Can Hamsters Eat Goldfish?

Can hamsters eat goldfish? While munching on delicious cheesy goldfish crackers, the first thought that might have crossed your mind is whether it is safe to share these creamy crackers with your hamster fellow.

We offer much human food to treat our hammy, but can you also offer goldfish crackers? Or they meant only for human consumption.

Can hamsters eat goldfish? Well, the answer is a big NO! They cannot eat goldfish at any cost. However, you can enjoy your little friend with a tiny piece of goldfish crackers once in a while.

Still, keeping your pet away from the goldfish crackers is recommended. Want to know the reason? So keep reading the blog.

Are Goldfish Crackers Meant For Hamsters?

Your little hamster buddy should not eat goldfish crackers. The tiny cheddar cheese might appeal to you as its size is perfect for hamsters to hold with their delicate paws. But this cheesy treat is not meant for your pet. Here are the reasons:

• The high sodium content, seasonings, and other flavoring agents in goldfish crackers make them an inappropriate snack for your little hammy.
• The goldfish crackers are so tiny that your little pal can steal a mouthful of them while you are not watching, which might choke their throat.
• The cheesy crackers can be very sour and salty for your friend and cause them to be highly thirsty.

What’s Bad About Goldfish?

Can hamsters eat goldfish? No, they cannot eat it. You might think that cheddar goldfish crackers are the perfect treat for a cute little pal. But wait a while! Let’s look at the ingredients used to make a goldfish snack.

The chief ingredients include:

• Cheddar cheese
• Enriched wheat flour
• Vegetable oils
• Sodium

The goldfish cracker also contains 2% of the secondary ingredients: spices, paprika, onion powder, baking soda, sugar, celery, and monocalcium phosphate.

Now you can get an idea that this crunchy, crispy snack is manufactured exclusively for human consumption and not for little hammies.

The Risk Associated With Goldfish Crackers

Hamsters love goldfish crackers, but we cannot risk our little buddy’s health as the ingredients used to make goldfish are not healthy. Let’s figure out the risks associated with the ingredients of goldfish crackers.

High-Calorie Intake

One of the essential ingredients of the goldfish cracker is enriched wheat flour which is not whole wheat flour but processed with a variety of nutrients such as thiamin, niacin, folic acid, or riboflavin.

Highly refined grains give only simple carbohydrates, which is why enriched wheat flour, also called empty carbs, has no nutritional value.

Thus, eating goldfish crackers for your hamster will increase their calories without giving them essential nutrients. This can make hamsters overweight and diabetic.

Lactose Intolerance

Goldfish crackers also contain cheddar cheese as their chief component. Cheddar cheese is not harmful to hamsters when given appropriately.

But keep in mind that cheese is a dairy product and might cause digestive issues if your hamster is lactose intolerant.

Kidney Problems

Goldfish crackers are very salty, especially their pretzel flavor. One piece of goldfish cracker contributes approximately 4.5mg of salt.

It means if your hamster accidentally consumes too many of the crackers, it will lead to extreme dehydration, bladder issues, and even kidney failure.

Are Goldfish Crackers Toxic For Hamsters?

Can hamsters eat goldfish? surely not! Although many ingredients are not healthy to consume, a few are highly toxic to your little pal and might cause them to die even if taken in small quantities. Below are the harmful ingredients you must keep away from your little one.

Onion Powder

Humans use onions in everyday meals, but beware of feeding your little hamster buddy with onion in any form, either cooked, fried, powdered, or raw.

Goldfish crackers comprise 2% of onion powder. Feeding hamster snacks containing onion destroy their red blood cells, and in severe cases, it might lead to hemolytic anemia.

Some clinical manifestations of onion toxicity in hamsters include:

• Breathing problems
• Gastrointestinal upset
• Loss of appetite
• Dizziness
• Urinary problems, including kidney stones
• Excessive salivation

Goldfish is also available in the form of sweet chocolate flavor. Any form of chocolate, either dark or white, is potentially harmful to your furry friend and even causes their death.

Chocolate is toxic because of theobromine, a bitter alkaloid, and hamsters cannot digest it due to their tiny stomachs.

Summing Up

Can hamsters eat goldfish? The answer is no! You can feed them a tiny piece of goldfish cracker once in a while.

However, we do not recommend it because of its high sodium content, seasonings, and other toxic ingredients such as onion powder and chocolate.

Overfeeding hamsters accidentally will lead to severe physical and mental complications and death.