Hamster · Grains, seeds & nuts
Can hamsters eat almonds?
Better not. A vet-reviewed guide lists almonds among foods hamsters should avoid. Bitter almonds contain cyanide-forming compounds, and even sweet almonds are hard, fatty nuts.
- Sugar
- 4.4 g / 100 g
- Fat
- 49.9 g / 100 g
If your hamster already ate some
A small piece of plain sweet almond is not usually an emergency: remove the rest, make sure your hamster can empty its cheek pouches, and watch for diarrhoea or lethargy over the next day. If it ate a bitter almond, an apricot kernel or almond extract, or you see weakness, breathing difficulty, wobbliness or collapse, call a vet straight away.
How to serve it
- Offer a small piece of plain unsalted peanut or a sunflower seed instead
- Keep bitter almonds, almond extract, marzipan and apricot kernels away from your hamster
Why
Risks. Bitter almonds contain amygdalin, which releases hydrogen cyanide; one study measured roughly 40 times more cyanide in bitter than in sweet almonds. Sweet snack almonds contain far less, but they are high in fat and very hard, and salted or flavoured versions add further problems.
Questions owners ask 2
Are sweet almonds safe for hamsters?
Sweet almonds are not highly toxic the way bitter almonds are, and some owners do offer them. We still suggest choosing another treat, because a vet-reviewed guide lists almonds as a food to avoid, and they are hard, fatty nuts that add nothing a pellet diet lacks.
Can hamsters have almond butter or almond milk?
No. Almond butter is sticky and fatty, and almond drinks often contain sugar or other additives. Neither is useful for hamsters.
Almonds: nutrition per 100 g
| Water | 4.4 g |
|---|---|
| Energy | 579 kcal |
| Sugars | 4.4 g |
| Fat | 49.9 g |
| Protein | 21.2 g |
| Fibre | 12.5 g |
| Calcium | 269 mg |
| Phosphorus | 481 mg |
| Calcium : phosphorus | 0.56 : 1 |
| Sodium | 1 mg |
| Vitamin A (RAE) | 0 µg |
| Vitamin C | 0 mg |
“Nuts, almonds”, USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy, FDC 170567). Public domain.
Sources & method 4
The sources below discuss almonds for hamsters (or for pet rodents generally). Confidence: medium. Rated on the JOMIZOO Feeding Scale; when good sources disagree we choose the more cautious level.
- What Can Hamsters Eat? — PetMD (written by Angelina Childree, LVT; reviewed by Melissa Witherell, DVM)
- Potential Toxic Levels of Cyanide in Almonds (Prunus amygdalus), Apricot Kernels (Prunus armeniaca), and Almond Syrup (Chaouali et al., ISRN Toxicology, 2013) — ISRN Toxicology (via Europe PMC)
- People Foods to Avoid Feeding Your Pets — ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center
- Feeding your hamster — PDSA
