Attention seeking behaviour

[Flamestriker]

Hi all

Spent most of last night swapping bin cages around as the bigger one I'd had was, er, too big so squeak has the smaller one back. Mixed in heaps of food which she spent hours finding.

Woke up this morning (always a good start to the day) to hear Squeak snuffling around, then on her wheel. No bar chewing, which was odd because she's a bar chewer. Got up, put light on, and Squeak came out of her cage for a cuddle. When I put her back in, she started chewing the bars again. I put light off and she stopped. It's making me wonder if she's doing it for attention.

At the moment her bin cage has two packs of carefresh in it which is used for burrowing, and I hide food in it for her. It's a 78L bin from Wicks in the Wham range which cost £7. Her cage is an iMac fantasy with an extension. She's got a playball but she hasn't been in it yet. I hope all of this is big enough.i haven't got room for more.

Wht do your hammies do for attention?

[Jodzie04]

Buttons does EXACTLY the same
She is bar chewing right now for attention but if I turn the light off she stops straight away!

[Erin Loves Dwarf Hamsters]

Thistle is like this! Except instead of bar chewing she stands on her back legs and rubs her face on the clear plastic of her bin Its all her trying to get my attention because silly me, I usually respond when she does this instead of ignore it like I should Its just so cute I cant resist!
Try not to respond to bar chewing though so Squeak doesn't end up with getting bar rub every other week, I found giving Pippy a little blow on the nose whenever she chewed gave her the message after a few tries

[shazzy]

Yes my syrian girls past and present have tried this trick. They'd be chewing away despite just being put back after an hours playtime...then about 10 secs after me turning out the light they are running in their wheels. Cheeky things

[Jodzie04]

Originally Posted by Erin Loves Dwarf Hamsters

Try not to respond to bar chewing though so Squeak doesn't end up with getting bar rub every other week, I found giving Pippy a little blow on the nose whenever she chewed gave her the message after a few tries

Aww so cute Thistle does that! =)

I am having the same problem with Buttons and I made the mistake of getting her out (again!) when she bar chews just to stop her from hurting herself, I will try blowing on her nose a little

[kittycatcat5]

Cyrus does the same.
when the lights are of she plays
as soon as i come in turn on the light she sits on her house(next to the exit)
and chew on the bars and tries to do cute things to make me hold her

[newham]

My Buttons used todo that she would bite her cage for attention, if you put her back and she could see you up she would bite again but if you turned off the light to go to sleep she wouldn't

[kyrilliondaemon]

Our Scamp did something similar - except in her case she started doing it to say "oi you haven't fed me" or "oi my water bottle is broken" and "oi! I've outgrown my wheel!!!!" but then decided she wanted attention at silly hours of night and day... If she stops when she realises you won't give her attention then you'll probably be able to ignore it and get her to stop that way.
Scamp never grasped the idea that if we were sleeping we couldn't fuss her, and it ended up a problem lol

[StarlightSerenity]

Luna does the same, except when the light goes off she tends to do other things before going to bed. When the lights on she will eat, wash, drink, move bedding and do her "let me out dance", when the lights off she will run on her wheel, burrow, chew on her wooden toys and that.

I've often wondered if it's the light that prevents her from doing the other things because of it making it hard for her to see or if it's just easier to keep an eye out for humans while washing than it is when running.

[LawaRawr]

cookie monster does the exact same she will chew on everything until she sees me go to bed, she will attack her water bottle and bite her bars, every time i walk in my room she will bite everything.