Wooden toys for teddy bear hamster

Question
Hi Jedediah,

I have a teddy bear hamster. Her name is Jessie and she's 15 months old. I have her since she was just over 2 months old. We have bonded together very well.

I've noticed that she's biting the bars of her cage lately. I've researched a little bit about that behavior. What I read says that it could be 1# Caused by lack of food #not the case because I refill her bowl every evening 2) Boredom and/or willingness to be picked up and taken out of the cage 3)Instinctively to shorten its teeth.

The second one could be, therefore I try to pick her up when I catch her biting his cage. However, I was wondering if the sole wood branch that she has on her cage is not enough to gnaw enough. Therefore I would like to hear your recommendations about other wooden or chewable "toys" that I could provide her.

Your response on this matter will be greatly appreciated.

Best regards,

Lou

Answer
Dear Lou,
thank you for your question.
Cage bar gnawing is usually a sign of boredom and/or a too small cage. It can turn into a stereotypical behaviour very quickly.
Too keep her entertained, you can offer her cardboard tubes/boxes and toilet paper rolls, egg containers and twigs and branches if you have access to trees that don't get sprayed. Hazel (corkscrew and normal), beech, birch, poplar, elm, willow, apple, pear, prune, currant, oak, maple and birch are all suitable for hamsters, including the leaves. The bark contains a lot of minerals as well. Cork tunnels are great chewing toys.

You can hide food in crumpled paper or in cardboard boxes or scatter it in the bedding, hamsters spend a lot of time searching for food in the wild and just walking up to a full bowl is boring for them. A tablespoon of food is enough for a hamster per day. You can also offer millet spray and ears of wheat, oat or barley, if you can get those so that the hamster has to work for its food. Clamp fresh food between the bars of the cage or thread it on a piece of string.

Changing one piece of furniture/toy per week will give the hamster something new to explore and won't stress it. The house and wheel should always stay the same, though. If you can give her time outside her cage in a hamster-safe room or a hamster play pen, then I really recommend doing that. Hamsters really love to run and even when living in a huge cage, they love to spend time outside it.

I hope I was of some help to you
Jennifer