Bar chewing?
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River
Oreoandfriends
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Bar chewing?
by Oreoandfriends Wed 30 Dec 2020, 10:51 pm
Hello!
For Christmas I bought my male mouse Fabio a Prevue 528! I packed it full of climbing toys and things to do. He previously lived in a 110 quart bin cage that was a bit smaller than this cage and had a lot let room for climbing. Fabio LOVES climbing so I decided that a barred cage might give him more climbing mobility and he’s certainly using it to his advantage.
When I first put him in the cage, he seemed to be pretty confused by the bars. He was climbing on the for a solid couple hours and sticking his nose through. A day later, he started biting them quite a bit. At night he doesn’t seem to do it as much (although I’m usually asleep) but during the day he usually wakes up a couple times in the afternoon and chews the bars for a while. I don’t think it’s caused by boredom because it’s a new cage with new toys that’s a great size, but I’m not sure what the reason is. He never chewed on his last cage and he also has plenty of different chew toys to work on.
It’s almost like he gets fixated by the bars and forgets about the rest of the cage and I’m not too sure what to do about it.
Any advice is appreciated, thanks!
For Christmas I bought my male mouse Fabio a Prevue 528! I packed it full of climbing toys and things to do. He previously lived in a 110 quart bin cage that was a bit smaller than this cage and had a lot let room for climbing. Fabio LOVES climbing so I decided that a barred cage might give him more climbing mobility and he’s certainly using it to his advantage.
When I first put him in the cage, he seemed to be pretty confused by the bars. He was climbing on the for a solid couple hours and sticking his nose through. A day later, he started biting them quite a bit. At night he doesn’t seem to do it as much (although I’m usually asleep) but during the day he usually wakes up a couple times in the afternoon and chews the bars for a while. I don’t think it’s caused by boredom because it’s a new cage with new toys that’s a great size, but I’m not sure what the reason is. He never chewed on his last cage and he also has plenty of different chew toys to work on.
It’s almost like he gets fixated by the bars and forgets about the rest of the cage and I’m not too sure what to do about it.
Any advice is appreciated, thanks!
Oreoandfriends- Sr Member
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Re: Bar chewing?
by River Thu 31 Dec 2020, 5:27 pm
Is the cage super cluttered?
If he's only doing it when you're around, maybe he wants out.
I'd weave some paper or cardboard through the bars to distract him and make sure he has a variety of materials to chew on.
If he's only doing it when you're around, maybe he wants out.
I'd weave some paper or cardboard through the bars to distract him and make sure he has a variety of materials to chew on.
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Re: Bar chewing?
by Oreoandfriends Thu 31 Dec 2020, 6:56 pm
River wrote:Is the cage super cluttered?
If he's only doing it when you're around, maybe he wants out.
I'd weave some paper or cardboard through the bars to distract him and make sure he has a variety of materials to chew on.
I’ll try that! I can also start taking him out of the cage when he starts chewing if I’m able to so he can run around on my bed. I’ll attach a picture of the cage, I personally think it’s pretty packed with toys but maybe I need to add some more. Thanks!
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Re: Bar chewing?
by SarahAdams Sat 02 Jan 2021, 10:00 am
That cage decor is fabulous!
IMO, taking him out when he's bar chewing would be a reward and encourage him to do it more. If possible it would be better to distract him from the bars and then immediately take him out when he's not chewing.
I hope something will work for you!
IMO, taking him out when he's bar chewing would be a reward and encourage him to do it more. If possible it would be better to distract him from the bars and then immediately take him out when he's not chewing.
I hope something will work for you!
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Re: Bar chewing?
by Oreoandfriends Mon 04 Jan 2021, 5:31 pm
Thank you!SarahAdams wrote:That cage decor is fabulous!
IMO, taking him out when he's bar chewing would be a reward and encourage him to do it more. If possible it would be better to distract him from the bars and then immediately take him out when he's not chewing.
I hope something will work for you!
That’s a good point, I definitely don’t want to encourage it more. It seems like he’s been slowing down a bit with the chewing but I’ve noticed that he really only does it on the front panel which happens to be the barest area. I think I’m going to move around his toys a bit so he has more things to interact with at the front and hopefully it helps! Other than that I’ll keep taking him out for his daily play time when he’s not fixated on the bars, hopefully he’s just a little confused by them right now and he’ll stop eventually
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Re: Bar chewing?
by SarahAdams Mon 04 Jan 2021, 5:56 pm
He might be kind of freaked out if he's not used to bars. My mice got quite distressed when I moved them into their new big bin cages and out of their small barred cages, but they got over it in a week or two.
