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mrgntrusdl
04-03-2012, 10:53 AM
My Sug likes to do figure 8's in her cage, which I've been told is unhealthy.
So I got her a metal wheel to help her burn off some steam.
BUT she wants nothing to do with it. How can I coax her into running on it?

Anne
04-03-2012, 11:38 AM
Metal wheels can a problem. Wish I could help with some words of comfort and wisdom.

stepnstone
04-03-2012, 11:58 AM
Metal wheels can a problem. Wish I could help with some words of comfort and wisdom.

I have no personal experence with them but from some of the posts I've read I would be inclined not to use one.
Maybe the little one needs more free run time, a larger cage or both. :dono
That's not saying that the figure eight runs or flips are always a bad thing. My little girl does this even when she's running free, she will jump back into her enclosure do some 8's , some flips and runs back out. Even her momma can say "give me flip" and she will do one for her, it's like a game to her to amuse her humans.

Kristal
04-04-2012, 12:56 PM
I think squirrels are a bit too smart for running wheels. They definitely need out of cage time to stay mentally and physically healthy, btw.

How much is your squee getting now? How big is the cage? Is she alone in there? They are very smart and social animals. Ideally they should get at least two hours of out of cage time per day and have at least one buddy to sleep and do grooming huddles with. They are prone to develop nervous habits like pacing and overgrooming - even to the point of self injuring when they are not able to meet their exercise, social and intellectual needs. They can get depressed and anxious just like a human would in a similar situation.

Jackie in Tampa
04-05-2012, 05:36 AM
Hi...if you are using a hamster wheel, it's not going to be big enough..
the bigger wheels without a middle bar going thru the center is advised.
The bar bracket has broken backs in the past, just a heads up...
The recommended wheel is a stealth. They have ball bearings, are quiet and fly!!!!vroom vroom!

I have one, but only a few of my flyers really like a wheel, but the ones that do, run to Paris and back every night!:D

I also have a WODENT wheel, it DOES have that crappy bar in the middle, but I have one guy that is calm when he runs, he uses it..
My other flyers hop around and spin..it's like a swing set to them...they play and hop in and out..they'll stop running in it and go round and round..getting dizzy I assume, cheap thrill:rotfl making it fun. Two will get in sometimes..madness!
I have to use vegetable oil on the wodent as it makes noise...the stealth is silent!:alright.gif until someone leaves a nut shell in it!..clunk bang pow!:jump sounds like a tennis shoe in the dryer!:D

ck amazon.com, I have seen them there before..
several sites carry them also.:thumbsup

Kristal
04-05-2012, 06:33 AM
OMG, Jackie, that sounds like so much fun to watch :) I can see them being inventive like that and teaming up or making it more like a circus ride, but I just don't think that the squees would go for them in the same way as the gerbils or hamsters do. It's too boring to run and run straight like that, and I expect that they would be frustrated by the futility of it. Probably a few of them would go for it, though.

Jackie in Tampa
04-05-2012, 06:40 AM
I have a grey sq here, Emma, she has acage but is not locked in...she runs around the house...then back to her cage, does 4-5 flips and then out and back to terrorizing the house..
I will admit she is 'special' but she's got it together enough to do what ever she likes...
and she likes doing flips...
i think she's happy when she does them...
some sqs will get in a nuero pattern, there's nothing you can do.
I had a flyer that repeated her pattern, I gacve her more space,. she just did bigger circles...
then she got pregnant, had babies and never circled again...
:dono
I swore it was a nuero imbalance..
:dono
I think she was personally loney for something and babies were the answer...in her case!
Every sq is different, thank goodness!:Love_Icon :)