My hamster keeps chewing on the rim of her tank

HeyitsHolly

HeyitsHolly

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Hi! I’m new here. My hamster has an acrylic tank, and she’s taken to chewing on the black rim at the top. I don’t think she’s eating it but I’m sure it’s still not good for her.
I did some research and learned she might be bored/stressed so I got her some interactive feeding things and a bunch of chew toys. She also has a foraging toy and a wheel in her tank. I even bought her a playpen for when I take her outside her tank for more stimulation but can’t constantly be watching her explore.
She pretty much ignores the chew toys but she’s absolutely obsessed with the rim. Does anyone have any ideas of what I’m doing wrong? How can I help her?
 
Here’s the rim, you can see how chewed up it is. The black stuff in the left picture is the part she chewed off. I usually try to remove it as it comes up but I kept it there briefly for the picture.
IMG_3204.jpegIMG_3203.jpeg
 
Hello and welcome. That is a bit concerning. Do you know if the rim is plastic? It's possible she might end up eating some if she's chewed that much. Hamsters will chew at things to get out sometimes. I haven't seen a perspex tank like that before I don't think - which brand is it?

Is she a Syrian? Female Syrians are notorious for needing a lot of space. It might be that the tank isn't big enough for her maybe? Although she may just chew anything anyway! I'd try giving her some cardboard to shred for now to keep her occupied maybe. Cardboard treat parcels (you can make them out of toilet rolls), cardboard egg boxes to shred. We have a whole thread on things to make with cardboard! I'll link it.

www.thehamsterforum.com

Cardboard creations

Sprite is going to love that 🐹💕
www.thehamsterforum.com www.thehamsterforum.com
 
Thanks for your response! Here’s a little background on her:
She lived at a frat house up until last year - obviously a terrible environment. My brother and his girlfriend take care of her at college, and I take care of her on breaks. She was in a tiny plastic cage before and we were able to get a 20 gallon but that’s all we have space for at the moment. I know they do need a lot more space than that. It’s just a fish tank someone was giving away.
She absolutely loves shredding cardboard, she’ll go through two paper towel rolls in a day. That thread looks amazing! I’ll check it out.
One more thing: she’s actually a male, but the frat thought she was a female and that’s how we all still refer to her. Does the same rule apply where they need more space than usual?
 
Aw it's nice you're taking care of her. 20 gallon is way too small unfortunately. Male hamsters can be less maverick than females sometimes, but it depends on their personality - I have a maverick male! Either way, the recommended size in the Uk is 100cm x 50cm. In the US most people believe it should be the same but some people think a 40 gallon breeder tank is an acceptable minimum size (that's about 90cm x 45cm).

There aren't any barred cages big enough but there is one that meets the old Uk minimum of about 80cm x 50cm - which would be better than a 20 gallon tank, if you find a 40 gallon wouldn't fit or would be too heavy. However, if he/she is a chewer they may bar chew then.

Some people in the US make bin cages as you can get really quite large tote bins now - I think there's a 160 or 200 quart sterilite bin from Homemart - I'm not that up on bin sizes in the US though and for some odd reason, Homemart's website is inaccessible if you're in the Uk. like me! It would need a bit of diy though to make a meshed lid.

I think it's Petsmart (or Petco?) do dollar per gallon sales though - meaning you could get a 40 gallon tank for $40
 
Hi and welcome, it’s so difficult when they are chewers. Do you have some of the small dog whimzees in her enclosure maybe she would like those and chew them instead of the rim. The majority of all my chew toys were homemade with cardboard. Looks like she has lots of deep substrate, does she enjoy tunnelling.
 
@Maz, I’ve definitely learned that her tank is still too small for her to be completely comfortable. Unfortunately we just don’t have the space for a bigger tank. I’m still in high school and my brother has a small room back at college so it would be really challenging to handle that. I really do want to improve her life so I’ll keep trying, but I don’t have full control over what we can and can’t get.

@Zara I didn’t know they could eat whimzees! I do have a small dog so that’s great to know. She LOVES burrowing. When she still lived with the frat she didn’t even have two centimeters of bedding. I keep a lot more in now and she tunnels all over the place. I love seeing her little nose poke out whenever it’s time for dinner ❤️
 
Welcome to the forum! Could you use a toilet roll inner and cut it so that you can put it over the rim? Would the lid still fit over the cardboard?
 
I understand it's hard when you're short on space. But a 20 gallon tank is really really small! It's about 60cm by 30cm. If you can't fit a bigger tank or bin cage in - this could be an option. It also has a front opening door so it would be easy to have interaction with him/her and him/her come out easily for out of cage time (or even free roaming round the room if it's safe?). As a Syrian he/she will also need at least an 11" wheel or they can get spinal problems. I think it's unlikely he/she will bar bite in this cage - it is quite a bit bigger, but the footprint isn't too large - I think it would fit well in the same space you have now. It would be ok to have a bit of overhang if the cupboard it stands on is smaller. It would fit well on top of a chest of drawers eg.

If he/she did try a bit of bar chewing then you could weave cardboard through the bars. To achieve deeper bedding you'd probably need to put cardboard inside the bars anyway. The base would hold about 6" but more would be better.

It also has a shelf so it's somewhere else to go or to put items on to free up more floorspace :-) And an 11" wheel will fit easily.

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