Are hamsters a suitable food source?

[Tirevy]

Do people feed hamsters to their bps normally? I'm just curious.

[reno-cg]

Well I heard hamsters can be quite vicious not to mention they are more expensive. But I know where you're coming from. I have a niece who's hamster doesn't stop running in that god forsaken wheel. It's all I hear. I hear it on the way to school, I hear it when I work, when I eat, when I sleep. It has consumed my life. One day. One day we'll see who's life will be consumed.

[PghBall]

Do people feed hamsters to their bps normally? I'm just curious.

Most here feed rats, mice or ASFs (African Soft Fur Rats). I would not recommenf feeding them hamsters, as BPs can be very picky and may refuse any other food source once given the hamster.

[Stewart_Reptiles]

More aggressive, thick fur, long teeth, expensive, all that really does not make them the ideal preys.

And should your BP imprint on them and you had to re-home it down the road it could make it very hard or nearly impossible.

Best is to stick to preys that are readily available.

[wax32]

Hamsters gave a RTB I had constipation from too much fur. (I was breeding hamsters for fun at the time, and was like, why not?) Steer away from those.

[smd58]

dont do it bad idea

[WingedWolfPsion]

Hamsters look kind of fatty, and they're wider than rats or mice. They are indeed more aggressive, and more expensive. I see little reason to ever try it.
Golden Hamsters are an animal that hibernates, which means they store large amounts of fat to get them through winter months, so they are bound to be much fattier than rats or mice--particularly if they're fed free-choice on commercial food, as captive hamsters are. That could cause health problems for a ball python.

The risk of a ball python trying a new prey item, and refusing old prey items, is extremely low. What is more likely is a ball python turning its nose up at a new prey item altogether, lol. Hamsters hail from Southeast Europe and Asia...not Africa.

[marwari31]

i too was wondering about this. a friend of mine got a hamster from a pet store and a week later had 8 hamsters that he does not want. we have tried to find homes for them but there are still 4 left and feeding day is this saturday.....

[ed4281]

Hamsters are the thugs of the rodent world, they will cut your snake.
Don't do it man, Don't make the hamsters angry you wont like it when they are angry.

All kidding aside hamsters are very tough satin spawn and can really hurt your snake. I work in the vet field and have seen what hamsters can do to reptiles trust me not pretty.

[Lolo76]

Feeding hamsters to snakes is illegal here, if I remember correctly... they are considered "protected" under animal cruelty laws, whereas rats and mice aren't even categorized as domestic (therefore it's okay to feed them off). I heard this in a local pet shop, so feel free to correct me if I'm wrong - I live in California, fyi.

P.S. I think rabbits are also protected here, but I do know large python owners who feed live rabbits - so maybe there's a loophole, or they just ignore the law?