# Scatter Guard or Fleece?



## naley_2006 (Aug 19, 2013)

I have a Prevue Hendryx 495:










(sorry about the picture, it came from the website and it's like that).

Anyways, I keep the black, deep tray out because it's pretty much useless and just use the grate that is pulled out on the bottom. So far I've been using a towel and cutting strips to tie it together on the bottom. This wouldn't be so much of a problem, but my girls will either dig the towel up and shred it or the towel shreds on it's own because it's obviously not meant to be cut. For the most part, they are litter trained but still go elsewhere. I've been debating on two options that could possibly be better than the mess that comes with cage cleaning each two weeks.

The first option would be to keep the towel, just not cut it up anymore and instead fold it underneath the fleece, which will be cut and tied more securely instead. 

The second option would be to make a scatter guard OR use the deep tray and put bedding into it. I've been debating going back to bedding instead of fleece on the bottom level, but I'd hate for their progress in litter training to be lost and full cage cleaning is mostly impossible, so I'd much rather go with an easier option. I'd really like to hear opinions and personal experiences with the prevue hendryx cage.


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## JBird (May 23, 2013)

Yknow, I was in the same boat as you. My girls are destructive to their liners and are hardly potty trained, and it makes keeping their cage clean & tidy very difficult. I started just leaving the liners unsecured, as they enjoyed bundling it up so much, which helped keep my liners intact but then they would urinate all over the exposed floor, so that defeated the purpose of the fleece. Just today, I got fed up with cleaning the demolished cage bottom and removed it entirely, and left the base pan for my Feisty Ferret. I filled it with paper pellet bedding, and so far, I'm much happier with the prospect of cleaning. Remove the tray, dump it, wipe down, repeat. Needs replaced much less often than fleece, too...
If I were you, I'd put up a scatter guard/deep tray and use bedding. Your girls sound like mine, and any solid bedding they will want to "redecorate". You can still litter train with bedding, if you want to, you just should use a separate type of bedding in the litter pan. I just know that, while my girls poo in the litter box fine, the amount that they pee everywhere else is absurd, and litter training is exhausting. My boys are honestly great about peeing in their box (for a rat!) so cleaning the girls' cage just gets harder and harder when I see how messy they are. 
Good luck, hope you get an easy cleaning schedule figured out!


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## naley_2006 (Aug 19, 2013)

I feel like that may be exactly what they're trying to do, except they don't even bother with the fleece on their shelves. That's why I was thinking that putting fleece on top of an unsecured towel may work out, because fleece can stay more secured and doesn't naturally shred on it's own. I may try that first. But I also heard that you could put the deep tray into the top spot and leave the grate out all together, so there's no space between the cage and the deep tray that would be there if it were in the regular slot. That would make switching to litter easier (thank goodness I kept the black tray) if I end up doing that (something's telling me I will ugh). The cage I have doesn't open all the way like the Critter Nation does, so it'd make it incredibly difficult to make a scatter guard.


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## KLAley (Apr 15, 2013)

I tried putting the tray in the top slots & my girls chewed a hole in it. I had a very hard time figuring out something to work. I finally just upgraded to a critter nation & sold that cage.


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## naley_2006 (Aug 19, 2013)

I may start looking for a Critter Nation and sell this. I've been debating on selling it for a little now. I've never had a problem with chewing cages with my girls, but now that you mention it, I'd rather not risk it haha. I'll see how the fleece over towel works and if it doesn't, upgrade it is.


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