Wheel obsessed?

[eccohpeach]

First post on hamstercentral for me!

I brought my white Syrian hamster home yesterday, he is just under 3 months old and I'm leaving him alone for a couple of days to help him settle in , I'm only going in the cage to replace water, food etc. He seems to be settling in okay, I'm just a bit concerned about his wheel. He has a 28cm wooden wheel and will use it for about 3 mins at a time, and then he'll lie down for a couple of minutes. Is this normal? I don't want him overdoing it, some people have said that he will be fine, but some people have said to take it away for a few days. This is my only concern so far as he seems completely normal otherwise.

[Pebbles82]

It sounds fine to me It'll be a new exciting thing for him. Sometimes they lie down because they enjoy it after a good run. If he seems fine in himself I shouldn't worry. Taking it away will stress him. If he was running in it non stop for hours and not lying down for a rest I'd be more worried. Our last hammy, at that age, used to literally jump out after running fast and flop on the substrate as if he was sunbathing lol.

Does he look chilled when he's lying down? If he isn't showing signs of breathing difficulties or being unwell I wouldn't worry.

[AprilPearl]

I think it is fine too. Some hamsters just love their wheels! In the wild, they would run miles and miles evey niht, so it is not surprising, really.

[eccohpeach]

Thanks for your replies
He just will lie down and doesn't seem to have any trouble breathing, he will stop for water and to have a little explore before going back on the wheel as well. Doesn't seem to be anything I should be too concerned about but I'll keep an eye out for any behaviour changes

[dreamtree1234]

Your sweetie sounds perfectly fine so long as there are no concerning signs of breathing hard, etc.