hi guys on today's video I would like to answer the question why is my hamster
bar chewing or bar climbing and how do I stop my hamster from doing that. So bar
chewing and bar climbing are most likely signs of stress or boredom. I've seen a
few videos on YouTube which cover this topic already. some have really good
advice but also unfortunately some tips are really harmful to hamsters. For
example rubbing lemon juice on your hamsters cage. Lemon juice is way too
acidic and just solves the symptom but not the cause. So today I'd like to
encourage you to look into the signs or hamsters giving you so you can adjust to
the needs of your hamster. The first thing you want to look into is your cage
size, because a small cage can cause bar chewing and bar climbing. The minimum cage
size in the USA is 450 square inches while in the UK it is 620 and in Germany
where I live it is 775sq inches. So please make sure you have
the right size and also consider even though you meet these minimum
requirements your hamster doesn't know in which country it lives. all your hamster
cares about is space so you might want to upgrade your cage if you can because
every hamster is different. some need more space and some are happy with the
minimum cage size even my hamster chews sometimes although he lives in a cage
with more than 1,000 square inches. If you have the resources to upgrade then
you want to get a tank or a bin cage because if there aren't any bars then of
course your hamster can chew or climb them at all. if you can't upgrade then
these following tips might help you too. Give your hamster more bedding in their
natural habitat hamsters live underground and dig
tunnels some of them won't start digging unless there's enough bedding in their
cage. In the US it is recommended to have at least 6 inches of bedding in
Germany it is 10 inches, but again every hamster is different. Even if you already
have this amount of bedding try to add more if you can if you put hideouts and
tunnels in there it can help to encourage your hamster to start
digging too if you can't because you have a cage with bars try to connect it with
a big cage for example to put more bedding in there or cover the sides of
your bar cage with cardboard so the bedding doesn't fall out. The next thing
you can try is changing the layout. Put a hideout right there where your hamster
likes to chew the most so it can get to the bars also you can add more hideouts
DIYs and boredom breakers like treats in a toilet roll. You can find some DIYs on
my channel if you want to check them out. Try to scatter feed normally hamster
search for the food so by scatter feeding them it will encourage them to
search for the food and keep them occupied. Mine spends a lot of time doing
that so I would recommend not to feed your hamster with a food dish at all but
just switch to scatter feeding it. The last thing and maybe most important one
is to give your hamster playtime outside of its cage. In nature they have a ton of
space. A study has shown I quote the welfare of pet golden hamsters in cages
with a minimal ground floor area of 10,000 square centimeters seems to be
enhanced compared for smaller cages I will put a link of the study in the
description if you're interested in that so of course you don't have to get the
biggest cage in the world but just notice that perhaps in a small cage in
comparison can't make them happy over time you can get a playpen and put
hideouts toys and a wheel in there for your hamster to explore or even better
let your have the free room. My hamster for example only chews on this cage if
he wants to go outside for some playtime. I let him run around for one or two
hours until he's tired out but again every house is different, some need more
and some need less time outside. if your hamster's not tame yet but still wants
to go outside you can try to put it in the bathtub with a towel in there or a
playpen and getting with a tunnel or a box so you don't have to touch your hamster
and scared it. Please never put your hamster in a hamster ball though, because they
have bad vision and explore their environment with their smell, their ears and
whiskers. In a ball they are basically blind and they can hurt their little
feet if they get stuck. If you don't have enough space then a playpen is always
the best option. If you cannot let your hamster run around at all then neither
you nor your hamster will be happy in the long run. By chewing and climbing the
cage they're basically telling you that they need more space or playtime and if
you can't provide it, then the possibility of changing your hamster's behavior is
really low, unfortunately. So these are all the tips I have for you if you have
any questions please leave a comment down below I will try to answer them all
and if you liked the video please give me a like and subscribe to my channel.
See you next time thanks for watching