Can Hamsters Eat Avocado

These are considered a super food since they contain so many healthy nutrients for us but can hamsters eat avocado? Their organism is quite different and thus this is a legitimate question, especially if you know that it is toxic for some of the other animals. They are used as appetizers such as guacamole, in sandwiches and also in more complex dishes such as pastas or burritos and the great thing about them is that even if they are so fat they are still really healthy.

Nutritional Benefits

For humans they help with our brain, skin and nervous system but this isn’t the same with hamsters. They do not need to eat fresh fruits and vegetables to maintain a good health even though some are recommended from time to time to diversify their diet.

Too many fruits can lead to an upset stomach with diarrhea or vomiting for your pet so always keep them in check and avocados come with some other problems as well. They are acidic and very high in calories and fat so they will prove to be too much for a small hamster.

They contain calcium, salt and phosphorus which are also something you want to keep your hamster away from and they also have a bit of sugar, meaning that it is better to avoid offering them to your pet. The risk of gaining too much weight should not be ignored because it will also mean that the pet is more prone to have health problems such as diabetes or heart trouble. Chronic fatigue is also a symptom of obesity and depression as well so an overall shorter lifespan.

In case you have an overweight hamster, offering fruits will certainly not help, especially one that is as filled with calories as the avocado (160 kcal per 100 grams).

Sticky Situation

One other thing that is worth mentioning is that the texture of the avocados can cause problems for the hamster’s teeth. The sticky avocado can get stuck in their cheek pouch and this means that they will decay there, leading to abscesses. If you notice that the hamster’s head is swollen or if they drool excessively then these are clear signs that you are dealing with an impacted cheek pouch.

To dislodge the impaction you can try to gently massage the region or even better would be to wash out the cheek pouches with a saline solution along with an eye dropper. Obviously reverting to sharp tools is a very bad idea since you can do more harm than good and if you cannot do this alone it is always better to have a veterinarian check them out. It is also important to note that this condition can become very dangerous if left untreated so do not ignore this problem.

Short Answer:

They aren’t toxic for hamsters but they also don’t provide the nutritional elements that we gain from them. Since they contain so much fat the pet will gain too much weight so if you want to add some healthy treats to their menu there are better options out there such as cabbage, broccoli, carrots or cucumbers.