Can Hamsters Eat Cheerios? (Recommended or Not?)

Are you fully aware of everything your hamster can eat? Well, if you are not, chances are you are not the best person to take care of your pet hamster. One of the most commonly asked questions by hamster pet owners is

Can Hamsters Eat Cheerios? 

The simple answer to this is yes, but there is more to hamsters eating cheerios which you must know. Nobody wants to wake up to the horrific sight of their cute pet hamster sick or dead because of what you fed them. That is the last sight I would want you to see. 

Therefore, you must be mindful of everything that is a part of your hamster’s diet. Since hamsters fall under omnivores, you can feed them literally anything.

However, you must be careful when it comes to processed foods. Cheerios are one example of processed food which is you must feed them as a treat rather than a meal.

What Are Cheerios & Are They Safe For Hamsters?

Cheerios are a popular brand of cereals known for their attractive shapes and addictive taste. Both kids and adults enjoy cheerios as their regular morning meals. Similarly, cheerios are also safe for your hamsters but only in small amounts. 

But you have to be extremely careful about the type of cheerios you offer your hamster. Some cheerios come with frostings and flavors, which must be kept away from hamsters at all costs.

Instead, stick to the original cheerios, which contain no additional ingredients. This is because flavored cheerios contain high sugar contents, which makes them unsafe and unhealthy for the hamsters. 

How Much Cheerios Should Hamster Eat?

I have often been asked, “can hamsters eat the same amount of cheerios as humans?” The simple answer to this is no, and here is why. 

Cheerios are high in salt and sugar content. Both of these ingredients in excess are harmful to humans as well as hamsters. However, since hamsters are much smaller in size with smaller digestive and excretion systems, they cannot possibly process the same amount of cheerios as humans. 

If you do end up feeding them a huge amount of cheerios, get ready to deal with a sick pet with a high risk of death. I know it’s difficult to hear, but I have to tell you everything for your and the hamster’s sake.

As a result, offer cheerios to your hamsters as treats rather than meals and completely avoid the flavored ones.

Hamsters do not have the enzymes, and their excretions systems are not designed to process the preservatives and food colorings that are found in flavored cheerios. 

One or two cheerios at max are more than enough for your hamster that too in a week. Make sure it’s the original cheerios with no flavoring and that you do not offer them again and again in the same week. 

What are the Health Benefits of Cheerios for Hamsters?

Cheerios contain vitamins and minerals such as Vitamin A, C, D, B6, fiber, magnesium, sodium, and potassium. Humans tend to eat large meals of cheerios because all these minerals and vitamins are essential ingredients for our bodies to stay healthy. 

However, the only benefit of these essential ingredients to hamsters is that they may help improve their digestive system in the long run.

As a result, it is safe to say that cheerios don’t really have any nutritional benefit for the hamsters. So why should you feed cheerios to your hamster?

Can Hamsters Eat Cheerios? I would reiterate that cheerios are only fed to those hamsters who like them as treats. And since there are no nutritional benefits, only minute quantities must be fed for their own health.

What are the Health Risks of Cheerios for Hamsters?

Although Hamsters Can Eat Cheerios but still it has a few risks that cannot be neglected. While cheerios have zero nutritional benefits for hamsters, some serious health risks are attached to them.

Cheerios contain high amounts of salt, sugar, and cholesterol. Moreover, flavored cheerios such as chocolate can even threaten a hamster’s life. 

High sugar content in cheerios can lead to diabetes and obesity, which in turn lead to a myriad of other diseases. Similarly, high amounts of cholesterol can directly affect body organs such as the heart, leading to heart failure. 

Additionally, excess amounts of sodium are as threatening as cholesterol and sugar. It can damage organs by raising blood pressure and can eventually lead to organ failure.

High sugar content also negatively impacts the teeth since sugar leads to tooth decay.

As a result, it will become difficult for your little pet to consume other nutritional foods to stay healthy. Not to mention the horrifying toothaches that come with it. 

All the ingredients in cheerios that pose health risks to hamsters pose a greater threat to dwarf hamsters. As a result, it is not worth the stress and risk to try and see if your dwarf hamster can take one or two cheerios a week. I would strongly recommend against it. 

Most people argue that nuts are, in fact, beneficial to a hamster’s health, and so this cheerio variant should be fine. However, that is not the case because the honey nut cheerios don’t actually have nuts in them. 

While it is true that the initially introduced honey-nut cheerios in 1971 did have nuts in them. Nonetheless, the brand removed these nuts from the honey-nut variant in 2000 for unknown reasons, and ever since then, it has been like this. 

Moreover, most people are also unaware of the fact that some things that we regard as healthy nuts are not actually nuts. For example, cashew nuts are seeds, and peanuts are legumes. 

Peanuts may be nutritious and healthy, but they also contain dangerous aflatoxins, so keep them away from your little furry friends.

So, to your question, “can hamsters eat honey-nut cheerios?” My answer would be straight up no. Stick to the original cheerios with no additives or flavors in moderate amounts, and you should be good to go. 

While the term multigrain is attractive and seems like it must be something healthy, don’t let it deceive you. While hamsters can eat multigrain cheerios, it does not mean that you should feed them. 

Multigrain cheerios do not contain balanced nutritional ingredients for your hamsters. The high salt and sugar contents are harmful to your pet hamster.

In fact, they are worse than plain cheerios because of the differences in ingredients values. 

As a result, just because something is good for the human body does not mean it must be equally good for the hamsters.

This variant of cheerios is as bad as any other flavored variant of cheerios. Therefore, refrain from feeding your little friend multigrain cheerios. 

Cheerios variants with additives and flavors are worse for the health of hamsters and are also costly. Therefore, it is always wiser to stick to the plain variant of cheerios because they don’t affect the health as much and cost less as well. 

Cheerio Nutrition Information

Since hamsters must only be fed the original variant of cheerios, I’ll only be sharing the nutritional information for the original formula. 

Manufacturers claim that the base ingredients in original cheerios include: 

At first glance, all ingredients seem safe for both humans and hamsters. There is nothing wrong with eating sugar, salts, oats, and corn starch.

However, the problem arises when these ingredients exceed the daily requirements for hamsters. As a result, feeding your hamster cheerios regularly isn’t a good idea because it will only lead to an excess of all the ingredients. 

Ten Foods You Must Not Give Your Hamster

Beware! Onions and chocolates are no less than poison for hamsters. In most cases, eating either of the two can potentially lead to death in hamsters.

Similarly, sugary and junk foods only lead to sickness and disaster in your life and as well as hamsters. 

Best healthy food for hamsters?

Hamsters can eat a wide range of good items. It is only the treats that are a problem. However, if you limit the treats to just 10% of their diet, then it’s okay!

Just make sure you only offer them healthy and whole treats. Avoid junk food at all costs, and in case you do feed them junk, keep it at the barest minimum. 

The best treats for hamsters include fresh vegetables and whole grains. Fruits are also fine but keep them in moderation because some fruits have really high sugar content. 

Yogurt is also healthy for hamsters but not store-bought ones. Make sure it is homemade fresh yogurt because it only has natural ingredients and no added flavors or additives. 

Here is a comprehensive list of all the healthy treats and foods hamsters can eat: 

Hamsters are one of the cutest pets to own. They aren’t generally high-maintenance pets, but you do have to be extra careful when it comes to their diets. I mean, that is true for every pet you own.

As a result, if you are tempted to feed cheerios to your hamsters, make sure they are original and in minute quantities over the week.