Thought we picked a good wheel but getting negative feedback on facebook

by Spukky Mon 29 Apr 2019, 11:30 am

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So this is a pic of the wheel we got, would you guys say this is a safe wheel or not?
From the info on here i thought yes, but now I'm not sure anymore.

by Peachy Mon 29 Apr 2019, 12:07 pm

Safe. Not commonly considered safe for hamsters, but just fine for mice. Many of my mice over the years have actually preferred these to a solid wheel. And they were great when babies were around! If momma got to running too fast, baby would just cling on.

by Spukky Mon 29 Apr 2019, 1:07 pm

That's what I figured from the research I did but when I mentioned this when showing my setup on facebook I got some very negative comments on various mice groups.
Mostly on toes and feet getting stuck in the mesh or tailes getting damaged from the crossbar.

by MerciToujoursMaPetiteBoop Mon 29 Apr 2019, 3:24 pm

Even if hamsters can hurt themselves, it doesn't stop 'em from giving it a go:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fd8vl5LJoM8

My little April didn't seem interested in her blue mesh wheel during my awake hours, but when all the lights were out and that wheel was in her house, I'd hear SQUEEKIE SQUEEKIE SQUEEKIE SQUEEKIE SQUEEKIE SQUEEKIE SQUEEKIE SQUEEKIE ... all night long. Then I put a dab of olive oil on each side of the axle and all I heard all night would be whirrrrrrrrrrrrr whirrrrrrrrr whirrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr whirrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr...

by Peachy Mon 29 Apr 2019, 11:46 pm

I’ve never heard of any pet getting body parts caught in a mesh wheel. The mesh squares on a wheel generally aren’t big enough for a foot to slip through, and mice tend to hold their tails away from anything it might get injured on. This is sometimes why you see “wheel tail”... if the wheel isn’t big enough to stretch out, the mouse will just curl the tail around to her back to keep it safe. That can happen in ANY wheel. Injuries could also very easily happen with one of the older types of barred wheels, maybe that’s where some confusion and misinformation stems from.

I have heard of toenails getting snagged in wheels that come in two parts, like silent spinners. The more common concern with mesh is foot issues, which is more likely to occur if your pet is living on a wire or mesh floor, not just running a wheel.

I know we’ve had this discussion a million times, many members have received the same criticism for their mesh wheels. If you’re comfortable with using the wheel, and there’s no good reason not to be, you may have to just ignore naysayers and do you.

by Sparrow Tue 30 Apr 2019, 4:57 am

I understand why you would be worried. I have owned hamsters for years before I got my mice and I knew for a fact that wire and mesh wheels caused bumbefoot on hamsters so I thought that the same would be true for mice. After doing my research I found that while it happens to hamsters, it doesn't happen to mice. The wheel is in fact safe for them.

As log as you are comfortable using it for your mice, I do not see why you wouldn't use it Smile

by Spukky Tue 30 Apr 2019, 6:41 am

After getting the negative feedback and posting here I did some extra research, read through some more old topics here and we concluded we would keep the wheel.
No one in the nay group gave any good info or personal experience why not to have a mesh wheel.

So I'm ignoring the negative feedback and just doing what I feel is good from my own research and the very helpfull feedback and info from this forum.

Our 3 females are coming tonight, we are picking them up after work. Very much looking forward to our first mice.

by Spukky Wed 01 May 2019, 8:43 am

Hey everyone,
So our 3 little mice moved into their enclosure yesterday. They spend the whole evening exploring, climbing and running in their wheel. Using the mesh they do loopings in the wheel, really funny to watch.

Also great tip to use olive oil to prevent the wheel from squeaking when turning.

Just one thing that concerns us a bit, on occasion one mouse is running and another wants in to use the wheel as well.
A few times we noticed that the mouse trying to run in got hit by the crossbar. Mostly this was just a tap on the nose.
Is this something the mice need to get used to? is this just harmless?

by Peachy Wed 01 May 2019, 3:35 pm

They seem to learn to stay out of the way and slow down for each other to jump on or off. It looks terrible but I’ve never seen any injuries come of it. Watching the loops is so much fun! Sometimes wish for a giant mouse wheel. Day Dream

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Thought we picked a good wheel but getting negative feedback on facebook

Thought we picked a good wheel but getting negative feedback on facebook

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Re: Thought we picked a good wheel but getting negative feedback on facebook

Re: Thought we picked a good wheel but getting negative feedback on facebook

Re: Thought we picked a good wheel but getting negative feedback on facebook

Re: Thought we picked a good wheel but getting negative feedback on facebook

Re: Thought we picked a good wheel but getting negative feedback on facebook

Re: Thought we picked a good wheel but getting negative feedback on facebook

Re: Thought we picked a good wheel but getting negative feedback on facebook

Re: Thought we picked a good wheel but getting negative feedback on facebook