Why Do Hamsters Make Clicking Noises
As pets, hamsters are among the cleanest and most sociable rodents you can have. The random, peculiar clicking noises a hamster makes are something you, as the hamster’s owner, may be familiar with. The question is, how often is that?
Why do hamsters make clicking noises? These could be a demand for attention or an aversion to silence, the growing of permanent teeth, emotional states, and improper sleep. Sometimes, major problems like acute pain, sickness, or stress can be traced back as the reason for the clicking sound.
You’ll have to call the vet if your hamster is making an unusually loud clicking sound. In this article, we’ll find out whether it’s a usual phenomenon or if there’s anything serious about it.
6 Reasons Why Do Hamsters Make Clicking Noises?
1. Bruxing/New Teeth
The hamster clicking teeth process is called bruxing. Bruxing is a process where a hamster sharpens its teeth to eat more hard food. When your hamster gets new teeth, it would love to rub its teeth together and make clicking noises. You might find it interesting that a hamster’s teeth keep growing, and that they keep getting sharper by rubbing against each other.
If you see that your young hamster is making some clicking noises while its teeth are growing, then that is fine. You do not need to worry about it. It’s just sharpening its teeth for the hard food that it’s planning to intake.
2. Expressing Emotion
First of all, there might be two emotional facts your hamster is making a clicking noise. The first one is if it is scared, and the other could be when it is happy. So how do you identify whether your animal is expressing its emotion in a scared or happy way?
If your animal is hiding in the back of the cage and making the clicking sound, it means that it is making the sound out of fear. It can be scared of any other animal, surrounding, or even of you.
On the other hand, if it is making a clicking sound after you give him some food or at running or playing position, then it might be happily making the clicking sound, probably doing it out of excitement. They might do this because they like you or are excited about something that you have done for them.
3. Need Space
One thing you must know if you have a hamster is that they are very cute and welcoming animals. You will find your best time if you are with the hamster, but sometimes you realize that it also needs personal time.
If you are too involved with your pet, it may make clicking sounds to pass you the message that it needs some me time.
4. Require Attention
Attention is one of the most demanding things that every pet wants from its owner. So basically, if you have a hamster, it also needs attention from you, even if you give it attention.
So if you see your hamster clicking noise, biting the cage, running around it, and becoming happy to see you, that means it wants your attention. You have to understand that you have to give them some time off from your entire day.
5. Feeling Disturbed
What will happen if anyone wakes you up from a deep sleep just to adore you? Isn’t that annoying?
The same goes for the hamster. Sleeping is a very important part of their lives, but alas, they have different sleeping patterns than ours. So, if you are tempted to wake them up from an unfinished sleep, they might get offended and start making clicking noises.
6. Respiratory Issues
If you see your hamster clicking noise with every breath, it could well indicate a respiratory issue. Whether or not it occurs in literally every breath, you have to look for other accompanying signs like fever, sneeze, cough, or respiratory distress.
Check the article for a detailed diagnosis. If you notice any of them accompanied by the clicking noise, call the vet right up to investigate whether there is anything serious.
What Happens When a Hamster Makes Click Noises? Should I Worry?
It can be yes or no, basically depending on the situation. For example, if you bought a hamster and moved it to a new location, it would require some time to adjust to its new surroundings.
So, give them some time to adjust to you and your environment, and during that period, while it is feeling uncomfortable, it might create some clicking noises. And that is absolutely fine.
Your animal can also make noise due to its emotion, need for attention, or, most importantly, when it is growing some teeth. They’re normal and you can stay relaxed about it. But sometimes the clicking noise can also be a source of tension for you, just because it is rare, you cannot just ignore it.
In many cases, the cause of the issue is that your hamster is suffering from a serious heart condition. Other reasons can include stress, pain, or that illness. This may be also the cause of the clicking sound.
The fact that it has no energy and can’t tolerate physical activity are both possible indications that it suffers from an illness. When hamsters breathe with their mouths open, it indicates that they are in acute respiratory distress.
How To Help Hamsters Making Continuous Clicking Noises?
To assist them at this time, you can keep the temperature in their enclosure at an appropriate level and ensure that it has access to fresh water at all times. If you have access to a veterinarian, you should seek their advice.
Lastly, to have a calm and content hamster, you will essentially just need to take care of it, provide it with the love and attention it craves, and ensure it receives adequate nutrition.
Do Different Breeds of Hamsters Make Different Sounds?
Yes, different hamsters make different noises according to their species or breeds. For example, a Syrian hamster is quite different from a Chinese hamster.
One likes to stay calm and spend time alone (the Syrian hamsters), while their Chinese counterpart wants more attention from their owner.
Moreover, Chinese hamsters don’t get as stressed as other breeds. So because of their generic formation, they have some unique voices to make when they are happy or sad.
FAQs
Are you interested in knowing more about this topic? Here are some of the most frequently asked questions.
Why does my hamster make odd noises?
Hamsters will sometimes cry or make a clicking sound when they are scared or upset. If you move your hamster into your house for the first time, you might hear this noise.
But hamsters are known to make noises like this when they are upset, so you might hear it at other times too.
What kind of noises do overwhelmed hamsters make?
The clicking sound is the most prevalent type of noise that whelmed hamsters produce. When the hamster is happy and relaxed, this behavior will typically occur.
Squeaking is another form of vocalization that can be heard from contented hamsters. Squeaking, on the other hand, can be an indication of many other things, including fear, pain, or hostility.
What does it mean if your hamster clicks its teeth?
If your hamster starts clicking its teeth, it means that its new teeth are growing which is very normal. This process is called bruxing where hamsters sharpen their teeth to consume harder foods.
Conclusion
One of the cutest and most amiable of all the animals that may be kept as pets is a hamster. Making sure their health and well-being are taken care of is a very sensitive thing to do. You may have been surprised in the past when you heard those occasional clicking sounds, but now you understand why they happen.
As we have explained above why do hamsters make clicking noises, you can find its root cause very easily now. So, if it’s making noise and you found out the cause, give your hamster the care it needs.
