How far do you run?

I recently purchased bicycle computers for the hedgehogs' exercise wheels. I purchased 1 of them to determine if one of my hedgehogs was running at night (healthy check). For Cooper I bought one just because I thought it would be entertaining to see what he really runs at night.

I have always thought that Cooper runs all night long on the fact that whenever I wake up at night he is running. I now have proof.

Cooper ran 5.5 hrs last night. He clocked in at a max speed of 2.2 mph and logged 6.2 miles.

He has only had his computer for 1 full night, so I'm now curious to see if this is his average night, if it was a slow night, or a really busy one.

Does anyone else have a monitor hooked up to their hedgehog's wheel? I'd love to see what other hedgehogs are logging.

Holy cow!! That is really interesting. What a busy hedgie he is.

I did for Kipper, his best was 13 kms. I have since re-attached the bike odometer to Greyson's wheel as I believe he wheels for very long periods of time. He decided he didn't appreciate the big brother thing and on the very first night, managed to remove the magnet from the back of his wheel. It is fairly large so no worry of him swallowing it, however it was removed, carried to the opposite side of his cage and then pooped on. His wheel registered 0.0 kms that night though he had clearly had the messiest and likely the longest run of his life. Silly bugger.

I am stubborn though and will try again. Any suggestions on where to hide the magnet...?

That is freaking amazing!

Amazing our tiny wheelers

I kept wheeling records on Geoffrey for 2+ years and am now doing the same on our foster hedgie Jake for 6 months.

One time Geoffrey wheeled 7-1/2 hours and recorded almost 12 miles overnight, but on average he wheeled somewhere between 4 to 6 miles per night until he was 3 years old. His average speed was just over 2 mph. His maximum speed varied but reached 10 mph occasionally. His fastest record was 14 mph. After his 3rd birthday, G started to slow down and wheeled only 2 to 4 miles per night, rarely reaching the 3 hour mark. In total, he wheeled over 2,000 miles from when he was 1-1/2 years old till a month short of turning 4 years old!

:youman:
Jake is now 3-1/4 years old but hasn’t lost his stamina like G did. He recently recorded 13.86 miles over 6-1/2 hours. Jake’s average speed hovers 2 mph or less. His max speed rarely reaches 10 mph, so Jake is definitely more of a long-distance runner.

:youman:
I strongly recommend everyone to install a bike computer to monitor how far and how fast your hedgie wheels every night. It’s not only fascinating to realize how much exercise your hedgie does each night after you went to bed but also it gives you an invaluable tool to keep tabs on your hedgie’s health. If you’re willing to spend 5 min each morning to keep records on your hedgie's wheeling data along with food consumption, bowel movements, etc. certain patterns will emerge after a few months and they will tell you a great deal of the state of your hedgie's health.

Based on my own experience keeping detailed records on two hedgehogs, I'm afraid the records are unlikely to "prevent" health problems from occurring, however, they do lead you to an "early detection" of both minor and major health issues. Since an early detection is the most important and probably only key to saving a life in some cases, it's well worth taking the time and keeping the records on your hedgie. :thumbs:

That is so neat! I had NO idea they were that active!

April, I attached an extra strong magnet to Coopers to allow us to put it further away from the sensor.

I went to a hobby store and picked up a "seriously strong" magnet. I don't know about others, but all the bucket wheels I have, have a section that always points downward. The skate is installed in the center, but the back of the wheel/bottom of the bucket are not exactly weighted evently. We figured out which section always points upward when there is no hedgehog on the wheel and attached the magnet to that section of the skate with handy-tack (non-toxic). Cooper cannot touch this stuff unless he does something to spin the wheel downward and locks it in place.... considering he is a hedgehog, he may figure out a way!

And I will agree with attaching one of these to your wheels just as an activity monitor. I had originally gotten one because I couldn't tell if Rose was running or not. She has never been a wheel pooper and I had not caught her running on her wheel lately. She is running, but not much. I also got one for Poptart who always has a poopy wheel. I didn't know it, but Poptart isn't as active as I thought she was.

I tried to do that for Ronnie, but I never could get it to work. I should try it again - I'd love to know Phoebe and Xander's stats.

would like to know what kind of bike computer is used and how to set it up. weeble does not like to have anyone watch him while he runs I can hear him at night but i really don't have any idea for how long or how far. it would be great to know how much exercise he's getting. thanx

Hey where did you buy the bike computers?
I want one for my hamsters

I used a Schwinn 12 function bicycle computer. Looks like this one: http://www.amazon.com/PTI-Schwinn-12-Function-Computer/dp/B000068CJZ

I paid $10 for mine from a local Meijer (kinda like a super walmart). When looking at bicycle computers ensure you get one that will wake up when there is activity. Some of these things go to sleep to save battery life and only wake up when a button is pressed, not useful for trying to track hedgehog activity.

