Wheel chase / bite?

by Degare on Wed 04 Jan 2017, 12:23 am

So, I have my two mice; Pumpkin and Walnut.
They got along perfectly at first, being very cute together. Nesting, grooming, playing.
Then when they got the new big tank, every time pumpkin would run in the wheel, walnut would chase her out of it. She didn't even want to run in it herself; she would just chase her out and around the cage, then they'd go back to doing "whatever".

Today however, Walnut not only chased her, but bothered her enough that she started squeaking (a lot). I broke up what I could only assume was a fight. Pumpkin seemed grateful for this, and gave me kisses.

Not two minutes later, and Pumpkin is running in her wheel again - and Walnut comes over to chase her out. But this time, instead of chasing her, she gets on top of her and bites her back. Pumpkin cries and tries to run away, Walnut holding on and being dragged through the cage via Pumpkin's back. Took me about one and a quarter second to respond to that.

No blood was drawn, but Pumpkin was clearly not happy, and crying about it a lot.

Pumpkin is safe (running in her wheel as though nothing happened).
Walnut is isolated in the critter keeper with food, water, and the igloo.

... What the heck?
Why the change in behavior?
Why was she chasing and then biting her?
Why for a wheel that she didn't even want to run in?
Should I keep them isolated?
Should I take Walnut back to Petsmart for her aggression?

I know that last one sounds cruel; but in all reality I got Walnut to keep Pumpkin happy, not to beat her up.

Note: Pumpkin's cage got an upgraded home of a paper-mache mansion.

by AnonymousMouseOwner on Wed 04 Jan 2017, 12:48 am

Sounds a lot like when I introduced Lilac to the rest of my girls. Was their behavior anything like the video I posted here?: http://petmousefanciers.forumotion.com/t1115-video-lilac-meets-the-girls

If so, what I did to fix it was put the wheel on "time out" for a few days. The fighting stopped after I took it away, which helped determine Blossom was just too obsessive over her wheel and didn't want another mouse running on it. Before you put it back in, I'd wipe it down with dawn dish soap or a cage cleanser from the pet store, so it doesn't smell like the mouse who thinks she "owns" the wheel. Good luck!

by Degare on Wed 04 Jan 2017, 3:20 am

I'm going to use this "time out" session as a golden opportunity to tame up Walnut (it's much easier to "catch" her in a critter keeper)... That, and with her sitting right in front of my face while I'm on the computer, she can see me and her me and smell me almost constantly even when she's not out.

After she's (nearly) as tame as Pumpkin, I'll be re-introducing her to the larger tank... If the fighting continues, then I'll remove the wheel for sure.

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