[riki13]

Hi,
I'm new here! We adopted three female rats last month from a small animal rescue. They are now about 9 or 10 weeks old. They are now in a converted bird cage with 1/2" bar spacing, but they are getting big and the cage seems to be getting smaller.

I've seen the Ferret Nation cage and am willing to put out the $$, but I'm concerned about the bar spacing (1"). I read how they are going to be putting out a Rat Nation cage, but perhaps not until the summer. I don't want to wait so long to get them in a bigger cage.

I'm looking at the Feisty Ferret cage by Prevue. It's a cheaper knock-off of the Ferret Nation. The appeal to me is that the bar spacing is a little tighter -- (7/8"). Does anyone here have any experience with this cage?

The rescue group has recommended the Martins cages, but for some reason I find them unattractive. I like the look of the Ferret Nation cage a lot better.

Thanks for any advice!
Riki

 

[crapola]

at 9 or 10 weeks, your girls are probably too small to go into a ferret nation. the only way you can really tell is to try them in the cage. if thats not practical, then set up something with 1" bar spacings and see if they can walk through. if their heads and shoulders can fit through, then the rest of the rat will too.

i dont know anything about the feisty ferret cages. i dont like the look of martins cages either, they always look home-made to me.

 

[Mana]

I would go with a Feisty Ferret. I got a Ferret Nation and covered it with hardware cloth, and I've come to loathe it x_x It is so hard to clean off, and you need to remove it to clean every now and then because gunk builds up around the bottom edges. I don't know how a Feisty Ferret is put together, but with my FN, when I took it apart I realized there was pee built up between the top and bottom parts where they come together, and there's no way to clean that out without taking the cage apart.

I keep hoping my girls will get huge so I can take the cloth off -_-;

 

[riki13]

Well, I placed the order for the Feisty Ferret cage. Here's a link to a picture:
http://www.ferret.com/ItemDetail.aspx?ItemNo=600999

I'll let y'all know when it arrives and how it works out!
Regards,
Riki

 

[Berks]

Mana, I feel the same way about the Ferret Nation. I have yet to redo the wire cloth. I dread it actually. But the next time I do it, I may put the wire on the outside, it may not look as nice but I think it may be easier to clean. I wish I could just promise myself no more babies and not have to worry about keeping the wire cloth up...But we know how that goes.

 

[BoyzRcrazy]

I got the Martin Cages Rat Skyscraper. It was a $%^&# to put together, but it has been a good cage with lots of space for my 2 guys. But the Ferret Nation cage IS certainly prettier! Best of luck!

 

[riki13]

The Feisty Ferret cage is working out very well. The cage bar spacing has been fine-- my three young female ratties can't squeeze through. So, no liner needed. It is also a bit smaller than FN, which for me has been a plus. I ordered it from www.ferret.com and had no problems putting it together. On the bottom level, we left off the wire bottom so that the plastic pan is the lowest level. The only wire level is the one dividing the top and bottom sections. By the way, the two sections have a door you can close so that you can separate rats or isolate them when you are cleaning.

Riki

 

[Einstein]

I am new to all of this but I just ordered the Ferret Nation cage. It seemed larger so I said what the heck. Why are you guys covering it with cloth and wire? I am a little confused. Is it because you guys have babies? My rat is huge so will he be ok or should I return it and go with something else?

 

[mopydream44]

typically people cover FN's (and other cages with larger bar spacing) with hardware cloth, as shown below.

The kind you see in the picture is galvanized but there is also powder coated hardware cloth, which may or may not be harder to find depending on where you live. You should buy powder coated over galvanized, as galvanized absorbs urine, and tends to smell rather quickly. Powder coated is a bit more expensive (I believe) but it will save you the cost of replacing it less often!

You can purchase hardware cloth in rolls at most hardware stores. I've had success finding the powder coated at Home Depot.

 

[Einstein]

Do I need this even if my rats are bigger?