# Travel Cages?



## Hatchet_Chick (Sep 4, 2008)

I will be moving from Arlington to Houston next summer and was super unsure of what would be best to use as traveling cages?

I have seen several open-aired carriers and closed carriers.

I was thinking about maybe the smallest kind of dog/cat carrier for the older rats that can't slip through the bars?

http://www.petco.com/product/11496/Small-Animal-Kingdom-Small-Animal-and-Bird-Carriers.aspx Do these work?
http://www.petco.com/product/10316/PETCO-Kennel-Cab-Portable-Kennels.aspx Do these work at all? What kind of water bottle would you use so the water doesn't splash everywhere? but they can still drink?

What food is best for them during the trip? If I placed two carriers side to side would the males and females be able to mate through the bars? I've heard that can happen.

Can anyone help? I know I've seen DIY cages but they were kind of confusing. And I was not sure if they were able to be stacked and still get air into them.


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## lovinmyworm (Feb 18, 2008)

I have one that is kind of like the second one you posted, but I got it at walmart instead because they are only $7 there. My rats can't squeeze out of the bars at all, and my friends super small females can't either. I hang a hammock (use paper clips to hang it from the vent holes) so they have 2 levels inside there. They just jump into their hammocks and go right to sleep the second the car starts moving. When I stop to take a restroom break I give my rats a chance to drink some water. I would offer the water bottle at rest stops, and feed foods that are higher in water content like celery, grapes, ect. As for them mating through the bars, you would have to have them fairly close. I stack my cages and use bungee cords to tie them together, then I belt them in with the seat belt. I don't want to make a sudden stop and have my cages go flying!! Not just that but flying cages might mean broke open cages which could mean mating or people holding rats for long periods of time because the cage is broken and that wouldn't be fun!


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## phaidraft (Apr 9, 2008)

First of all, how long are they going to have to be in there?

I was just on a road trip with my girls last month and it was interesting. I started off with a cat carrier, looked just like that second one you had there. Lark managed to chew those side holes into BIGGER holes and slip out. We had to stop at a Super Walmart at 2am to get tools to patch it up.

For the return trip, I just went to PetCo and got a mouse cage. It was only about $25. There's no plastic on it for them to chew and it's bigger than those itty bitty travel cages.

And yeah, like Steph, I had treats on hand like cold grapes, carrots, celery, and peas (it was hot when we went). They had their regular blocks in there with them the whole time and they had a water bottle, but it leaked. I replaced it with a small, heavy dish of water and they managed to NOT knock it over.

They slept for most of the 20 hour trip. Aside from the one chewing incident, they were amazing little travelers!


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## amandahoney (May 14, 2007)

i've never taken a cross-country trip with my rats, but i use this cage to transport one or two female rats to the vet. my sister bought the cage and kit originally when she had a hamster a couple years ago, and i commandeered it for my own purposes. i like it because of the large front door.


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## Hatchet_Chick (Sep 4, 2008)

Ooh okay
So they can chew through the pet carriers?

I will have (approximately P: ) 5 rats. 3 females and two males.

The trip is about 4 hours long to 5. I thought I heard of water bottle that didn't drip on the car ride. It was weirdly shaped and you actually kind of had to press on it to get water. It will be in may/june/july.

I am trying to plan ahead so my dad doesn't flip when I move in. He doesn't really like my rats but he agreed to let me have them. Depending on the car it'd be fairly cold, since our a/c is kept on usually the highest throughout the whole ride. 

Amanda, how big are those cages?


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## amandahoney (May 14, 2007)

the cage i have is 13W x 10D x 14H, which doesn't sound very big, but... i took some pics.

empty and set up:










by the way, the water bottle is a "critter canteen" with the spring-loaded ball.










olive and clementine are kind enough to demonstrate the spacious interior... they're pretty average-sized girls, and yeah, it's cozy, but if it's daytime and they're just going to nap anyway, it's fine.


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## Hatchet_Chick (Sep 4, 2008)

Hmm.
That sounds/looks good.

Spring loaded? Whats the difference between a spring loaded and a regular one?

How much was it? Or did you get it on sale?


