Hamster Central - View Single Post - Hello and help with hamster biting large cage

Pebbles82 · 01-18-2021, 05:50 PM

I think the house needs to be bigger. It sounds like the trixie Leif one by the sound of it abd that is a bit cramped inside for a Syrian. A single room house 25 x 35 would be fine but a Syrian sized labyrinth house is usually about 42 x 30 with larger rooms inside. I have used the Rodipet one a few times and hamsters love it.

Apart from that it sounds like she is in a routine and just sees the monkey barring as part of it but it does sound a bit like running round and round stress behaviours if it is very repetitive and she doesn’t spend long on each activity. Although the cage is not that tall, she could hurt herself falling on the edge of the wood house. I put hemp mat on top of house roofs and shelves which cushions a fall and covers hard edges. You could also put it over the bendy bridge.

If she doesn’t seem frantic then she may just be having fun monkey barring. But it does sound like she needs a bigger cage.

In terms of when she wakes up, that is their most active time. You can get her in a routine of being woken earlier for feeding time - say 7 or 8 pm - with a bit of noisy cage rattling gently, when putting her food out and get her out then for some playpen time. That will give her more chance to burn off energy and taming time. They are in a different “phase” during the evening and often less maverick. Once it gets to late at night they are in night mode - their active time for foraging and running etc. If she doesn’t seem to want to come out earlier, despite being woken at feeding time, you could tempt her into a tube with a smelly treat at the far end - they will usually just walk into the tube to get the treat then put your hands over each end of the tube abd lift her out that way. If the playpen isn’t nearby then it’s an idea to have a box or hamster ball next to the cage that you can let her out into by opening up one end of the tube and carry her to the playpen that way. Carrying them in the tube can be a bit hazardous as they can push hard against your hand and make you jump or even push past yourself hand and fall.

Is your carpenter talking about a wood cage? I don’t think that would be a good idea or she could chew through it. Melamine board would be ok though.

01-18-2021, 05:50 PM
Pebbles82 Hamster Antics Join Date: Sep 2014 Posts: 23,533	Re: Hello and help with hamster biting large cage I think the house needs to be bigger. It sounds like the trixie Leif one by the sound of it abd that is a bit cramped inside for a Syrian. A single room house 25 x 35 would be fine but a Syrian sized labyrinth house is usually about 42 x 30 with larger rooms inside. I have used the Rodipet one a few times and hamsters love it. Apart from that it sounds like she is in a routine and just sees the monkey barring as part of it but it does sound a bit like running round and round stress behaviours if it is very repetitive and she doesn’t spend long on each activity. Although the cage is not that tall, she could hurt herself falling on the edge of the wood house. I put hemp mat on top of house roofs and shelves which cushions a fall and covers hard edges. You could also put it over the bendy bridge. If she doesn’t seem frantic then she may just be having fun monkey barring. But it does sound like she needs a bigger cage. In terms of when she wakes up, that is their most active time. You can get her in a routine of being woken earlier for feeding time - say 7 or 8 pm - with a bit of noisy cage rattling gently, when putting her food out and get her out then for some playpen time. That will give her more chance to burn off energy and taming time. They are in a different “phase” during the evening and often less maverick. Once it gets to late at night they are in night mode - their active time for foraging and running etc. If she doesn’t seem to want to come out earlier, despite being woken at feeding time, you could tempt her into a tube with a smelly treat at the far end - they will usually just walk into the tube to get the treat then put your hands over each end of the tube abd lift her out that way. If the playpen isn’t nearby then it’s an idea to have a box or hamster ball next to the cage that you can let her out into by opening up one end of the tube and carry her to the playpen that way. Carrying them in the tube can be a bit hazardous as they can push hard against your hand and make you jump or even push past yourself hand and fall. Is your carpenter talking about a wood cage? I don’t think that would be a good idea or she could chew through it. Melamine board would be ok though.