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Pebbles82 · 11-02-2022, 08:42 AM

Ah yes - I'm not a fan of the swapping things around to stop them getting bored as I do think they like stability and familiarity. Some hamsters may accept the changes better than others.

I had to change the set up in my cage very slightly recently, when a house needed replacing, which means moving the wheel and changing the access to the shelf. He wasn't bothered about the wheel being moved but was quite thrown and confused for a few days about the changed access to the shelf. Kept going to the wrong end and looking confused, then found it again. They really do get into routines.'

However relieving boredom and sameness is something that can be done now and then as well. I tend to do that by adding a different treat stick or something. Adding anything new always perks up their interest, but you can't do that too often or you'd have no space left! So I keep to foody things mainly. As well as the hamster mix in the bowl our hammy gets an "extra" on top of a flat hide (he knows to go looking for it!) and some little treats like sunflower seeds up a ladder or elsewhere in the cage. And add a new treat stick now and then.

I put the veg at the opposite end of the cage on a dish. So they get a routine of hunting for food! And know where to find it. I started doing that initially for a shy hamster to get him to use the cage more.

11-02-2022, 08:42 AM
Pebbles82 Hamster Antics Join Date: Sep 2014 Posts: 23,533	Re: Changing cage set up Ah yes - I'm not a fan of the swapping things around to stop them getting bored as I do think they like stability and familiarity. Some hamsters may accept the changes better than others. I had to change the set up in my cage very slightly recently, when a house needed replacing, which means moving the wheel and changing the access to the shelf. He wasn't bothered about the wheel being moved but was quite thrown and confused for a few days about the changed access to the shelf. Kept going to the wrong end and looking confused, then found it again. They really do get into routines.' However relieving boredom and sameness is something that can be done now and then as well. I tend to do that by adding a different treat stick or something. Adding anything new always perks up their interest, but you can't do that too often or you'd have no space left! So I keep to foody things mainly. As well as the hamster mix in the bowl our hammy gets an "extra" on top of a flat hide (he knows to go looking for it!) and some little treats like sunflower seeds up a ladder or elsewhere in the cage. And add a new treat stick now and then. I put the veg at the opposite end of the cage on a dish. So they get a routine of hunting for food! And know where to find it. I started doing that initially for a shy hamster to get him to use the cage more.