Sore face from chewing bars :(

[Abijones]

Thanks for all the advice, I didn't know hammies could have dog chews, I will definitely try that. She actually looks a lot better today so hopefully she didn't chew last night, I can't find any damage to the bars yet so I'm not sure exactly where she's been chewing. She has a big space wheel, I think that's what they're called? It's like a slightly slanted disc, she uses it often and seems to enjoy it. She has hay and loads of cardboard, I bought her a cereal chew thing today as well. She is lovely and friendly already, always comes out of her bed when I calll her and I can pick her up now without worrying about being bitten...I was a bit nervous at first because I got bitten by one of her siblings when I was choosing which one to have and it hurt!

[cypher]

I think you mean a flying saucer type wheel?
Some hams do prefer them but most do better with an upright wheel, they take up a lot less space in the cage (except height) leaving more room for other things so that might be worth thinking about.
I'm sure she'd enjoy some whimzees & they really are a good distraction.
It's good she's looking better, if it hasn't become a habit & has been part of exploring the new cage she may just stop doing it.

[JLPrairie]

I used to have this issue with Titania. Every time she climbed up and started chewing, I blew into her face. Then I would grab a paper towel, dip it in olive oil, and wipe down the bars. If it still didn't work, I started sticking alfalfa pellets from her old Kaytee mix into the bars to cover it up.

[cypher]

I definitely wouldn't recommend blowing on a ham or putting anything on the bars that can be unpleasant for them.

[JLPrairie]

It isn't a hard blow, more like a light exhale. Furthermore, this is a situation where the hamster is severely hurt from bar chewing, much more than olive oil, alfalfa pellets (which is, technically food) or a light exhale could ever do.

[flowerfairy]

The trouble is you are unlikely to be around most of the time that the hamster is chewing. My Kashi used to bar chew (in her 100 x 50cm barney cage). I wove cardboard strips through the bars and gave her small cardboard boxes with food hidden inside.

She shredded the cardboard and loved to rip the boxes to get to the food. I change them quite often and give her LOADS of substrate. She has made a pile about ten inches high and burrows away in there and makes massive hoards.

Hope you find something to suit your hamster. An upright cardboard box full of fitch bedding can be a good digging box.

[Pebbles82]

Lots of good advice from others already - especially Cypher and Souffle. Not all dog chews are suitable for hammies, but the whimzee vegetable ones are and hamsters seem to go crazy for them.

I agree it is not about having enough to chew, it's a combination of it being a habit and a bit of cage stress because it's all a bit new. It's a lovely big cage, so not likely to be the size of the cage, but things that can make them chew bars to get out are

1) Too much cleaning out in the first two weeks (generally it's advised not to do a cage clean for two weeks and just spot clean the pee area if it gets stinky).
2) Something not right in the cage that is stressing her or she is trying to let you know - eg if a wheel is stuck and not spinning, or if there isn't enough substrate or nesting material.
3) It may have become a habit as Souffle says.

I agree with getting her a regular wheel. How big is the flying saucer? Syrians need a 12" flying saucer. If it's smaller than that, that could well be the reason she is chewing as it will be hard for her to run on she will be getting pent up energy and frustrated.

If it is a 12" one then maybe have an upright wheel as well, if you have room for both. They run much better with an upright wheel.

So my suggestion for right now would be

1) Loads more substrate - fill it to the top of the cage base and heap it up in the middle.
2) Make sure she has loads of nesting material - plain white toilet paper - tear each sheet into strips and put a large mound of it somewhere in the cage so she can pouch it and build a nest with it.
3) Get an 11" wheel - having both that and the flying saucer would be good if you have room for both but if the flying saucer is smaller than 12" diameter, then take it out when the wheel arrives.

Using a litter tray can save on substrate a lot as well so you can afford to put more in and just spot clean now and then - they tend to use a litter tray if you put it in the area (usually a corner of the cage) they use for a toilet. Most people put chinchilla bathing sand in it. You could put a little bit of pee'd on substrate on top of the sand the first couple of times so it still smells like her pee corner, until she gets used to it.