Bar chewing is more serious, though, and hopefully, your little guy will learn to love his fantastic new home which looks like Mousie Heaven! With all my pets I learned that ignoring unwanted behaviors and rewarding good behavior always had desirable results. Mice are brighter than I had thought and quite capable of learning such things.
Bar chewing is more serious, though, and hopefully, your little guy will learn to love his fantastic new home which looks like Mousie Heaven! With all my pets I learned that ignoring unwanted behaviors and rewarding good behavior always had desirable results. Mice are brighter than I had thought and quite capable of learning such things.
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Re: Bar chewing?
by WBCarson Mon 11 Jan 2021, 6:28 pm
My experience with rats and mice is.....
Their teen continue to grow. The bars provide a nice hard surface to wear their teeth down.
I put a unshelled brazil nuts, walnuts, hard pieces of wood in for them to chew on.
When i first started with rats i had to have their front teeth trimmed at the vets
After that i always put hard objects in for them to chew on.
Mice are runners too. They get bored easy. I have some very good wheels i found that turn free, "flying saucers" and such in the
aquarium as well. They run for hours. Go grab a seed out of the bowl, head back and run again. Sometimes i will leave the bowl out
and scatter and bury seeds and such for them to root and hunt for.
I always get my rodents in pairs too. Especially females.
Handle them often.
Their teen continue to grow. The bars provide a nice hard surface to wear their teeth down.
I put a unshelled brazil nuts, walnuts, hard pieces of wood in for them to chew on.
When i first started with rats i had to have their front teeth trimmed at the vets
After that i always put hard objects in for them to chew on.
Mice are runners too. They get bored easy. I have some very good wheels i found that turn free, "flying saucers" and such in the
aquarium as well. They run for hours. Go grab a seed out of the bowl, head back and run again. Sometimes i will leave the bowl out
and scatter and bury seeds and such for them to root and hunt for.
I always get my rodents in pairs too. Especially females.
Handle them often.
Last edited by WBCarson on Mon 11 Jan 2021, 6:32 pm; edited 1 time in total (Reason for editing : Forgot a few points.)
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Re: Bar chewing?
by River Mon 11 Jan 2021, 11:21 pm
WBCarson wrote:My experience with rats and mice is.....
Their teeth continue to grow. The bars provide a nice hard surface to wear their teeth down.
While it's true that their teeth grow consistently, bar chewing is very unhealthy behavior. It can break teeth, cause hair loss, and damage the skin. More in-depth video about that here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0g7L5BS0K8
I see you've given some nice suggestions for alternatives, though! I just thought I'd mention why we like to redirect that behavior and have them chew on more natural surfaces.
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Re: Bar chewing?
by Dee67 Sun 17 Jan 2021, 6:07 pm
Hollowed out coconut shell makes a good hidey hole and a good teether.
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Re: Bar chewing?
by Oreoandfriends Sun 17 Jan 2021, 8:41 pm
Thanks for all the suggestions!
He has lots of chew toy options in his cage and a wheel (which he’s slowed down on lately but still loves).
I ended up tying some chew toys to the bars and he started chewing those instead, and now he barely chews the bars at all! He only really chews them when I come into the room in the afternoon and he wants to be held
I think you guys were right that he was just a bit nervous about the bars at first, thankfully he didn’t end up with any hair loss or damage from it. I’m very thankful that I won’t need to switch him back to the bin!
He has lots of chew toy options in his cage and a wheel (which he’s slowed down on lately but still loves).
I ended up tying some chew toys to the bars and he started chewing those instead, and now he barely chews the bars at all! He only really chews them when I come into the room in the afternoon and he wants to be held
I think you guys were right that he was just a bit nervous about the bars at first, thankfully he didn’t end up with any hair loss or damage from it. I’m very thankful that I won’t need to switch him back to the bin!
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Re: Bar chewing?
by Sparkles Wed 20 Jan 2021, 8:15 pm
That cage isn't big enough. Research how much a mouse moves in a typical day. Your mouse needs more space and is trying to get out of its cage so it can get the space it needs.
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Re: Bar chewing?
by Oreoandfriends Wed 20 Jan 2021, 8:48 pm
My cage is the Prevue 528 which has the dimensions of 32.5x19x17.5, offering over 600 square inches which is triple the recommended bare minimum. I can assure you that the cage is not only big enough, but it is also very enriching. If you are still worried about the cage I have then I recommend you research the Prevue 528 and the standards for ethical mouse housing.Sparkles wrote:That cage isn't big enough. Research how much a mouse moves in a typical day. Your mouse needs more space and is trying to get out of its cage so it can get the space it needs.
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