Chinchilla Community Forums
Chinchillas => Cages => Topic started by: Summer on August 01, 2006, 03:07:52 PM
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;) Hi My husband want to build a new cage, can any one give some tips. it would be very helpfull. :::grins::
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http://chinchillacymru.co.uk/buildcage.htm
Here's one that I have looked through. I wish I could find the chinbin cages. I can't seem to get the page to work though. Good luck. Building cages is hard work.
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;)Thank you for your help. ::nod::
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;)first you want to decide how big and what shape you want your cage my brother and I built mine
and I wanted a hex shape and wanted it to be very different
don't forget to draw it up on paper before you build it!!!!
you want to get measurements for the size you want and make sure that it will fit through your doors
you can get the screen at lowes or home depot
I was going to post a pic of mine for you but first I have to reload all the pics in my computer
I was having a problem with my puter and got a friend of mine who works with them for a job and he put windows xp pro on my puter and now it works great
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Hi Summer,
David says to make sure you use galvanized wire, and keep the openings 1" 1/2"
Julianne
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Hi Julianne Thank you I Will be sure to use that ::silly:: ::silly:: ::silly:: now that my chins are growing.
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Are you a chinchilla club member? If so login to the members area and and under the cages category we list a bunch of different cage designs and link right to the step by step directions. There are some really neat designs.
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I am going to make a new cage when my 2 start getting along and can be caged together. My dad has all kind of junk around his house and I found this big entertainment center type thing. I am thinking of trying to line it with thin pine plywood and make a cage out of it. I have no idea what kind of wood it is made of so I don't want them to be able to chew it. It is about 6 or 7' tall. Should I put 2 floors in it or would 1 with a lot of shelves work better. I really want this to be the last cage I build so I want to do it where it will last. What does everyone think?
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You may want to make the inside melmine. It's so easy to wipe off and keep clean. There is a breeder selling out around here I am actually going to go have a look at her chins and take home 1 or 2 melmine cages if I can. ::silly::
I am going to make a new cage when my 2 start getting along and can be caged together. My dad has all kind of junk around his house and I found this big entertainment center type thing. I am thinking of trying to line it with thin pine plywood and make a cage out of it. I have no idea what kind of wood it is made of so I don't want them to be able to chew it. It is about 6 or 7' tall. Should I put 2 floors in it or would 1 with a lot of shelves work better. I really want this to be the last cage I build so I want to do it where it will last. What does everyone think?
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i have a bit of experience in building things of this nature, if i can ever be of any help, please dont hesitate to contact me at any time at BAMBAML19@AOL.COM good luck with your build, dont forget to take pics along the build and postem when your finished. The one piece of advice that i have is to research the wood you use, that is very important since they will eat any exposed wood they can and alot of woods are toxic to chins, i use aspen in some of my small projects, not a cheap wood but a safe one. Do your homework and good luck.
Josh
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;) Thanks for the tips. I will post as we build.
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I am actually thinking of building a new cage and maybe selling my other one that I built not sure yet but I thought of one that has 4 cages in one 2 long one that sit on top of each other and then sliding middle to let open when I want to breed when I get a famale for my guyz
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::silly:: I would love to see a Pic. ::silly::
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her is a pic I was able to get I am in the process of having my puter fixed my windows that I origionally had wasn't working right and I called my sister's ex-bo and he has been coming over to fix it and for now it is working at 1/2 or something like that but anyway here is the pic I think it was either right before I cleaned the cage or after and I can't remember if I had taken the wheel out yet or not but if it is in there I took it out cause it was causing black spots on snowball he is a ponk white georgous pink white
and then there is buddy l ooooh they are soooo bad they insist taking the roof off their hut and throwing down to the bottom they must think that it is funny and they stand at the door after they throw it down and wait for me to pick it back up and then a little while later they do it again as a team I had to glue the bottom on cause buddy would disassemble the whole thing I think they like poking their head out of the hut and chewing on the top well anyway here are a couple of pics
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Beautiful cage ::nod::
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:::grins:: We are making out the blue prints tonight, can't Wait to see how it turns out ::silly:: what a beautiful cage.
