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10-23-2017, 01:10 PM
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#1
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Hamster Pup
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: Yorkshire
Posts: 129
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Do my robos need separating or is it just play fighting?
Hi all,
A couple of days ago I bought my first pair of robos, they have a big cage and two of everything. I have noticed that they sometimes have a little scrap and chase each other around also when one is on its wheel the other jumps on. Is this normal play fighting behaviour or should I move them apart?
It never lasts very long and they don't seem to hurt each other..
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[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC owner of a very spoiled princess
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10-23-2017, 02:16 PM
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#2
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Hamster Antics
Join Date: Sep 2014
Posts: 23,533
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Re: Do my robos need separating or is it just play fighting?
Hi there. Signs of fighting are worrying. If you've only had them a couple of days they will have been unsettled by the change. Are there any levels in the cage? Do you have two wheels? It is normal for them to try and run on a wheel at the same time but if you have two wheels they don't need to get territorial over it. Some people have one larger syrian sized wheel and one smaller dwarf wheel - the larger wheel is easier for them to run in together.
Levels will make them territorial and so will tubes. What cage do you have? Do you have a picture? Some slight changes might help if it's territorial behaviour.
It is very common for pairs to need separating. I would keep a very close eye on it over the next day or so and you may need to be prepared to separate them. If you don't have a spare cage, a large plastic storage bin would do as a cage temporarily.
Best not to do any cleaning or moving things around for at least two weeks now to give them chance to settle. But obviously if there is a level or some tubes that are causing an issue, removing them could help.
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10-24-2017, 12:29 AM
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#3
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Hamster Pup
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: Yorkshire
Posts: 129
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Re: Do my robos need separating or is it just play fighting?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Serendipity7000
Hi there. Signs of fighting are worrying. If you've only had them a couple of days they will have been unsettled by the change. Are there any levels in the cage? Do you have two wheels? It is normal for them to try and run on a wheel at the same time but if you have two wheels they don't need to get territorial over it. Some people have one larger syrian sized wheel and one smaller dwarf wheel - the larger wheel is easier for them to run in together.
Levels will make them territorial and so will tubes. What cage do you have? Do you have a picture? Some slight changes might help if it's territorial behaviour.
It is very common for pairs to need separating. I would keep a very close eye on it over the next day or so and you may need to be prepared to separate them. If you don't have a spare cage, a large plastic storage bin would do as a cage temporarily.
Best not to do any cleaning or moving things around for at least two weeks now to give them chance to settle. But obviously if there is a level or some tubes that are causing an issue, removing them could help.
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Thanks for the adviceThe cage is a hamster heaven cage, it has no levels and I have two wheels for them. I am going to watch them today and tonight.
__________________
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC owner of a very spoiled princess
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10-24-2017, 02:06 AM
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#4
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Hamster Antics
Join Date: Sep 2014
Posts: 23,533
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Re: Do my robos need separating or is it just play fighting?
The Hamster Heaven is a great cage and it all sounds fine if you don't have the levels in and two wheels. I have seen a lot of people recommending one larger open wheel and one smaller one - it's easier for them to run together in a larger wheel. What wheels have you got at the moment? I think the HH comes with a small wheel already. An 8.5" comfort wheel or even an 11" open wheel could be good as an extra. The 8.5" comfort wheel isn't expensive, but depends if you want a quiet wheel or not!
They might settle if they've just moved. You could try scatter feeding as well as or instead of having food bowls - that also helps reduce territorial behaviour.
Maybe add another house as well - even if you have two of everything, sometimes a third thing helps or a house that's big enough for them to both fit in and has more than one entrance (so one can get out if the other blocks the door). A shoe box or tissue box can make a good house and just cut entrance holes where you want - maybe one at the front, one at the side and one on top? If the two houses are quite small and they both want to get in the same one it could be an issue possibly?
I think it was Tammy the Robo breeder who mentioned sometimes having 3 things for a pair can help - more options
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10-24-2017, 02:17 AM
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#5
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PM Fluffy for custom title
Join Date: Mar 2016
Posts: 4,545
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Re: Do my robos need separating or is it just play fighting?
Comfort Wheels may not be as bad as Silent Spinners(which I think have a design flaw making them unsafe anyways since it can come apart where the two colors meet and cause a dangerous gap,although this is more well known in the hedgehog community),but they're a wheel I'd never recommend if you wish to keep your sanity!
Separating wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing,regardless of behavior.There's a lot more than can be done in terms of enrichment.Group living of same sex pairs in the wild likely wouldn't happen anyways
Last edited by velma; 10-24-2017 at 03:17 AM.
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10-24-2017, 06:39 AM
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#6
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Dwarf whisperer
Join Date: May 2014
Location: Wales UK
Posts: 24,789
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Re: Do my robos need separating or is it just play fighting?
It sounds as though you're doing everything right for them, the move will be a bit unsettling but hopefully they'll calm down & continue to live happily together once they've had a little time to adjust.
If there's any prolonged scuffles or louder squealing then they made need to be separated, just keep a close eye on them for now.
As Serendipity said scatter feeding rather than using bowls is best if you don't do that already.
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Always loved, never forgotten, forever in my heart
T'ycor, Ziggy, Zephyr, Flynt, Mickle, Little Whisp, Zen, Zeki, Tinwë, Zylvan, Míriel, Calyanwë, Gusto & Meri ❤️
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10-24-2017, 01:50 PM
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#7
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Hamster Pup
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: Yorkshire
Posts: 129
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Re: Do my robos need separating or is it just play fighting?
Thank you everyone for the comments. Very helpful
__________________
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC owner of a very spoiled princess
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10-24-2017, 01:52 PM
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#8
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Hamster Pup
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: Yorkshire
Posts: 129
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Re: Do my robos need separating or is it just play fighting?
I have noticed that one of the hamsters seem so to be out playing whilst the other one hides away more. Is this normal?
This is only what I am noticing whilst I'm awake, it may change later during the night
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[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC owner of a very spoiled princess
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