Comments | hamsters: Bored hammies?

xvmorganalefayv in hamsters

Bored hammies?

Apr 03, 2009 02:20

bar chewing, toys, tubes, high activity levels, behavior, cagemates and multiple hamsters, feeding and treats, chewing, wheels, wheels and balls, grooming and bathing, exercise

Comments 6

elitegoldfish April 3 2009, 12:21:57 UTC

My critters would always chew on the bars of my critter trails. I moved out of them because all they would do is chew chew chew. So very annoying.

xvmorganalefayv April 3 2009, 15:19:55 UTC

Yeah, I had them in a big old fishtank with a wire screen lid, one wheel, and a piece of PVC Y-tubing to keep them occupied but I felt they'd be bored in there. I guess they're just very social and need a lot of attention? I feel really bad because I'm going away this weekend (in a few minutes, actually) and no one will take them out if I'm not here. :/

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xvmorganalefayv April 6 2009, 21:35:52 UTC

They have two wheels. For a while they had three wheels but they'd still just fight over the one wheel so I took the third out. The wheels are still really noisy--well, one of them is, the other isn't too bad--and last night I was so exhausted that I got tired of the rattling noise and yanked the loud one out entirely. Then I felt even worse because without a wheel to run on, the hamsters kept climbing the bars again (despite there being a second wheel in the other half of the cage). UGH. It's a good thing I don't want kids, if they made half that noise and kept me up half so much, I'd be in prison for infanticide.

_phinn_ April 3 2009, 17:57:19 UTC

I've always been able to clip my guy's nails. He likes it because he gets tons of treats when I do it. You can also put sandpaper in their wheels for a bit to see if that helps.

xvmorganalefayv April 6 2009, 21:37:14 UTC

Ah, I hadn't thought of that. The girls don't have a high enough value treat that they'll hold still, and sugary stuff is out because one of them is likely diabetic (and will take sweets from the other if I give them out, so I just cut them out of their diets entirely).

If I put sandpaper in their wheels, it won't scratch up their paws, will it? That's all I'd worry about--it's a good idea! Thanks!

_phinn_ April 7 2009, 20:48:06 UTC

I wouldn't put it in for long, but if you have the sandpaper in for an hour or two a night, it should help. Alternately, you could put a brick or the flat thing people put under their flower pots in their cage and put that in a place they go to a lot. My guy's brick is under his water bottle.

Also, the treats I give him aren't always the super sugary type. I give him pasta sometimes, plain cheerios, peanuts, fruit, and sunflower seeds.