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## amandahoney (May 14, 2007)

there's a spring inside the metal tube that keeps the ball bearing tight against the end, so they have to be licking it to get the water out. the ball doesn't just rattle around with every bump the car takes.

petco.com has it listed as 39.99, but there's an internet sale going on right now for 31.99. i'm pretty sure it cost less when we got it- i bought my sister the setup for her birthday, and i want to say we got it for $25, but that was just prior to christmas season almost 2 years ago. so, yeah, i don't know. but it's good for this purpose. it comes with the critter canteen bottle, i believe, and some useless plastic pieces and a tiny plastic wheel you'll have to take out.


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## Hatchet_Chick (Sep 4, 2008)

Alright thanks.
 I'll deff. be using that, unless any one else suggests something better/cheaper.

Thanks amanda!


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## amandahoney (May 14, 2007)

glad i could help! i hope you can find it cheaper than petco. if you can find it used, maybe you won't have to pay for the "hamster kit" gimmick.


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## madeittothemoon (Nov 1, 2007)

Here's the cage that I use to transport the girls short distances (or longer ones if I'm only bringing one or two along).

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2753284

I'm thinking that a couple of those would be okay for you, if you split your boys and girls up.

Here's the cage that I usually like to use (I have 5 girls):

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2752673


As for keeping them warm... get lots of fleece in the cage, and then give them an igloo or tissue box. If they get cold, they'll start moving things around


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## phaidraft (Apr 9, 2008)

Here's what I used for our trip for the two girls:
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2752704


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## lovinmyworm (Feb 18, 2008)

I transport my crew to the lake house an hour away every single weekend. I also take them to my aunts house 12 hours away in the cat carrier and there are no bite marks at all! They have never escaped nor has my friends rats from her cat carrier! My rats chew their cage (the stupid superpet cage) up at the lake, but have never chewed the carrier! Not just that, but that plastic is super thick on the carrier I have. I also use the critter canteen, it's also what I use at home too. It doesn't leak and it's cheap and the good part, a metal tube so they don't chew that part.


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## sarahisgett (Aug 18, 2008)

Here's what I have: 
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2753355 

I took out the wheel in mine and I think I might take the shelve and ladder out too


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## Hatchet_Chick (Sep 4, 2008)

Moon-

I like the guinea pig one. I might use the one that you use for one or two girls for the boys. It depends on size when I transport them.  Thanks. And I'll deff. separate boys from girls

Phai-

How big is it? And how many do you put in yours? Boy/girls?

Lovinmyworm- You have girls right? Do they ever chew up anything else?
 My girls I have now love to chew, They've chewed up so much stuff..Lol!


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## Mana (Apr 22, 2007)

This is the cage I use for travel:

http://www.zootoo.com/smallpets_habitats/coastcagesritzchinchillaratcag2

It's pretty nice as far as travel cages go. I took the wheel out, add some hammocks, and it's relatively spacious. However, it seems it's been discontinued (I couldn't even find it on the Coast Cage website).

These might be good:

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2752728#prodTab1

A couple of the smaller ones would be nice with some hammocks ^_^ 4 or 5 hours is a long trip to squish them into tiny carriers. You might also check Craigslist or Kijiji for cheap little cages.

I'd put something between the cages, just to be on the safe side. I'm not sure about the water bottle - I always just used a regular one, and it dripped a bit but not too bad.


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## lovinmyworm (Feb 18, 2008)

I have boys and girls. Right now I have 4 boys and 1 girl, my friend has 5 girls, we all use that cage. They all chew!!! They chew up their hammocks, their tubes in their cage, their igloo. They chewed holes in the superpet cage up at the lake, ect.


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## phaidraft (Apr 9, 2008)

Hatchet_Chick said:


> Phai-
> 
> How big is it? And how many do you put in yours? Boy/girls?


Cage Size 16" L X 9 " W X 9" H

I have two average-sized girls.

And they love to chew plastic, specifically. XD I should have known the cat carrier wouldn't work for us. Lark had a hole chewed in that thing in less than five minutes. I was literally holding my hand over the hole in the cage while my husband drove to the WalMart in the middle of nowhere!


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## Hatchet_Chick (Sep 4, 2008)

Phai- Haha, yea my girls are huge chewers! P: LOL!

Mana-
Thanks, I think I've liked your suggestions the most so far. (Sorry!)

Thank you all for your help.


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## sarahisgett (Aug 18, 2008)

I hope you find a good travel cage!


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## Hatchet_Chick (Sep 4, 2008)

Thanks


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