Every hamster owner knows how fragile their tiny furry friends are. These adorable creatures require special care, especially when it comes to their diet. Considering their little sized bodies, owners must be very careful and monitor what goes into their pets’ stomach.
Hamsters can’t just eat anything that comes in their sight. Important diet considerations must be taken into account when you feed them. Hamster owners often wonder what foods they can or cannot eat. One of these foods is olives. Are you wondering if you should let your pet hamster snack on some juicy black olives? Keep reading to find out and make informed decisions regarding your beloved pets’ health.
Olive Nutritional Information
Before we answer the question with a simple yes or no, it is important to dive into the facts first. What are the nutritional elements present in an olive, and how will they affect your hamster?
Nutritional Value per 100g
Energy 609 kJ (146 kcal)
Carbohydrates 3.84 g
Sugars 0.54 g
Dietary fiber 3.3 g
Fat 15.32 g
Saturated 2.029 g
Monounsaturated 11.314 g
Polyunsaturated 1.307 g
Protein 1.03 g
Vitamins
Vitamin A equiv.
beta-carotene
lutein zeaxanthin
(3%) 20 μg
(2%) 231 μg
510 μg
Thiamine (B1) (2%) 0.021 mg
Riboflavin (B2) (1%) 0.007 mg
Niacin (B3) (2%) 0.237 mg
Vitamin B6 (2%) 0.031 mg
Folate (B9) (1%) 3 μg
Choline (3%) 14.2 mg
Vitamin E (25%) 3.81 mg
Vitamin K (1%) 1.4 μg
Minerals
Calcium (5%) 52 mg
Iron (4%) 0.49 mg
Magnesium (3%) 11 mg
Phosphorus (1%) 4 mg
Potassium (1%) 42 mg
Sodium (104%) 1556 mg
Can Hamsters Eat Black Olives?
One important factor to take into account is that hamsters should not eat a lot of salt or salted products, or fattening foods. Too much salt intake can be bad for your hamster.
Although they are easily digestible and will even be enjoyable for your pet, should you ever feed them?
The simple and safest answer is: no.
With such an extremely high level of salt, quite a lot of fat, and also some phosphorus, sugar, and acidic content- your hamster will be better off skipping on snacking on black olives altogether. In fact, we don’t recommend even serving olives occasionally.
You should stick to providing it a healthy dietary intake of seeds, grains, fruits, vegetables, and water.
Can Hamsters Eat Capers?
Capers are usually pickled or salted and are very similar to green olives. In fact, they are often used as a substitute for olives. They have a lemony, tangy taste with a salty aroma.
Now, you may be wondering if capers could be an alternate food for your hamsters. Although capers have a low-calorie count, they still have high levels of salt in them especially because of how they are preserved. This not only applies to capers, but also goes for foods like pickles as well.
Keep in mind that your hamster has a very delicate digestive system and you don’t want to irritate their GI tract. Such highly salted foods are likely to bring more harm than good to your little buddy. In fact, there are always negative long-term effects of feeding a diet that does not suit your pet. To conclude, think about the safety of your pet and put its’ health first. Don’t feed your hamster any olives or capers, at all.
