Why is she biting me??

[hamtarokid]

We got Ambrose (a pet store winter white) at the beginning of May and for the first few days she didn't bite at all. But ever since we moved her into her bigger cage she always bites. She'll try really desperately to get to my hand, standing on her hind legs or climbing on stuff to reach it, and then if I put it where she can reach she'll sniff it and then bite me as hard as she can.

I always wash my hands with unscented soap before I interact with her or give her food or anything. This is preventing the taming process from moving forward because if I do anything more than hand her a piece of food I get bitten. Does anyone know why this could be?

[cypher]

If they bite it's usually either because they're being territorial over the cage or they're afraid or nervous.
How long has she been in the larger cage? It can take them anything up to a couple of weeks to settle & they do need to be left to get on with it without too much interaction during that time, how did you manage the change? Did you put all the substrate, nest & food hoard from the old cage into the new one?
She could just be feeling a bit stressed so try not to interfere in her cage any more than need be, just spot cleaning for a while & no full cage cleans, you never really need to clean the whole cage at once.
Have you tried interacting with her in a play pen or play bin? Even when they bite in the cage they are generally much better out of the cage, less likely to bite & happier to interact.

[hamtarokid]

She's been in the cage for three weeks now and I actually tried her in a playpen today and she bit me the hardest she's ever bitten me. So I don't know. I was planning to clean her cage this weekend. It's really starting to stink since I still can't figure out where she's peeing.

They started construction work across the street from my house, maybe having it noisy during the day is stressing her out? I know right now there is a terrible high pitched noise that even I am getting irritated by, although she seems to be sleeping as I write this.

[cypher]

The noise from construction work could well be quite distressing for her, not a lot you can do about that but try to keep her as quiet as you can.
You didn't say how you did the cage change over so I'm still wondering if that may have stressed her out.
How does she seem with the cage generally & how big is it? Most hams really enjoy lots of space but some can find it a little frightening, has she got lots of places to hide out if she wants to & not too much open space?

Using a playpen can take time for them to get used to it, it's best to put some substrate from the cage for a familiar scent in there along with a wheel (as well as enjoying the wheel they tend to use it if they find it a bit stressful at first) & lots of toys or things like cardboard boxes & tubes to explore, maybe hide a few treats around as well.
I wouldn't try handling or interacting in the playpen to start with, just let her get to know it & take things really slowly.

[hamtarokid]

I did put the old substrate and shredded toilet paper into the new cage, although she's not much of a hoarder so there wasn't a hoard to move. I ended up changing out all the substrate about a week later though because she was scratching herself a lot and I thought she might be allergic to the wood shavings, although I haven't changed it since.

The cage is 40 by 74 centimetres and there's little open space. Not enough for me to stick my hand down flat on the substrate anywhere.

I worry that my bedroom might be too noisy for her but the temperature anywhere else in the house can get really extreme. I've been hemming and hawing a lot about that. It's quieter in the living room (and further from the construction work)but it can get really hot in there, especially since it's connected to the kitchen so if we cook it gets sweltering.

I'll make her playpen better next time. I didn't put any substrate or the wheel in today and I ended up putting her back after a few minutes because she was running all around so much she seemed rather frantic.

[cypher]

The cage isn't that big then so I don't see that as a problem & the cage change should have been ok but a clean so soon after would have added to the stress of the move.
They do normally adjust to general noise levels so I would keep her in the room with the best temperature unless the noise from the construction work really does get too much.

It sounds as though she may just be stressed by the changes & needs a bit of time & space to get settled back down again, I know it can be a little frustrating but taming does sometimes take a step back.
I would carry on interacting with her but don't put your hand into the cage any more than you really need to for a while now, maybe do the tissue trick again for a while too so as she gets settled again she accepts your scent as just a normal part of her environment.

Her reaction to the playpen is quite normal, it's probably all a bit new & frightening for her but just let her explore for a short time & gradually lengthen the time she's in there, you don't want to stress her more but at the same time if you don't leave her in there long enough she won't have a chance to get used to it.

[hamtarokid]

Okay, I understand.

Do you think I can still clean the cage this weekend or would that be too much?

[cypher]

If you can avoid cleaning the cage I would, keep trying to find where she pees if you can do it without upsetting her too much, if you still can't find it & she may still be peeing in several places to make the new cage her own then I would just do small partial cleans, maybe about a third of the cage once a week then if you do find her pee spot eventually or if she uses chinchilla sand you only need to maybe half once a month.

[CMB]

You could put tissue up your sleeve to get your scent onto it then put it in the cage. It helps the hamster get used to your scent in their cage. It's often used when first getting a hamster to help with the taming process, but it may still help.

[hamtarokid]

I did that once. Am I supposed to do it regularly or what?