Bar biting / shaking

[ChinchillaSteve]

Few days back I bought a new cage.
In the former cage one of my girls would often bite the bars, shake them.

Now she started doing it again, now in her new cage.
This is getting annoying as the bars are starting to look "ugly"

Is there anything I can do to stop or at least temper this habit?

 

[Stackie]

I had a boy that used to do this...I have found that as long as I have a bunch of toys in his cage, he seems to stop. I put a new hanging toy in every week or so and some other chew toys every night.

 

[ChinchillaSteve]

I had a boy that used to do this...I have found that as long as I have a bunch of toys in his cage, he seems to stop. I put a new hanging toy in every week or so and some other chew toys every night.

I'll try with new ones.
She now has a new hanging toy, but she pushes it away to reach the bars :impatient:

 

[Stackie]

He gets bored easily so I try to "enrich" him kinda like zoos do..I hide apple twigs all over his cage. It's fun watching him run around and try to find them. He has learned that I do it every night so he immediately goes into scavenger hunt mode )

 

[Brittany]

Lily does it when she wants my attention, mostly to let her out. Lady has been watching her and is starting to copy the behavior. No suggestions, but I feel your annoyance!

 

[Sierra]

Lily does it when she wants my attention, mostly to let her out. Lady has been watching her and is starting to copy the behavior. No suggestions, but I feel your annoyance!/QUOTE]

Sedona does the same thing and it's only at night. She has done it enough to make a few of the bars pointy and sharp. After we move, I have to sand them down before I scrub and wash the cage before I put everything in it again.

I think they do it for attention and they want playtime. I try to give the girls fresh chew sticks every couple nights and take out the chewed ones and put them away for "emergency" sticks if I run out but I haven't had that problem yet.

 

[Laurie]

I don't think there's much you can do Michiel--sorry! Bobo has always been a cage shaker and biter. I will say she does it less in the Ferret Nation cage though, but when she's throwing a hissy fit she still does it!

 

[Lynn & The Chins]

Mr. Whiskers started doing it to get my attention when he was younger and a single chin.

I used behavior modification. When he started rattling the cage bars, instead of going to him and REWARDING this behavior, I immediately left the room, so that I was not there to have my attention "gotten".

They are very smart creatures, so it didn't take him too long to associate the bar rattling with me leaving the room. I started giving him a treat if he just sat there and kept staring at me, but not acting like a little prisoner running his cup against the bars!!!

Good luck...

 

[Brittany_Lynn]

Mork used to do the same thing until I got his wheel, and now he does it only when he wants attention. I will walk away until he stops, then come back in and let him out and play with him...he is very affectionate at that time, so IDK if I'm reinforcing the behavior, but I don't really mind because he will sit on my shoulder while I walk around, and not try to jump off. Generally, cage rattling = boredom + need for attention

 

[CJR]

Mr. Whiskers started doing it to get my attention when he was younger and a single chin.

I used behavior modification. When he started rattling the cage bars, instead of going to him and REWARDING this behavior, I immediately left the room, so that I was not there to have my attention "gotten".

They are very smart creatures, so it didn't take him too long to associate the bar rattling with me leaving the room. I started giving him a treat if he just sat there and kept staring at me, but not acting like a little prisoner running his cup against the bars!!!

Good luck...

That is the best idea EVER. Thank you for posting it!