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one more thing before I forget if you are making it out of wood I got the smallest/strongest possible wire I think that mine is 1/ 2" x 1/2" they have a hard time getting their little mouths through to bite at the wood but anyway what I did was takthe wire and have it cover the entire inside of the cage sides completely and then just stapled it down all over cause I know that they are smart little guys and I didn't want them trying to knaw through the wood and get out or just mess it up that way this cage will last longer
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::silly::Hi All,
Anyone thinking of using old furniture to build a cage or a mostly wood cage ... they are beautiful, but not usually very practical. Vent holes will have to be cut in both sides as well as the back, for a good flow of fresh air. (1/2" square cage wire can cove the holes.)
You may want to make the inside melmine. It's so easy to wipe off and keep clean.
It's not just for convience of cleaning ... melmine is not porus like wood is and will not allow urine to soak into it.
Always cover the exposed edges with metal so that the chin can not chew on them. Melmine can be consumed by a chin, but like plastic, will not dissolve and can damage the intestines of a chinchilla.
I found this big entertainment center type thing. I am thinking of trying to line it with thin pine plywood and make a cage out of it. I have no idea what kind of wood it is made of so I don't want them to be able to chew it.
Chins will spray on the wood and if one gets sick (dirrhea) ... wood allows the fluids to soak into the wood and is a breeding ground for germs, fungus and making a chin sick.
::wave::
Jo Ann
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::silly:: Thanks for the tips. We did the blue prints just a few more things to add and we can start! I'm using the melmine. ::nod::
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Jo Ann
Anyone thinking of using old furniture to build a cage or a mostly wood cage ... they are beautiful, but not usually very practical. Vent holes will have to be cut in both sides as well as the back, for a good flow of fresh air. (1/2" square cage wire can cove the holes.)
do you have a pic of one?
::silly::Mellissia
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::silly::Hi FluffBall,
I'm not sure if you are wanting a picture of the the furniture or of the wire covered hole. I will have to look for the picture someone sent me made from furniture(made from a china cabinet), but here is how to cover the vent hole....
::wave::
Jo Ann
If you will notice, the wire has been smoothed on every cut edge. There are two pieces of wire, one on each side of the opening and there are "C" clamps on at each corner and center sides to hold it in place. 1/2" x 1/2 wire was used.
This is on one of our cages that we use to introduce two chins and/or keep the male and female familar with each other while the kits are being raised.
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yes I wanted to see the furniture cage I have tons of furniture I could turn into cages think hubby would get mad but o well it is mine no I would use the old stuff first :::grins::
Mellissia
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Ya it is done :::grins::. I still have to add a few more things to it. I will put some pics of it in a few days or so. ::fruit::
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Can't wait to see the pics :)
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I am going to put the pic's up tomorrow. ::silly::
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Where can you get quality wire i need about 6m to make my cage, what do you think is the right height and width of a cage
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::silly:: Hi Oli,
The restrictions in cage size is only those you have room for ::hah:: AND are willing/able to clean throughly WEEKLY. :P
A nice size is 18"x 24" x 30" 2 or 3 levels/floors for a single or a pair of chinchillas. BUT if you have a male/female pair, you also need what is called a whelping cage ... it should be 18" x 24" by 15" or shorter and only one level.
Below is a picture of a cage we use to make for many of those who adopted chins from us, but Bill no longer makes it ... we have about 200 chins now and do not have the time. Just click on the picture to give you a larger image. ::nod::
::wave::
Jo Ann
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I had to give up on the cage building. My husband doesn't have a lot of extra time and I don't think I can do it. ;D Every time I put things together I do it backwards, and have to take it back apart. I had one of the huge cages from Chin World and I just could not wait on help to put it together. By the time I got it done one of the ledges was in the middle of the door. It was kinda funny, but a real pain to fix.
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::silly::One night (or I should say early morning) we were trying to get a cage together for a family that was going to get two chins from us the next day. We were very tired, to say the least. The next morning it was time to load everything up in the van ... as we picked up each side of the cage, we realized we forgot to put the back on it! rofl
Hand made cages are wonderful if you have the time, tools, and patients ... but ... I have found them not to be very economical if they are made properly. Many of the internet places you can find cages now are, as a rule, less expensive than making them yourself.
::wave::
Jo Ann
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::nod:: Yes, That why I am buying a new one Today. ::silly::