How do I stop my new hampster from biting its cage?

Question

I got a hamster today and it will not stop biting its cage. I have no idea why it's doing this and it is very annoying. I read that biting the cage can cause teeth to get chipped off and brain damage. Does anyone have any idea why it is biting its cage and how can I stop it?

Answer 1

The cage may not be big enough for the hamster. Bar biting is often attributed to boredom and stress as well. I would definitely look into all of these possibilities. Especially since your hamster is new, it will be very stressed out and anxious. If the cage is small, get a bigger one. Provide plenty of places for it to hide. Provide wood based chew toys, a good variety of foods, etc. Once the hamster is settled in(could take up to a month, but normally a week or so) handle the hamster on his own terms. That means allowing him to come out of the cage instead of him just being grabbed and yanked out. Also, handle him in the evenings or early mornings when he's most active.

Answer 2

kepp feeding the goodies

Answer 3

well you can't they do it for fun like a hobby sometimes so just make sure the cage is tightly closed especially the door, because my hamster bites it so much he opens the cage that way and sneaks out, so twist a rubber band on the door lock, and around the cage, put him where you can't hereb the noise, and bite away!

Answer 4

He is bored, my hamsters do it all the time, when they get tired of running on their wheel, they chew to try to get out. Whenever they do this, I put them in their run-about balls, or hold them for a little while.

Answer 5

he may be bored. my guinea pig did this and we put some nasty flavor on the bars so she wouldnt. make sure whatever you put on the bars tho is not toxic

Answer 6

put some new things inside

eg.toys

Answer 7

Put a toilet paper roll in their, he'll chew on that instead of the cage =)

Answer 8

hammies bite their bars to wear down their teeth. if they did  not do so, they would quickly grow to the  point of being painful. give your hammy plenty of wood to chew on. plain uncolored craft or ice cream sticks are good. also, try a birdies chew toy.

Answer 9

my hamster did that till the day she died( and she lived to be 3.5 years!).  i tried everything to stop her, short of putting her in a aquarium.  the thing i found that made her stop for a short while putting a bitter spray made for dogs to stop chewing on the bars she normally bit.  she eventually went back to it, but i didn't try it till she was older. hopefully you can stop yours before it gets too old

Answer 10

boredom... stress of new home... dont worry. give him toys and treats like veggies. that will keep him chewing!

Answer 11

Well, when getting new pets like rodents, you should buy them a little block of wood. They chew on them and it keeps them busy.

Answer 12

bar biting is usually boredom or stress...

more toys, more places to hide, and give it time to settle in...

Answer 13

it could just be board. give it some toys and play with it a lot. also get a roll ball for it to roll in around the house. it may just sit there the first time u put it in there but after a while it will be rolling all around the house. make sure it soes not roll down any stairs. also put lemon juice on where your hamster chews and when it tastes the lemon juice it will usually stop.

Answer 14

Mine did that too it was bored and felt a lot better when we took it out but that's a problem at this point. For a short term fix, (really short term) lightly (very lightly) tap it's snout. It will go away as to not get tapped.