Agitated Hamster

Question
I have just read your answer to the 'Biting and Hanging' subject line from 12 Nov 2006.
I am having similar problems with my hamster, he is approx 3 months old now, we have a rotastack cage which we change each week there is plenty of room(s), 2 wheels, chews, toys, tubes and separate dining room which he adores but just lately he spends all night biting the bars within the round rooms after reading blowing gently on them or gently tapping their nose we tried this which worked until last month, now if we do either he gets agitated and does it more and more, its now got to the point where he can do it for hours on end. We have stopped treats this week to see if it maybe his diet which is affecting his mood but this hasn't helped either. Each night we dread going to sleep, we have to sleep with a light on and get 3 hours most nights.
Please help!!  

Answer
Dear Trish,
thank you for your question.
I highly recommend getting a different cage for your hamster. I googled for pictures of the rotastack cages because I'm not familiar with them and even with plenty of accessories, those cages are a joke. Hamsters need lots of floor space to run and dig. The plastic tubes are not very well ventilated and can cause repiratory disease apart from the fact that they can be gnawed and then may harm or even kill the hamster. The cage bar gnawing is a sign of boredom and frustration caused by the lack of room.

A 20 g with a wire lid make a good hamster home and can be bought cheaply at garage sales or pet shops (ask for leaking tanks). Check the ads in your local paper for them, www.craigslist.org and www.freecycle.org are other options. The tank must be wider than high, though, to ensure proper ventilation. Old cupboards ect. can be converted to hamster homes, too. Go as big as you can because hamsters have tremendous energy and need huge cages, a lot bigger than pet shops say (they want to sell those expensive plastic things instead of comparatively cheap tanks after all).
Here are some picture of home-made hamster homes or combined cages:
http://www.diebrain.de/pix/hi/MorphiGehege001.jpg
http://www.diebrain.de/pix/hi/MorphiGehegeNeu002.jpg
http://www.diebrain.de/pix/hi/julia/Schnobsigehegeoffen.jpg
http://www.diebrain.de/pix/hi/Emma1.jpg
http://www.diebrain.de/pix/hi/NeoGehege002.jpg
http://www.diebrain.de/pix/hi/shriek/voliseite.jpg
http://www.diebrain.de/pix/hi/SabineGehege001.jpg

I hope I was of some help to you
Jennifer