6 replies to this topic

[dustyham]

hi! my hamster dustin really likes sprays, and i'm only able to find millet and oat sprays in pet stores! while i'm glad to have any at all, i'd like to provide him with more, for a better variety. i can never find etsy stores or online businesses that ship affordably to canada, so that isn't really an option for me! i recently found out that you can plant seeds and grow sprays, and i'm very curious about this! how would i go about this? would normal flax seeds from the grocery store work? how often to water it?, etc. so, if anyone is knowledgable about gardening, or has grown their own sprays before, i'm desperate for some tips and instructions! thanks 

[~Boba the Hammy~]

I'm growing amaranth, quinoa, flax, and wheat. They're all pretty easy to grow, just scatter them outside, cover with a thin layer of soil, and water often. Soon they'll grow!

[dustyham]

I'm growing amaranth, quinoa, flax, and wheat. They're all pretty easy to grow, just scatter them outside, cover with a thin layer of soil, and water often. Soon they'll grow!

thank you! could i grow them inside in a little pot? i don't have anywhere i can grow things outside haha

[~Boba the Hammy~]

thank you! could i grow them inside in a little pot? i don't have anywhere i can grow things outside haha

you could, but most sprays either get really big or are really sensitive to repotting, plus sunshine would be an issue since most really need full sun. It's probably possible, just choose a really sunny spot in your home, plant it in a very large pot with good drainage, and choose a plant that does not need full sun (like millet, sorghum, oat, flax, etc)

 

Grow lights would also be good

[avivaham]

You can plant seed from your hamsters food and from the grocery store (any seed that's not roasted). I've grown quinoa from the grocery store, for example.

You could only grow 2 or 3 plants in a pot so growing grains for sprays is barely worth it. You might be able to grow grains in someone else's garden or in a community garden.  Dwarf sunflowers would be a better choice for an outdoor pot.

 

You can also forage for sprays. If you don't have a way to identify plants, stick to grass seed sprays.

[~Boba the Hammy~]

You can also forage for sprays. If you don't have a way to identify plants, stick to grass seed sprays.

 

 

I would disagree, personally. Sprays don't really grow in the wild and you have no idea if they have been sprayed with pesticides or touched by bugs/animals/things you don't want to expose you hamster to. Grass sprays also tend to look really similar so they could be unsafe. Foraging isn't really the way to go IMO.

[avivaham]

I would disagree, personally. Sprays don't really grow in the wild and you have no idea if they have been sprayed with pesticides or touched by bugs/animals/things you don't want to expose you hamster to. Grass sprays also tend to look really similar so they could be unsafe. Foraging isn't really the way to go IMO.

Sprays are "seeds of grasses." Grasses aren't toxic*, so there's no need to differentiate between species. *there are fungi that can live on some grasses in some areas that is toxic, and grass seeds are often infected with the fungi intentionally and those are used in hay fields (intentionally). So buying your orchard grass or timothy hay or seed sprays from the pet store/online seller isn't going to eliminate the risk.

Sprays and hays are natural products that grow outdoors, where bugs and animals are. The cultivated sprays people buy for hamsters aren't washed, sanitized or irradiated. There's no more risk collecting them yourself than buying them. (Your hamster has an immune system for a reason.)

Seed sprays grow in the wild, although the seeds of wild sprays will be smaller than a domesticated grain. Go somewhere with long weedy grass and you'll see them. It's really easy to see if an area has been treated with a pesticide or not - untreated plants have bugs on them and signs of past insect damage.    If you have a foraging book you can collect sprays of other edible plants too. 

I think foraging is a great choice because it gives more people access to enrichment items for their hamsters.

Edited by avivaham, 06 June 2022 - 10:51 AM.