If you can't afford the wheel, potty and sand all at once, then just get the wheel You can use any dish as a litter tray and just put substrate in it for now. The sand soaks it up well and helps reduce odours, so needs cleaning out less.

This 28cm (11") Trixie wheel is about the cheapest and is quite popular - she will love it

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Trixie-Exer...s=Trixie+wheel

I used this litter tray

https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/Houses-Ha...=Hamster+potty

And this is the chinchilla bathing sand that is suitable for hamsters

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Supreme-Pet...a+bathing+sand

Where is her nest? If you remove her nest regularly when cleaning out this can cause stress behaviours too. Ideally you leave the nest unless it's pee'd in as it's their number one most important thing! Next to their hoards. Also best not to remove hoards unless they are pee'd on, and then try and leave some dry hoard behind and add new food to replace what you removed, in exactly the same place.

If she's nesting in the little white house on the shelf in the Alaska that could be an issue too as they do better with a bigger house that is open underneath and on top of the good depth of substrate, so they can bury hoards under the nest and snack inside their house A shoe box makes a good house/hide. Cut the bottom out and cut a hole in the front long side for a door and keep the lid as a lift-off roof, so then you can check inside without having to lift the house out and her nest falling apart.

[Abijones]

She has 2 nests and I haven't touched either of them yet. Anyway, I'm happy to say her face is completely healed so whatever she was doing she's obviously stopped. I gave her a treat stick which attaches to the bars which she loves, I put the pegs on the corners of the cage too but she hasn't touched them. Her flying saucer wheel is 7" across but it is plenty big enough for her at the moment, I'll get a bigger ones as she grows. Will definitely get a samd potty, although at the moment she is doing all her business in ththe upstairs of the wooden house! When I got this cage it seemed absolutely huge and everyone who sees it asks if it's for a guinea pig!! However I am now kicking myself for not getting the Barney cage instead as a 12" wheel is going to take up a lot of space :/

[Abijones]

I forgot to say thank you Serendipity7000 for your very useful reply I can see I need to rethink the set up, I wonder if I should get rid of the shelf and little igloo house altogether? She has made a nest in the igloo but also seems to prefer the teeny tiny house we have her initially, she sleeps in there mostly. I will follow your advice and add more substrate and a bigger nest but leave the little one in there until she's switched over. She seems quite content at the moment, she's very friendly and inquisitive.

[AmityvilleHams]

A 7" Flying Saucer could have a running surface as small as 2-3",so it really isn't a good idea to keep that.Just get one now rather than waiting until it's too late,Flying Saucers are honestly not good wheels anyways.Upright wheels provide a natural running pattern with a set running surface.With enclosed upright wheels they're much safer since hamsters can't ever fly off them,and they're much more appropriate for a nervous hamster as the enclosed type give more of a secure feeling.I wouldn't get anything other than a Silent Runner though,they're the safest on the market with the best quality.Despite being initially expensive,the cost is entirely justified due to quality and how long they last as well as being 100% safe.Other wheels have axles,open stands,open fronts,or in the case of flying saucers are entirely open and can be extremely dangerous.

As for the treat stick,unfortunately most on the market have dyes or unsafe ingredients or unnecessary added sugars which really should be avoided(even for Syrians the massive amounts of sugar from treat sticks isn't really good).Luckily there are slightly better versions on the market(the Rosewood ones in general aren't as bad as the Vitakraft and other ones)!

If you do choose to use dog biscuits make sure there's no digest of any sort,as that is yet another dangerous ingredient.It pretty much allows the same things as biproducts,and due to being unspecified can and often will include extremely dangerous ingredients.Plus,these things can change batch to batch,and there's no way of knowing exactly what is in the treat.Also don't use anything with unspecified ingredients for example E&C approved dyes or antioxidants/preservatives(the second is a loophole for BHA/BHT/ethoxyquin known to cause cancer,and the first is just unhealthy overall).