Learning by example?

Emma · 03-05-2006, 03:36 AM

Merry is around 18 months old, and has never chewed bars ever. He's lived in a barred cage for about 10 months now I think, since I had to seperate him and Pip.

Hazel came to me as a persistent bar chewer. I moved her cage into my room about a week ago, because I felt she gets more attention that way. Her cage is about 2m away from Merry's, if they can see that far (which I doubt really) they would be able to see each other.

These past few days, Merry has started chewing bars!!! Not constantly, just for a minute or so every now and then. He seems to have learned from Hazel??? Does anyone think this is possible at all - or just a coincidence????

**babyboos** · 07-11-2006, 05:20 AM

Sounds like she has been whispering to him in the night to give it a try

SnuggleHam · 07-11-2006, 06:41 AM

Maybe the little ham did learn from the other. If their eyesight inst that good I’m sure their hearing is! Maybe that perked some interest. Maybe, marry wondered over to hear what it was about and just started chewing as a way to escape :P

I suppose if it keeps up you’ll need to find a way to stop it or get new cages

racinghamster · 07-11-2006, 08:33 AM

My two single mice do this too. I have four mice, two of which had to be seperated for ball fighting and now live as single males. However, both their cages are only a few inches away from their two brothers cage, who still live as a pair, but the single mice chew at the bars of their cage, the two who live together don`t. Maybe it`s their way of just trying to get nearer the other mice, or one hamster trying to get to the other hamster? Quite similar behaviour. They don`t chew the bars all the time, just for a few minutes here and there.