Hamster Central - View Single Post - Hamster biting his cage bars after being brought back home from pet-sitters

astrid · 09-06-2018, 04:58 PM

Hello everyone!

I have recently been away for two weeks and had my Pippin (Syrian hamster, around 10 months old) looked after by my friends at their home. I brought him home on Monday. Ever since coming back, he's been bar biting a lot.

He lives in the Barney cage. Previously, he would occasionally bite bars in one corner of his cage. I've experimented with his cage layout a bit and managed to dissuade him from that. Since coming back, he has been pretty relentless. I thought it could be stress from moving around but he hasn't settled down and I'm starting to worry. I am afraid he might hurt himself. He chews bars everywhere, so I can't even weave a cardboard or put some oil on the bars (as I've seen recommended). In his cage, Pippin has a variety of chew toys (different textures) and he does chew them also but he is still pretty intent on the bars.

I live in a shared house and I can't really hamster-proof my room to allow him to free range. I've got a playpen but Pippin has never enjoyed it (ignores all the toys, hides, treats and the wheel, and spends all his time trying to climb out from the playpen or digging in the corners and biting carpet instead). If I let him out on my bed (which I do occasionally), he just runs straight to the edge and tries to jump (I always catch him but he doesn't seem too pleased about that).

I am just really concerned and not sure what to do. Will he settle down or should I start thinking about possibly upgrading his cage? If I had to upgrade his cage, what could I get instead? Barney is one of the bigger cages that are commercially available (I live in the UK) and reasonably priced too. But if upgrading is needed, I would definitely try to come up with money for a bigger cage. Although, the only ones that are bigger (and don't need a lot of adapting, I'm not good at all with DIY) that I know of are Large Green Living Eco habitat (I've heard that perspex panels are prone to bowing under more substrate) and the extra large ones made by Hamster Homes. Is there anything else I'm missing? I would appreciate any advice at all.

09-06-2018, 04:58 PM
astrid Hamster Pup Join Date: Nov 2017 Location: Loughborough, UK Posts: 129	Hamster biting his cage bars after being brought back home from pet-sitters Hello everyone! I have recently been away for two weeks and had my Pippin (Syrian hamster, around 10 months old) looked after by my friends at their home. I brought him home on Monday. Ever since coming back, he's been bar biting a lot. He lives in the Barney cage. Previously, he would occasionally bite bars in one corner of his cage. I've experimented with his cage layout a bit and managed to dissuade him from that. Since coming back, he has been pretty relentless. I thought it could be stress from moving around but he hasn't settled down and I'm starting to worry. I am afraid he might hurt himself. He chews bars everywhere, so I can't even weave a cardboard or put some oil on the bars (as I've seen recommended). In his cage, Pippin has a variety of chew toys (different textures) and he does chew them also but he is still pretty intent on the bars. I live in a shared house and I can't really hamster-proof my room to allow him to free range. I've got a playpen but Pippin has never enjoyed it (ignores all the toys, hides, treats and the wheel, and spends all his time trying to climb out from the playpen or digging in the corners and biting carpet instead). If I let him out on my bed (which I do occasionally), he just runs straight to the edge and tries to jump (I always catch him but he doesn't seem too pleased about that). I am just really concerned and not sure what to do. Will he settle down or should I start thinking about possibly upgrading his cage? If I had to upgrade his cage, what could I get instead? Barney is one of the bigger cages that are commercially available (I live in the UK) and reasonably priced too. But if upgrading is needed, I would definitely try to come up with money for a bigger cage. Although, the only ones that are bigger (and don't need a lot of adapting, I'm not good at all with DIY) that I know of are Large Green Living Eco habitat (I've heard that perspex panels are prone to bowing under more substrate) and the extra large ones made by Hamster Homes. Is there anything else I'm missing? I would appreciate any advice at all.