[ne0t0ky0]

thx 4 the responses guys, quick update. I've been doing a lot of research and based on a couple studies I found that suggested the absolute minimum of territory a syrian hamster in captivity needs is 1500square inches, along with a bedding depth of min 80cm. My friend current layout gives her only 1000 square inches although it is much larger than the minimum recommended by pet shops.

The hamster's wheel does run well and she has a lot of bedding, in some places it's 30cm deep. We ran out of chinchilla sand tho so she hasn't had a sand bath for a while which might be irritating, I noticed her scratching herself on a tube today so we ordered some more sand.

One thing I did notice is that yesterday we took her out for a longer time than usual, and when she returned to the cage she was more relaxed. She hasn't chewed for 24 hours.

After researching this for a while I really do think that it's a simple matter of her needing more space. A few studies I found pointed to the conclusion that Syrian hamsters (especially females, with males it's not as bad) aren't good candidates for captivity compared to other hamster species such as Dwarfs, which need far less space. We're going to aim to give the hamster about 3 or 4 square meters of cage space (basically taking up half my friend's bedroom) plus an extensive tunnel system going round the house, and extra free roaming time. Hopefully that stops the chewing lol.

The problem with the tunnel system thing is that so far all the parts I can find are extremely overpriced, can you guys recommend any cheap hamster tubes or DIY alternatives? And Ria P, cud u plz send me a link to a good Wimzee chew that your hamster liked? dont wanna get the wrong one, thank u guys