Bar biting... AGAIN

[Pebbles82]

Hope you didn't mind me adding the pics of Charlie - happy memories. And I still have that little house!

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[PumpkinSpice92]

Also, wow, Charlie was MUCH bigger than Podge.. I thought females were larger? haha

[PumpkinSpice92]

Charlie's gorgeous - always lovely to see such a beautiful well cared for hamster!!

[Pebbles82]

Originally Posted by PumpkinSpice92

She seems fine health wise yeah - pooing/weeing/eating normally and very active
She already had the tube you've linked and I added one of those plastic bendy tube things at the side of the hyacinth one. She can turn fully round in the tubes that come with the cage and she likes them, and the new one is a fair bit bigger than those.
I THINK I've attached a picture of the layout pre bendy tube, haha

It looks really nice Clever idea having the shelves above each other - I hadn't thought of that. How does she get up to the top one?

So what are the recent changes? It's a clever set up and makes good use of the space. Not sure how the saucer is attached - could it be something moving under it?

One thing I found that helped with a nervous hamster was to have a circular route. Ours didn't seem interested in climbing on ramps or in toys unless they went somewhere. So he could get from one side of the cage to the other via the tube and sputnik, out the other side of the sputnik and down and either in the house or on it via the bendy bridge. And he literally did circuits that time he was stressed and bar biting.

If you were to tweak it in the future I'd suggest taking out the bottom shelf and having the flying saucer under there - and an upright wheel as well - it's a bonus having both but they do seem to run better in an upright wheel. Just wondering if there's something bothering her with the wheel placement/layout or something. Also if she can get up to the top shelf?

So the long bendy bridge could lead from one side of the cage to the other - leading to the shelf - or between the shelf and a house roof eg. I didn't have much luck with my long bendy bridge - it broke very quickly so I gave up on those and stuck to tubes.

[PumpkinSpice92]

She can easily crawl up the hole in the pink shelf while on the green shelf (though usually she accesses it via the tubes - though I did make sure she could get up via the green platform!), and to get down there's two of those gnawing things (like the pink one at the front) behind the wheel that she uses as steps down.
Literally the only change I made since that photo three weeks ago was the bendy tube which I've put under that platform with the hyacinth one. I do tend to go in and fluff all her bedding to re-earth all the buried chew sticks (she throws the carrot chews off that ledge off almost every night - really funny!), is this something I should stop?

[Pebbles82]

I can't think why she is chewing under the bendy bridge - other than it feels safe under there with something over her head. So maybe if the housing/nesting has changed recently she is still feelign a bit adrift or exposed.

[PumpkinSpice92]

oh looking at that set up there's also a rainbow bridge added next to the long bendy bridge, and also the smaller bendy bridge in the far left corner - I guess that is a lot of changes!!

[PumpkinSpice92]

she also sometimes chews in the same corner as I added the small bendy hideout - but not as frequently! this is where she sleeps

[Pebbles82]

Ha ha - she is telling you to keep your hands out - maybe why she's biting. No they don't like people ruffling up the bedding etc - they like to do that themselves It's necessary sometimes f you need to do a spot clean but rarely rather than often.

I think there may be something to do with access as well. An easy route onto a shelf tends to make them feel more secure. Its maybe just not quite how she wants it - along with the changes. I find the rainbow bridge can be a bit unstable as well when it's on the substrate.

You know one thing I would do - without waiting two weeks - is take the long bendy bridge out and put a house there instead. if that is the corner where she is nesting and chewing - it will distract her from chewing in that corner and keep her busy settigng up home in the house.

Hamsters aren't that good at climbing and don't see well -so they do it but arent that happy about balancing. Charlie - nervy thing - was terrified of stepping onto anything smaller than an 8" square thing!

As she's so stressed at the moment then I think one more change - ie adding a shoe box house now and eithe removing or slightly raising the long bendy bridge so it can still be sat under - may actually help her settle a bit.

Then leave any other changes till another time. Does she actually need to get to the top shelf? ie for food or water? Or is it just somewhere to go. Because if she needs to get up there and finds it not quite as simple as running up a ramp then that could add to stress.

I think longer term I'd just have the one shelf at that end and have it easily accessible lower down direct from the substrate - you can always hang something over it for interest.

But for now I'd just add a house at that end. Do you have a normal bendy stick bridge thing that turns into a tunnel? If not doesn't matter. If you do then you could put that over the shoe box house entrance. Seeing your cage i think a shoebox house would fit well at that end and be as good as the Ferplast one and maybe even slightly bigger inside.

Things like chews - I just leave them usually for a while. If I take an old one out I put a new one in. Our current syrian likes to keep chewing at them even when there's no food left on. They also tend to chuck anything out of the house themselves if they decide it needs removing sometimes. ie if you've left it a bit long.

[Pebbles82]

End of forensic cage analysis