# homemade cage!!



## Have No Fear Elle Is Here (Jul 18, 2014)

Hey! This is my cage. I made it out of PVC, rabbit wire, and a piece of an old storage bin. I also added a second level and some fun tunnels and toys! Plus Bryony's little house. And, tomorrow I'm getting her a friend, a new hammock, and some new chews and non dairy treats!


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## Zabora (Jun 8, 2014)

Good job! But it seems a bit small...


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## SneakyLord (Mar 22, 2014)

Hmm it does seem small in width, but I guess the height makes up for it, since they love to climb. Maybe put the dimensions in a cage calculator, either way I think you might just be able to get away with it. Good job though!


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## ksaxton (Apr 20, 2014)

Nice work, maybe the only thing is you could drill some holes in the PVC pipe (if there aren't already) so it doesn't get stuffy and smelly in there 


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## juliemaye (Mar 31, 2014)

Good job! Just be careful with that wiring, as I used it to fix my rats old cage, and I got cut on it a lot! It looks like you've taken care of the seems, but I didn't see how you made the door. Just want to make sure no accidents happen.  Otherwise it's a very innovative and smart idea! Very cool!


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## LittleSparrow (Apr 14, 2014)

Looks good! Last time I tried to make a cage out of that wire it came out looking pretty horrible. I like what you used for the bottom, very creative!


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## jeriibearii (Jul 26, 2014)

Hello!For those of you who have made your own cages before: I'm thinking about making one out of a moveable cabinet-storage thing I have in my laundry room. The measurements are 36" H 19" W 36" L. It's a perfect shape and I'm kind of going off this YouTube video I saw where a lady used an ikea bookshelf.My only question is if I use wood for the shelfing;A) and use water proof paint and cover it with tiles then fleece will the wood be okB) how would I make it so that I can still hang things? I want to get quite a few hammocks and accessories and I already have a litter box that needs to be attached to the side and one of the feeding bowls that attaches to the side.And finally if I shouldn't use wood for the shelving what should I use? Thank you!


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## Have No Fear Elle Is Here (Jul 18, 2014)

Yes, if you used the wood, painted it, put tiles then fleece on them that would be good. But, if you want to hang things, then I would advise using some hooks maybe? but, I would remove the back panel if there is one, and use rabbit wire over both sides, and make some sort of door. I hope that this was useful advice!!


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## kksrats (Jul 25, 2014)

@jeriibearii--from experience, wood doesn't make the best cage material. If you were to efficiently cover it with something that they can't chew and that doesn't absorb urine then it'd probably be ok. Typical shelving from places like Ikea is just particle board covered with some sort of laminate. While it looks nice and is typically easy to clean (minus rats), rats will eat right through the laminate leaving the wood underneath to soak up urine. What I'd like to do is gut an entire bookcase (removing the back panel as well), tile the inside completely (this too is sketchy if you use grout or don't seal between tiles), and add wire paneling to the front and back. Sturdy wire panels are easy to attach ramps, tunnels and hammocks to. Now if only my bookshelf wasn't so full of books


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## jeriibearii (Jul 26, 2014)

Have No Fear Elle Is Here said:


> Yes, if you used the wood, painted it, put tiles then fleece on them that would be good. But, if you want to hang things, then I would advise using some hooks maybe? but, I would remove the back panel if there is one, and use rabbit wire over both sides, and make some sort of door. I hope that this was useful advice!!


My boyfriend and I went to Home Depot and we figured out we will definitely use hooks to hang all their things! And I think we've got the door covered too--it will be a project but an awesome one! The girlies will be so happy!  thanks for the help!


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## jeriibearii (Jul 26, 2014)

kksrats said:


> @jeriibearii--from experience, wood doesn't make the best cage material. If you were to efficiently cover it with something that they can't chew and that doesn't absorb urine then it'd probably be ok. Typical shelving from places like Ikea is just particle board covered with some sort of laminate. While it looks nice and is typically easy to clean (minus rats), rats will eat right through the laminate leaving the wood underneath to soak up urine. What I'd like to do is gut an entire bookcase (removing the back panel as well), tile the inside completely (this too is sketchy if you use grout or don't seal between tiles), and add wire paneling to the front and back. Sturdy wire panels are easy to attach ramps, tunnels and hammocks to. Now if only my bookshelf wasn't so full of books


Wow thanks for the info! If we didn't use wood for the shelves, what else could we use? We plan on getting everything from Home Depot.. I was planning on getting those "sticky" fake tile floor things to cover the wood (after waterproof paint)? Or would it be worth it to get a few "real" tiles? I dont know if we would necessarily grout them into the shelf though? How hard would that be? Or are you saying that would NOT be a good idea? We plan on making the whole front wire and having them open up fully into doors and then screwing little hooks everywhere for their toys-- with the water bottles and food bowls attaching to the wire of the front. I'm excited!


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## Have No Fear Elle Is Here (Jul 18, 2014)

Good! I am glad that I've helped you guys! =D You're welcome though! I hope you have fun with your project and it ends well!


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## jeriibearii (Jul 26, 2014)

Have No Fear Elle Is Here said:


> Good! I am glad that I've helped you guys! =D You're welcome though! I hope you have fun with your project and it ends well!


We've started measuring and got a few materials (melamine (?) board?), screws, vinyl coated hardwire mesh, and I'm thinking we are going to use steps of the board instead of ramps? Because i dont know how to make a good ramp that it's slippery or something..I'm gunna take some pics and tag the progress in my own thread probably tomorrow!  thanks again for your help!


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