Noisy Hamster Wheel

[aimsdavies]

Hiya!
I was up for the majority of last night as my Hamster’s Trixie Wheel was rattling as he used it. I eventually moved to another room. I quickly Googled methods to reduce the amount of noise the wheel makes and found that an elastic band around the turn-y (if you get me, sorry) part and some olive oil did the trick! I was concerned about whether it was safe and found that a small amount of olive oil used to cook should be harmless to hammies. I was only wondering how often this trick should be used as I do not want my hammy to become ill from licking it all off.
Also, to ensure that the wheel runs smoothly, how often would you say to re-lube the wheel?
Thank you!

[dreamtree1234]

I do not have a Trixie Wheel, but I have a Senior Wodent Wheel that gets quite squeaky over time and keeps the whole house awake, lol. What I do is place a miniscule drop of cooking oil on a Q-tip and wipe the place where the wheel connects to the metal arm. I wipe any slight excess off and let it sit without my hamster in it for approximately 15 minutes. I do not place an elastic band because the rubber could be a choking hazard if your ham chews and/or eats it. I only use the oil trick when it begins to get squeaky every time it is spun. I also do this after I clean the wheel. I don't do it otherwise. I have used this trick since I got Eros approximately 15 1/2 months ago, and it has been working great. I hope that this helps. :)