rich diet plan for your pet hamsters.

You may start with moderate and soft forms of nuts in the initial stages. Once they get used to it, you can start feeding the rigid forms. To find a diverse variety of nuts, you may visit some of the shops in the cities of California, U.S.