# Cage/bedding questions



## gin (Sep 11, 2015)

Hello everyone!

I have a quick question about cages. I bought a guinea pig cage for my boys off craigslist, the bars are about 1" apart. It's the only thing I can afford at the moment as I'm moving soon and will need to pay for that. Will this be okay in the meantime until I'm able to save up money to get the 3 level rat home I've been looking at? The shelter says they don't try to escape when they have their roaming time (one of the volunteers had the friendlier one of the two on her back unnoticed when she went out to the rat trailer, she said he just hung there and then popped up on her shoulder as she got to the door. But never tried to get away), so I think it will be okay but should I get some hardware cloth for the whole cage? Or do I just need to worry about the sides.

Also I bought some of the carefresh natural bedding (I got the smallest amount they had just in case the rats don't like it/are allergic) but I haven't opened it yet. Should I exchange it for some aspen shavings? I've read that the aspen is dust free and hypoallergenic, but I'm not so certain about those claims. I'm thinking about switching to fleece later on when I get them their bigger cage, however I've also heard you can also use rabbit pellets as bedding. Any truth to that? And my last question is can I use flannel instead of fleece.

Sorry for all the questions! Trying to become an informed rat mommy before they come home in November


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## JAnimal (Jul 23, 2014)

How old are they because adult males can live in a cage with one inch spacing. If they arent then you might want to buy hardware cloth because it is always better to be safe than sorry. I did use that carefresh but it did have dust so you could switch it. And yes you could use flannel instead of fleece.


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## moonkissed (Dec 26, 2011)

If you have to wrap a cage in hardware cloth you would have to wrap the entire cage... rats climb and can get out of any of the bars. 

If your rats are adults about 8+ months they are probably fine in the cage as JAnimal said. But it is always better to be safe then sorry. Never assume a rat can't get out of a cage just because they haven't lol

Bedding is just personal preference. What works for one may not work for another. It is good to try different products and find what you prefer. I don't find aspen very dusty at all. Some people do use rabbit pellets.

The reason people use fleece is because it has an amazing quality to wick away moisture. So urine gets wicked away to an absorbent layer underneath away from the babies. i don't think flannel has that same property. Fleece also is generally quite safe from loose strings if (when) they chew holes through it. While some do use flannel and other materials I would keep a close eye on how it is working and check for anything that could lead to accidents.


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## JAnimal (Jul 23, 2014)

Flannel is quite like fleece though and so I thought it would have the same properties


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## gin (Sep 11, 2015)

Awesome, thank you guys  They'll be about 5 mths old when I take them home iirc. Just out of curiousity, I found a single level critter nation cage on CL for about 125. Is this a good price and is it enough space for 2 growing boys? I've seen a lot of comments on the double, but not very many on the single. Space is a concern in my new place as my new room is apparently very long but not very wide (I haven't seen it yet, so I'm going off my brother's description). Think this will be ok if I get it?


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## raindear (Mar 3, 2015)

ferret.com has a single level CN for $119.99 + shipping, so unless you are getting a lot of extras, that's not a great price. It's supposed to be big enough for 5-6 rats, so it's plenty of room for 2.


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## moonkissed (Dec 26, 2011)

I had a single critternation and loved it. It is perfect size for two boys, lots of room. And u can always buy the addon unit in the future to make it a double if u need/want to.

But $125 is alittle bit much for used. You can buy it brand new off amazon for $135 w/free shipping. I would try to talk them down to under $100. I sold mine for $85 and it was like a year old and in perfect shape- granted I prob could have gotten alittle bit more but I was moving and needed it gone fast.

Critternations are like the best cages though so if u can get one used for a good price id jump at it.


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## gin (Sep 11, 2015)

Well they never responded, so I guess that's a no lol. I've been thinking about getting this starter kit from petsmart, but unsure if the size is ok for 2 growing males. Thoughts?

http://www.petsmart.ca/small-pet/ca...starter-kit-zid36-5201419/cat-36-catid-600022


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## JAnimal (Jul 23, 2014)

Its ok but i got my SCN of of amazon for less. Also 2 adult males rats may even fight because they get bigger than females and they get teritorial.


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## gin (Sep 11, 2015)

Amazon has it listed as 136+shipping, plus driving down to Point Roberts to get it. Ends up being way more expensive. I wish I knew of somewhere locally that sold these (other than CL, none of them have replied to my emails). Maybe I'll talk to the local pet stores and see if they can bring this type of thing in and how much it would be. In the mean time, I think I'll probably end up getting the starter cage and if they fight, one can stay in the guinea pig cage I have.


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## JAnimal (Jul 23, 2014)

I got mine on sale by alot. I think it was 110 and then free shipping to my house. You don't have to buy them a cage now if they get lots of time out and keep checking craigslist and other sites to see if one pops up.


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## gin (Sep 11, 2015)

I think I'll just keep an eye on CL and see if something better pops up. I'd like for them to be free range when I'm at home, I just need to see the place to determine how feasible it is since it's an older basement suite. Luckily my landlord is also someone who I would consider my brother, so if I need to make some changes to the place I think he'd allow it. Especially if I tell him it's to prevent the rats from getting out and upstairs to terrorize his wife lol.

Thanks for the advice JAnimal  It's been very helpful


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## JAnimal (Jul 23, 2014)

No problem. I'd love to free range my rats but I have a dog and a cat and I don't want to risk it.


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## gin (Sep 11, 2015)

Does anyone happen to know what cage this is? It's pretty large and the calculator says it's big enough for 3-4 rats. She says there's no brand on it, just wondering if 75 is reasonable or if I should offer 60...


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