# Should I get the rat manor?



## BlackBirdSeesYou (Nov 4, 2012)

I've been thinking of getting a new cage for my boys for awhile. They are currently housed in the All Living Things rat cage: _www.*petsmart*.com/product/index.jsp?productId=4470997_‎ though it looks much bigger in real life (the picture makes it look really small). It's certainly a good size for my lazy boys but I don't like the levels. My two practically live on the top level which doesn't even take up half the space up there. They rarely use the bottom and I think they'd much rather have a cage that has more vertical space rather than horizontal space. I've considered the CN but I don't really want it because their cage sits on a coffee table that I have connected to a desk that they love to play on. And I want a good size cage but small enough to sit on the coffee table. So I've been looking at the rat manor as a candidate and I'm wondering what some of you think of it. I looked at the dimensions of the rat manor and it seems kind of small but when I looked at video reviews on Youtube, the cage seemed a lot bigger. I'm kind of torn on this. I'd hate to get the rat manor and it not be any better than the cage I have now but then again it might be better than the one I have now. What do you guys think? Should stay with the cage I have now or should I go for the rat manor?


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## CuteRat2 (Sep 20, 2013)

I would get the single critter nation. I have the rat manor, its so hard to clean and the doors are super small. So if you have a litter box or igloo or wheel, you have to put them in when you put the cage together.


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## BlackBirdSeesYou (Nov 4, 2012)

Thanks but I'm not sure about the CN. I might consider it more but I really do love being able to have my rats come out on my desk whenever they want to (because the coffee table they sit on is connected by a ladder to the desk)


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## BlackBirdSeesYou (Nov 4, 2012)

I guess what I'm asking is, would the Rat Manor be an upgrade to my cage or should I not even bother with it and stick to the cage I have now?


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## Lesti (Jun 25, 2013)

Well if you're only planning on ever having two rats, then get it. But, as always, bigger is better. I have a rat manor. It is much bigger than I thought it'd be, but I'd have a CN over it anyday!


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## Devyn (Oct 30, 2013)

Yes the rat manor would be a step up from your current cage. But it is dreadful to clean and the doors are frustratingly small. If you have the required time and patience then it's a very nice cage!


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## Phantom (Apr 4, 2012)

I had the rat manor. It's now being used by my brother's sugar glider until he can afford a bigger cage. It houses up to three rats quite nicely, but I would never put more than two boys in it. My Toast has grown huge and he looks absolutely dwarfed in the rat manor. It does take a while to clean, but it also depends on how much effort you put into the cage. I had cage liners foe every level being held down by binder clips, along with a wheel, a litter box, a large waffle house, a cube, and a double decker hammock in there. This doesn't inlcude their food bowl, rope, emergency water bottle, and their water bowl along with toys. All in all the cage took me about two hours to clean every week, but I clean my cages extremely well every time I clean them.


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## cagedbirdsinging (May 28, 2012)

Consider a Martin's.


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## TobyRat (May 24, 2011)

For some reason the link to your current cage wouldn’t work for me. However, I can say that I really like the Rat Manor cage and actually find the cleaning and maintenance a lot easier than the Critter Nation. This is mainly because I prefer bedding over fleece as my rats seem to chew it up very quickly. The doors are kind of small and make it hard to add houses/toys but other than that I think it is worth it’s price (Petco is selling them for 50$ right now online). If you are willing to spend a bit more I would go for a Martin’s Cage. They are very good quality, easy to clean cages that can still fit on a table.


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## BlackBirdSeesYou (Nov 4, 2012)

Yeah, I noticed they are selling it for $50 which is awesome. Though I'm still considering it and I think what I'll do is, if I have a little extra Christmas money left over, I might just buy the cage, and before I put my rats in it, see if I like the size. And if not, maybe they'll let me take it back. Or.... I might go over to the Martin's website and look at their cages. Though most of them are a little above my budget so I may have to think a bit on that one. Also, for some of their cages the doors look really small which is what kind of discouraged me from them in the first place. And I might as well spend less and get the Rat Manor if the doors are going to be the same.


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## artgecko (Nov 26, 2013)

I have two juvenile boys in my rat manor... 
My thoughts so far:
Pros
- The extra whole floor in the middle gives them almost 2x the "ground space" to place things
- It seems plenty big enough for my two and maybe a third juvenile (I may feel differently once they're full grown)
- With the levels, middle floor, etc. Plenty of room to hang hammocks and toys
- Metal pan keeps them from chewing out and I like how easy it is to attach the base to the top part of the cage I also like how the cage "sits" in the base so I can use a fleece liner and attach the extra over the rim of the base with binder clips (so the rats can't dig it up)
- easy to move.. Has 2 sets of lifting handles and is pretty lightweight, so moving it into the tub to hose it off isn't a problem.

Cons:
-The doors are small... about 8"W x 9-10"T.. This means you can't fit anything that is hard on the second level unless it is smaller than this... My medium sized waffle blocks house barely fits. This can also make reaching the back of the cage hard as well. And yes, this also means that to put wheels, litter boxes, etc. in the bottom level you must detach the base and sit them in then put the top back on.
- My boys don't seem to use the bottom of their cage (below the floor) much at all either... Not sure if they would if there was not a middle floor, but as it is, it's almost wasted space

I think for the price, it's a good cage. I also think it offers them a lot of levels (especially if you have rats that will use the bottom level) for climbing and toy placement. 
BTW, I use fleece on my levels too. I used ties to attach it over the middle level this time, but will be using binder clips next time. It's pretty simple to attach fleece to the levels this way too.


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## BlackBirdSeesYou (Nov 4, 2012)

Hmm, the only thing that really bothers me is the doors. I don't mind using the fleece because I use it on their plastic levels just to make it comfier and to absorb the pee. Anyway, thanks for the input.


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