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Hamster DIY - Suspended Tunnel-Bridge

One of my DIY toys for Tim is the Suspended Tunnel-Bridge:



Equipment:
Natural String
Thick cardboard tube
Screwdriver (or anything to make a hole) 
Scissors


I bought my thick cardboard tube and natural jute string from my local pet store, they were both pretty cheap. I think the thickness of the cardboard is quite important as it needs to be quite sturdy, a toilet roll would not be suitable for this... no hamster injuries! Also natural string is a must because hamsters love to chew and 'normal' string is full of icky chemicals which cause upset tummies. 

My tube was waaaaaay to long in length so I cut it down to a suitable size. (I say cut... I ended up using a saw due to the thickness of the cardboard.). 


Then I used a screwdriver to put two holes into the top of the tube near to each end. 


I knotted my string at the end making sure the knot was big enough so that it couldn't slip through the hole in the tube. 


I threaded the string through one of the holes I'd made in the tube and cut the string to the length required. 


I did exactly the same on the other side of the tube; knot - thread - cut. Done. 


Now just to fit it into the cage. There are different ways to attach the suspended tunnel-bridge to the cage such as just knotting the string onto the cage. I decided to use clothes pegs so that it's easier to detach the toy from my cage and I can easily vary the hight of it.  


To do this I put one of the strings through the cage lid clipped the string into a peg wrapped the excess string around the peg tightly and clipped the last little bit of string into the peg nice and securely (P.S. this is how I keep my embroidery floss tidy For example). I did the same again with the other piece of string.

Before Tim could get his paws on his new toy I made sure the tunnel-bridge was secure. To do this I tugged downwards on the tunnel-bridge quite firmly making sure that it did not come loose.

Now he can enjoy his new toy:




Fluffy bum!

HI


Safety! 
  • Make sure you are with an adult if using any tools to make hamster toys.
  • Make sure any items you put in the cage are hamster safe.
  • Don't place the Suspended Bridge/Tunnel high above the cage floor and make sure there is lots of lovely soft-squishy-bouncy bedding underneath the Bridge/Tunnel just in case the little one falls. 
  • Check the natural string often to make sure that it has not been chewed. If it has remove the bridge/tunnel or replace the string. We don't want any collapsing toys.


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