Treats for Small Pets
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No one treat fits every small pet, because a rabbit, a hamster and a ferret eat in three different ways. Sort the animal first, and the treat sorts itself.
The small pet range here is smaller than the dog range and grows as makers join. This page says so instead of padding it.
Herbivores, omnivores and carnivores
This page sorts small pets by what they eat, using the Merck Veterinary Manual's page for each animal. Merck describes rabbits as plant eaters on a diet that is mostly grass hay, and it makes grass hay the main food for a guinea pig. It notes that wild hamsters eat both plants and animals, and it builds a rat's diet on commercial pellets with fruit, vegetables and seeds as treats. Ferrets it describes as carnivores whose diet should be meat based, which sets them apart from every other animal here.
The sort matters because the groups overlap less than the shelf suggests. A sweet or starchy treat belongs with the animals that eat plants, and a meat treat belongs with the ferret; crossing the line hands the animal something its usual food does not resemble. Start by knowing which group your animal belongs to, and read the page for that group.
A treat that fits one group often fails another. A seed stick is a good hamster treat and the wrong shape for a ferret, and a dried apple ring suits a rabbit in thumbnail pieces and has no place in a ferret's day.
Hay based treats and chews
Rabbits and guinea pigs get the hay group: compressed hay cubes, hay sticks, woven grass chews, dried herbs and flowers. They are treats in form and hay in substance, which makes them the closest match to what these animals already eat. Read what treats can rabbits eat and what treats can guinea pigs eat for sizes and for the foods each animal takes fresh.
The test for a hay based treat is the ingredient line. It should name hay, grass or a dried herb and little else. A line that adds a sweetener, a seed or a colorant has stopped being hay and become a snack with hay in it, and the animal will treat it that way.
Dried fruit and seed treats
Dried fruit has the water taken out and the sugar left in, and seed mixes pack a great deal into a small spoon. Both belong in small pieces, and both belong with the animals that eat them: hamsters and rats take seeds and small pieces of fruit, rabbits and guinea pigs take a thumbnail or fingernail of dried fruit once in a while.
The trade off is the same across all four animals. The sweetest piece is the one the animal wants most, and it is the one you should give least. A seed mix can be poured out in a moment and eaten in a minute, and a dried fruit chip can be crunched whole, which is why the portion has to be set before the bag is opened.
Hamsters stash what they are given, which makes portion size the whole question; what treats can hamsters eat covers it. Rats take a pea sized piece in their front paws, and treats for pet rats covers that animal.
Matching a treat to the animal
The table below is the page in short form: read across a row and you have the animal, its main food, a treat that fits and the guide that goes further.
| Animal | Eats mostly | A treat that fits | Read next |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rabbit | Grass hay | A few leaves of herb or greens; a thumbnail of dried fruit now and then | Rabbit treats guide |
| Guinea pig | Grass hay and fresh vegetables | A finger wide strip of fresh vegetable; a hay based chew | Guinea pig treats guide |
| Hamster | A commercial hamster food | A pinch of seeds or a sliver of vegetable | Hamster treats guide |
| Rat | A formulated block or pellet | A pea sized piece of fresh fruit or vegetable | Pet rat treats guide |
| Ferret | Meat based food | A pencil eraser sized piece of meat | Ferret treats guide |
A treat that fits is a size and a kind of food, not a brand, and the pieces are the sizes described in each guide.
Read the animal named on the pack, not the picture on the front. A home with a dog or a cat as well can find Sniff and Shift's freeze dried and air dried treats, made in small batches in Malvern, in the Sniff and Shift treats collection; none of them is suggested for the animals on this page.
A house with more than one small animal needs more than one jar. Label each by the animal and keep them on separate shelves, since a rabbit's dried herbs and a hamster's seed mix look alike in the dark of a cupboard and are not interchangeable. When you are picking a treat for training and not for pleasure, how to choose a training treat covers the size and the speed that make a piece work for any animal.
Where to read more for each animal
The Merck Veterinary Manual keeps a page for each animal above, and VCA Hospitals covers several of them, including guinea pigs, hamsters and ferrets. Those pages are the place to read about specific foods, and they differ from animal to animal, so read the one for yours and not a general list.
If your animal is not in the table, start from the same question: what does it eat all day? The pages above answer that first, and the treat follows from it. How to read a pet treat label covers the ingredient line and the animal named on the pack.
The small pet treats collection holds everything on offer for these animals today. Chinchillas and hedgehogs are in the same collection by tag, and we have not written pages for them yet. If you are unsure about a food, ask a licensed professional who cares for your animal.
Common questions
Which treat suits the most small pets?
None suits all of them. Hay based treats fit rabbits and guinea pigs, seeds and small pieces fit hamsters and rats, and meat fits ferrets. Match the animal first.
Can small pets eat dog or cat treats?
Read the label for the animal it names. Dog and cat treats are made for those animals, and the house line on this site is labeled for dogs and cats only. For a ferret, a meat treat made for ferrets is the match.
How do I know a small pet treat is the right size?
Hold it beside the animal's head. A rabbit takes a thumbnail piece, a hamster a pinch, a rat a pea sized piece. When in doubt, go smaller.
Are small pet treats interchangeable between animals?
No. A rabbit, a hamster and a ferret each eat differently, and a mix made for one is built around that animal. Read the label for the name of your animal.
