[MaryRobinson]

Hi all,

So... I feel very bad saying this but... a week ago we adopted Mimí. She’s a 1.5 year old Syrian who was living with a colleague in inadequate circumstances and when I heard, even though we weren’t really over our fur baby, Dora, who died in January, I said yes I would take her.

No, I hadn’t met her, but was told she was totally tame. And she is. Great! She came home and we left her quietly in her new, bigger house.

Then we put her in the playpen. This is a homemade one, nice and spacious, full of fun toys and tunnels. She spent the whole time dashing backwards and Firwards along the edges trying to leap out, looking panicked - though I don’t think she was. Then the digging started. Every corner, and she wouldn’t stop. No treats, toys or coaxing would stop it. No interest in her digging box. Nothing.

Today I let her free roam in hamster-proof room. All she did was get under furniture and dig. My carpet now has holes in and I was nearly in tears. I want to give her a happy life, not stress her out, but so far she’s just a hooligan and I’m seriously worried. What can I do??

Ps. She likes her house but is very tame and clambers our to get out when you open it up... so it’s not like I’m dragging her out of it! But then she goes mental and seems to hate it. I was just in tears as she wedged herself under the chest of drawers and started digging at the enclosed bit and wouldn’t stop or come out. Sigh. I’ve just put the room together again. Once I’d put her back in her house she climbed out again immediately and wanted to get down!! Argh!