Chewing the metal bottle spout - risk to teeth?

[muddy_dragon]

Recently Storm has taken to chewing the metal spout on the water bottle. He's never been much of a chewer before - cardboard and wood are always left immaculate.

i've checked the waterbottle and it's working fine so it's not a problem there, i've also been keeping a dish of water in his cage to be doubly sure. Due to all plastic parts being on the outside he's not at risk of losing all the water but i am worried if it could damage his teeth (currently his teeth are fine). Does anyone know if this is a risk and if i should consider swapping to a dish more permentantly? If it's not a problem i'll probably just modify the bottle a bit so it's not so noisey when he gnaws on it.

thanks in advance

[Skeever]

I've had a rodent or two who fell madly in love with the water bottle metal parts. Like a bar chewer, I figure its not good for their teeth? While the spout of a water bottle probably provides limited ability to really lock the jaws on it and chew, it may be safer than the bar twanging , but the hams that went for that often went for metal backings on hanging bottles too....it will be interesting to get feedback on the bottle chewers out there...and solutions if it requires one?

I imagine it happens for the same reasons bar chewing does....boredom, feeling claustorphobic or wanting attention? Problem is , those chewing activities become addictive and an end unto itself for hamsters who get hooked on it?

[muddy_dragon]

thankyou

Atleast i don't have to worry about the metal attachmnets to the bottle, it's a ZZ2 so he can't get at any attachments.

i've been wondering about the reasons too suddenly starting after close to a year of having him. I double checked his wheel which is fine (karlie wonderland ~30cm). I doubt it's claustrophobia, he normally gets to freeroam the living room when i'm about downstairs. and he shouldn't complain with a ZZ2 :P

I do confess i find it difficult to come up with distractions for him in his cage as he's just not interested in chewing cardboard, so all my treats in various cardboard things ideas that i used with banoffee just don't work with him.

i did spend a few weeks just feeding + watering him and without getting him out (I had severe labyrinthitis so was extremely sick and dizzy it was a battle just to go downstairs and feed him, couldnt risk getting him out as i was so unsteady i was so scared i might tumble and squish him). So i do wonder if it started then and now he's just got addicted?

I'll wait for any other imput then I might take the bottle out for a few weeks and just have the water dish, then maybe re-try in a few weeks and see if he's got over it.

[Skeever]

Chewing puzzles me. My hams ignored their chews forever, then suddenly 'discovered' them. Zig in particular has done a real job on his whimzee in the last two weeks, whereas before he could care less. Same goes for wood chews. I never know what they like chewing, till....well, they chew it ....

Some people recommend putting a sweet/treat on a a chew, like a bit of peanut butter so they develop an interest in the thing. Dunno if even that works a hundred percent...but even cardboard tubes that they seemed to ignore forever can one day become history should they decide to give it their undivided attention, lol....

See what happens removing the temptation, then replacing it. Or replace it when its clear he has fallen in love with a new chewey

Keep us posted

[kyrilliondaemon]

My bigger worry with it is that when chewing the spout they often ingest a fair bit more water than they need and I think I've heard thats unhealthy. We swapped our bottle chewer to a bowl pretty quickly to be on the safe side

[Pebbles82]

Charlie sometimes chews at the bottle spout - or bites it rather - but it seems to be when he isn't getting much water out of it, then I see a few bubbles go up in the water bottle and know he has got some, and then he stops biting the metal end. Have you checked the water is coming out ok muddy?

Charlie has two of those whimsies now - the toothbrush disappeared into his house immediately. The crocodile I had put in the sputnik then took it out because he couldn't get at it very well in there, so I put it on the substrate - that has disappeared now as well. I don't know what they put in those things to make hamsters go potty for them! Charlie never takes anything into his cage except food. His old chewstick he would have near the house entrance, but not take inside. Now these two whimzies/antos chews have been whisked in there! He must be having quite a party in that house.

[Skeever]

They do taste okay for a chew toy. I tried nibbling on one.

He's probably got them set up like dolls at a little girls tea party. Just because they're solitary doesn't mean they don't have imaginations. What better room mates than ones who never talk back and you can eat them if you are so inclined? None. That's who!

[muddy_dragon]

Thanks guys, some really helpful info there. I'm also glad to hear about the not interested in chewing suddenly becoming intererested.

I might try putting some penut butter on one of wood or carboard chews. He does chew his rice bone/crocodile/hedgehog (i only have one in at a time) at least.

I don't think he's ingesting water as he very obviously chews to the side of the spout so the end is not near his mouth (he occasionally gets a wet chest though due to that).

The water comes out fine, i tested it and have seen him happily using it normally.

I tried taking out his water bottle and just using the dish and i genuinelly think he essentially shoved two fingers (toes?) up at me. He ran around a bit, then climbed ontop of his house (he has a big house which provides another level for him) reached up and had a go at the mesh on the lid *sigh*. So the bottle has gone back in and he's leaving the bars alone for now. I'm buying some polycarbonate sheet to go over that half of the top of the tank (as described in the managing bar chewers bit, so i can then remove the bottle without worry of him becoming a bar chewer!). I genuinelly think that was a "oh oh you're removing my bottle i'm chewing ae you?! well i know what you would like even less, yes i'm going to chew the bars NOW GIVE IT BACK!"

[kyrilliondaemon]

lol it sounds like he knows what he wants then... Sadly what he wants is you to suffer chewing Good luck with him

[Skeever]

Hamster 1, Human 0