Molly

[RainbowBrite]

I can just imagine your shock as I was shocked when I saw Sprite was monkey barring on the cage lid. She reminds me of Sprite a lot!

 

[Maz]

She’s just been out again. Saw her sitting at the cage door meerkatting - and yes a pleading look like sprite. She had a few minutes in the play bin but clearly just wants to get out of it. So I set up some barricades on the sofa. An upside down cardboard box with a door in it and blocked off the rest of the sofa with my bag and camera bag. And my legs! So she could leave the box and roam on one cushion of the sofa. Well she was soon climbing the back of the sofa but I lifted her down. She then got onto the arm of the sofa but when I reached to pick her up she jumped off. And had a mini free roam behind a cupboard. Thankfully she walked back into the tube when I put it down.

Yes she is keeping me on my toes!

I checked last night’s nightcam footage - it did record when she was out but long gaps when it didn’t detect movement. Which is annoying. Most of the time she was foraging and wheeling but she did monkey bar across the roof again. The annoying bit was it was in a dark corner and the camera didn’t start recording till after she was up there - I suspect she may have climbed the water bottle holder and got up in that corner!

 

[Maz]

If that is the case then front perspex only isn’t going to be enough.

 

[Maz]

Look at the top left corner at the start You can just see her eyes up there - then she moves across the roof. By the way the picture is really good quality on the new camera - if I can just work out the settings so it doesn’t stop and start recording! It missed how she got up there.

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[RainbowBrite]

She really is trying to escape! Hopefully once she is settled she will stop. Even now Sprite still tries to escape but not as bad as he used to.

The camera has a much better quality picture. Maybe you just need to fiddle around with the settings to set it to record constantly.

 

[Jain]

Look at the top left corner at the start You can just see her eyes up there - then she moves across the roof. By the way the picture is really good quality on the new camera - if I can just work out the settings so it doesn’t stop and start recording! It missed how she got up there.

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It took me a while to spot her but when I did it was "oh my goodness me " the little monkey literally

 

[elusive]

I don’t see it as trying to escape so much as exploring all the boundaries, it’s just what they do!

Could you put some strips of cardboard on the top bars to stop her maybe?

 

[Maz]

There is three inches of perspex round the top bars! All round the cage. Except at the front - because of the door height, the panel that fits above the door is only about 1" and has a small gap where the door latches fit in - that's where I saw her getting a foothold yesterday. Last night though, on that video I couldn't see if she got up that way or maybe climbed up to the 3" of perspex and on top of the water bottle holder - or if she had just monkey barred across to that corner.

Yes she's just doing what hamsters do! Exploring and looking for a way out maybe.

 

[Maz]

I think she's going to need a full enclosure. It's not that far to fall but .........

 

[elusive]

Sorry I meant on the roof bars not the top of the side bars.

 

[Maz]

That’s a good point.

 

[Frida]

Just catching up with Molly.
Molly is definitely giving Raffy some competition with her antics

 

[Maz]

Maybe I'm too old for two maverick hamsters ha ha!

 

[elusive]

I know the feeling!

 

[Zara]

Just catching up and I don’t really have any suggestions for the monkey barring. I can hardly believe quite how long she holds on for, moving around before it looks like she returns to the route she took up and then jumps back down. Little tinker. Hopefully she’ll stop doing it. Perhaps she’s looking for you, not realising it’s too late. Maybe in time if you stay with your routine she’ll just stop doing this?

 

[Maz]

Thank you Zara. Yes it's interesting she only did it shortly after I went to bed but not the rest of the night.

 

[Jain]

Sometimes I think we tend to look for reasons for certain behaviours and often figure it out but could it also be that they are just doing things because the can and enjoy it

 

[Maz]

I think she probably is enjoying it. She seems pretty good at climbing and getting down again and it isn't too far to drop, but yesterday evening I did watch her drop onto the substrate, hence deciding to remove the Rainbow Bridge as that would be hard if landed on. And a bigger drop than most other things. She was actually sitting on the rainbow bridge as I tried to remove it and wouldn't budge lol. Even when I lifted it up - but she did move off it eventually.

 

[ilguy]

That's unfortunate Molly keeps trying to escape, I wonder what she's stressed from? The enclosure looks big and deep enough, and there's enough to do.

It's so early on, maybe just give her a few interaction free days to re-settle in? Or maybe it's Raffy's smell, she's trying to leave his territory?

I hope you're able to figure it out, she seems very sweet and friendly in all the interactions you guys have had.

 

[Maz]

I just gave Molly a bit of cheesy scrambled egg on a teaspoon. She wasn't sure about it so I put it on her food dish. She then seemed more interested in the spoon and was about to walk on the handle - I had visions of the egg being catapulted onto the side of the cage So moved the teaspoon down to the substrate. She still hasn't eaten it! Funny little thing,.