Cool thanks!
Yes I know Meijer, I'm in MI too

. That was more for those people who do not have the privilege of having a Meijer nearby. But they were cheaper there than anywhere I found online (I didn't look that hard though).

You don't need to spend a fortune for a decent bike computer. Wired ones go for about US$10. Wireless ones are easier to install and create less clutter, but they cost a lot more (US$40+).

Bike shops sell "high-quality" bike computers that are significantly more expensive (e.g. famous brands like Cateye, SIGMA, Shimano, Polar, etc.), but I don't think it's necessary to use a high-end one since your bike computer will never be exposed to harsh sunbeams, rain, drizzle, sleet, hail, temperature changes, or dirt.

At first I used a very cheap Taiwanese bike computer that was kicking around in my desk drawer for years (maybe longer than 10 years). It only had a few basic functions like the total distance, trip distance, and current speed. You could pick up a Taiwanese bike computer similar to I was using on eBay for less than US$1 nowadays. Even with its shipping charge, it costs less than US$5. However, in a long run, it's worth paying a few more bucks and get a better-made product such as Schwinn at Target, Wal-Mart, Canadian Tire, etc.

I've been using two Filzer dB4L Cyclocomputers purchased at a discount sporting goods store called Mountain Equipment Co-op. They offer 10 functions displayed on a big 4 line screen with large-size buttons for reset and screen change. I'm quite happy with them.

If anyone is interested, I can post a few photos to explain how to install a bike computer to your hedgie's exercise wheel as I found the old photos I posted on CnQ a couple of years ago; let me know.

P.S. Jake wheeled 14.64 miles over 6 hours and 55 min two nights ago. It's his new record! His max speed was 7.5 mph and average speed was 2.1. During the 200 days since he came to us he has wheeled a whopping 1,047 miles in total!!! :bow::shocked::bow::shocked::bow:

Wow! That's an impressive run. Should I feel bad that a hedgehog with legs that are a couple of inches long at most has a faster average running speed than I do? :rofl:

AlbertaGirl said:

Should I feel bad that a hedgehog with legs that are a couple of inches long at most has a faster average running speed than I do?

Click to expand...

:hilarious: It sounds so pathetic when you think of it, doesn’t it? Jake is making me feel bad for not exercising despite my New Year’s resolution too.

The few people who I've told how far he runs have had similar responses.

We had one really busy night recently, 9.6 miles in 7.5 hrs. His max speed is pretty consistent at 3.9mph and somewhere around 1.3 being average. We have had a series of very slow nights lately, with only 2-3 miles being ran. We have been having thunderstorms at night and all of my hedgehogs have reacted by running a lot less.

These bicycle computers are very entertaining. I have added a new field to my weight/health charts to record distance ran.

I'm going to buy a bike computer today. How do I attach it to the wheel? Do I place the computer inside or outside of the cage? I'm afraid my hamster might chew on the cable or on the computer itself.

Ippo456, take a look at the diagram posted for a Japanese gadget called “Hammy Counter”. It gives you a good idea of what goes where.

“Hammy Counter” is designed for hamster wheels and is a wireless device. It works fine, but a bike computer is better as it calculates the distance for you, where as the “Hammy Counter” only gives you the number of revolutions and you need to do the math to figure out what it translates to in miles/kilometers yourself.

The key is to ensure the magnet and sensor are very close (much closer than the distance indicated in the diagram above).

Hedgies don’t chew on things, so it’s pretty safe to use wiring. However, if there’s a risk of your hamster chewing on the wiring, make sure that the wheel is mounted on the side of the cage, and the sensor & display monitor together with the wire all sit outside of the cage. Or if you can afford it, use a wireless bike computer.

I used a non-toxic, reusable, play-dough-like product called “Handi-Tak” to stick the magnet on the back of our hedgie’s wheel. Hopefully, your hamster won’t chew on it.

For your reference, here are several photos of two bike computers installed on our hedgie’s wheel. I installed two units just to make sure the readings are accurate - a normal person would install just one. :clown:

Good luck! :thumbsup: