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(I apologize if this is better suited for a different threat, I couldn't decide which one fit the best)
Problem: Hamster chewing on metal bars of cage at night.
When I first joined the forum I read a long threat about bar chewing (can't find it now) and it had great advice. We've tried many things. The cage is quite large with several levels, there is a big area for nesting/digging, wheel, food, toys, chew sticks, plenty of places to hide. We got him some of the Whimsee dog chews that were suggested on that other threat and he loves them but still chews on the bars at night.
We are careful when cleaning the cage about not upsetting his nest and hoard. He seems happy and active when awake and all his other behavior is normal for a hamster. When I talk to him, he comes to the cage bars and is ready for a treat (he doesn't always get one, but he knows it's a possibility!). He gets playpen time. His cage is cleaned regularly. All the other things I read about but he still chews them at night. The big issue is that it wakes me up and it either continues and/or I have difficulty getting back to sleep. For various reasons, there isn't a good place to put the cage other than the bedroom, so simply moving the cage is not an option. Anything else we can try? He has plenty of other safe items to chew and he does chew on them too, but also the bars.
Problem: Hamster chewing on metal bars of cage at night.
When I first joined the forum I read a long threat about bar chewing (can't find it now) and it had great advice. We've tried many things. The cage is quite large with several levels, there is a big area for nesting/digging, wheel, food, toys, chew sticks, plenty of places to hide. We got him some of the Whimsee dog chews that were suggested on that other threat and he loves them but still chews on the bars at night.
We are careful when cleaning the cage about not upsetting his nest and hoard. He seems happy and active when awake and all his other behavior is normal for a hamster. When I talk to him, he comes to the cage bars and is ready for a treat (he doesn't always get one, but he knows it's a possibility!). He gets playpen time. His cage is cleaned regularly. All the other things I read about but he still chews them at night. The big issue is that it wakes me up and it either continues and/or I have difficulty getting back to sleep. For various reasons, there isn't a good place to put the cage other than the bedroom, so simply moving the cage is not an option. Anything else we can try? He has plenty of other safe items to chew and he does chew on them too, but also the bars.
Do you have a photo of his cage set up? We might be able to offer some tips. When you say it has several levels, it sounds like it might be quite tall. That can sometimes have some falls risks if it's tall. The tall cages also can have a smaller footprint/floor area. Unless it's a rat cage? Also when you mentioned cleaning out regularly - that can cause stress behaviours - depending on how often you clean him out and whether it's a partial or full clean. It's difficult once it's become a habit, but a few tweaks to his set up might help