# In-Cage Wheels - Opinions? Usage?



## Tao.and.Laughter (Jan 24, 2015)

I wasn't sure if this was a home or more of a behavior question - Do you have an exercise wheel in your furball cage? Do you find that they use it/enjoy it? Is there one you suggest over another?

The one we have for the girls is a Silent Spinner, and Pan pretty much has a cow whenever I remove it for more than ten minutes to give it a wash (she eats/runs/sleeps/poos/LIVES in the thing). I've tried offering a replacement for such occasions, using a Comfort Wheel (same size, 12", but it's a heck of a lot cheaper) and she won't touch it.

The boys don't seem to know what to do with a wheel. The Comfort Wheel, at any rate. I haven't tried a Silent Spinner with them yet.

Any suggestions?


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## autokate (Mar 17, 2014)

I bought my boys a Wodent Wheel quite a few weeks back and Mr Watson has been the only one to check it out. I've seen him go in it maybe three times lol! Twice to sniff around and one time he walked and rotated the wheel maybe twice haha. I've heard that boys are usually less interested in wheels, but thought I'd try anyway. Feels like a waste of money to me, but it's all good since my goal is to offer a good quality of life


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## Jess <3 (Jan 23, 2014)

I had a wheel a few years ago that only one of my girls used (she disliked coming out to free range and if given the choice would prefer to have the cage to herself while her sisters were out playing). If Pan enjoys it then that's great but i wouldn't worry too much about her being without it for a few minutes, some rats can be stubborn but that doesn't mean we should bend to their every wish! 

As for your boys, my experience with males would suggest that they'd probably not use it at all, they tend to be lazier and more interested in food and comfort than exercise while in their cage. My boy Casper has to practically live free in my room since he sleeps the whole time he's in his cage and puts on too much weight! Obviously all rats have different personalities and can't be generalised entirely by their gender.


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## raindear (Mar 3, 2015)

I had a Wodent wheel and my rats used it quite a lot.


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## Mojojuju (Nov 15, 2014)

I jut have the rattle-rattle-rattly Kaytee 12 inch wheel. My girls LOVE it. They run like madwomen, sometimes both in there at the same time! Of 9 boys I have owned, six used the wheel, five of them constantly. One of them would only use a saucer wheel, and four of those six were taught by me to use the wheel almost as soon as they opened their eyes. They knew what it was, and learned to like it.


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## jensenee (Apr 4, 2015)

My boys think a wheel is something to sleep under. Hahaha. I ended up just taking it out after a couple months. They didnt care about it. Little bums.


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## Jackie (Jan 31, 2013)

I have three girls. 
Wodent wheel: 1/3 runs on it, 1/3 used to run on it but she's older now and too lazy to, and the 3rd does not run on it. 
Saucer: All three: "Mom why don't you just burn your money instead of cluttering our home with this nonsense."

No boys yet but I've heard very few actually have interests in wheels.


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## ponderosa (Oct 13, 2014)

My boys have a large flying saucer, but only one of them (the bodybuilder who likes to exercise) uses it with any regularity.


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## kksrats (Jul 25, 2014)

My very first male rat years ago would just knock over his wheel and build a nest inside of it. None of my boys now are interested in them either. My girls on the other hand have two in their cage (both the generic wire mesh wheel) and they run constantly. What's funny is that while I'm taking everything out to clean and they're free ranging, if one of the wheels touches the floor they're all there trying to run on it like it's some shiny new fun thing lol. My girls get pretty concerned about me taking their things out to clean as well, but a little seed mix scattered on the floor makes a nice distraction so that I can actually get things done without little nosy girls running all over my hands.


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## DustyRat (Jul 9, 2012)

Of the 6 rats I have owned, only my Jet will use the wheel. The other 5 have ignored it.


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## Chunker (Mar 7, 2015)

Yeah....I setup a webcam to watch my new rats play, fight, eat, sleep, do rat stuff, and I have yet to see them use the wheel. I'll give it another month or two but after that I'll take it out and put more hammocks in or something else...


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## nanashi7 (Jun 5, 2013)

Milo (male) and Circe, Demetria, Persephone, Ophelia, and on occasion Echo all love to run on the wheel. Interestingly, any rats of mine that weren't introduced to the wheel by week 6/7 never took to it. The others I spent time showing them the wheel and praising them for using it. Demetria flipped when I moved the wheel from one part of the cage to another, and immediately began running on it - what she does when scared. Ophelia runs on the wheel during free range when she gets antsy.


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