Preference for bedding material in Syrian hamsters (2006)

Lanteigne, M., Reebs, S. G.

Abstract

In a first experiment, 26 male hamsters had access to two connected cages, each cage containing a different bedding material (either pine shavings, aspen shavings, corn cob or wood pellets). In a second experiment, 14 male hamsters had access to four connected cages that contained the different bedding materials and also a piece of paper towel to serve as nest material. In a third experiment, 30 male hamsters were each placed in a single cage, 10 of them with pine shavings, 10 with aspen shavings and 10 with corn cob, and they were monitored for 50 days. Significant preferences in the first experiment were: pine shavings over aspen shavings, corn cob over wood pellets, pine shavings over corn cob and aspen shavings over wood pellets (aspen shavings versus corn cob was not tested). However, there was no significant preference expressed in the second experiment, suggesting that the general preference for shavings in the first experiment was based on bedding material suitability as a nesting material.