Fur chewing-help! :(

[sammys]

Possum, my 4 year old mosaic, started fur chewing. I thought it was separation anxiety when I moved out so I recently brought him to my house but it didn't get better I haven't changed around his cage, food, water. Still has just as much attention. What do I do? Is he just stressed? Should I rehome him?


I don't know if this has anything to do with it, but when he was a baby he had seizures so the vet had us add vitamin b to his water for about 6 months. It's been 2 1/2 years since.

 

[tunes]

Rehoming will not do anything except possibly make him chew even more. Fur chewing is genetic, but it can be triggered by environmental factors. It's very possible that when you moved out he developed anxiety about it and started to chew. It's also possible that now that he's back with you it will stop or become minimal. It takes a while before the fur grows back in, so be patient and see what happens. It sometimes helps to provide rotating chew toys as well as keeping them in a more quiet place, but it just may be who he is now. It doesn't affect him in lovability, just in looks.

 

[kerri101]

I have a fur chewer.....there are some days she will chew and then periods she will go without chewing.....I agree with tunes rotating the chew toys and keeping a calm loving environment helps a lot...My chins fur chewing actually has subsided a bit since I make sure to mix things up for chin-chin

 

[sammys]

Oh ok thanks for the advice, I will do that I guess I assumed fur chewing was bad but that make sense. Any more advice is always helpful!

 

[jbcstratton]

I have had a male that chewed the hair on his tail, since I have not had him do it again. Sometimes the stress gets to them. Just be patient and see what happens.

 

[ticklechin]

I had a 17 year old chewer who chewed since he was a kit, no health issues.

 

[Essentia]

I had a 17 year old chewer who chewed since he was a kit, no health issues.

I have a 9 yr. old fur chewer who has chewed since I got him at the age of 4. No health issues with him either. He's also a severe fur chewer. If he can reach it, there's no fur.