[Chivahn]

Right now I have two setups going on - I have my 3 girls in a 20 gallon tank with 2 stories of topper (it's over 3 feet tall total, and has full floors), and then Curly is in a 10 gallon tank until I get a different cage (he's still pretty small though).

I've been looking at different methods of making cages, and really like the whole cube stuff idea, so I might give that a go. Are the holes too big for rats though?

Also - in your setups, do you have a "litterbox" or do you have Carefresh (or the equilivent) in the whole bottom?

 

[Stephanie]

I put about two handfulls of aspen bedding in the bottams of all of my cages also i use old rags and stuff

 

[DonnaK]

I used to use Carefresh and I put it all through the bottom of the cage.

 

[Star]

I also cover the bottem of the pan w/ carefresh so the pee is absorbed. But my girls do go poo in a corner litter box filled with bird litter.

I believe the squares on the cubes are 1x1", if your girls can fit thro that you should concider something else. I like the cubes, but they can be hard to keep clean. You should cover the bottem of the floors w/ tile or something that is easy to wipe clean. But you can also use rags on the hard surface.

 

[Night]

Tanks are by no means acceptable living conditions for rats They should only be used for young litters, or ailing/recovering rats. A 20 gallon tank isn't even large enough to hold one rat, let alone 2. And a 10 gallon should never be used for any reason.

If the grids you're talking about are the Organize-It cubes, than yes, the holes are very large. Even my adult males could get their whole heads through the wire spacing.

Check out Martin's Cages. For three rats, I would suggest the R-695.

 

[Chivahn]

I am aware of all of this - if I had the funds right now, I would have bigger housing for anyhow. I don't need you to judge me or be snippy with me.

The girls are never down in the actual tank part of their setup unless they're eating or going to the bathroom, but up in the upper levels. They are still young and have plenty of room to run around right now. The topper on the 20 gallon is about the side of the R-695, too.

I went and bought some metal mesh shelving things to make a cage for the two boys to hold over until I can afford something better.

Curly is fine in his tank right now - he's only 8 weeks old, recovering from some injuries, and is very comfortable and my room is very well ventilated.

 

[Night]

Honestly, why did you get rats if you can't afford proper housing?

 

[Chivahn]

We can't all afford to fork out $200 for some extravagant setup. The boys are now in a very large, trileveled cage that I've put together. Right now I'm broke because I just took two of them to the vet yesterday.

I take good care of my animals, thanks. If you saw how my fish and cats lived, you wouldn't be giving me this 3rd degree.

I don't need to be attacked, thanks.

 

[Night]

Actually, I'm not attacking you in the least. I just don't understand why you didn't get proper housing BEFORE purchasing the rats. You need to have everything setup and ready before your new animals come home.

Since when do proper rat cages cost $200? For a good-quality cage from Martin's Cages that can fit up to 6 rats, you're looking at only $120.

 

[Chivahn]

Half of my rats I didn't purchase - I had them dumped on me.

And I have half girls, half boys - I'm not putting them all together.

I've been advised to just ignore you by several members, so, have a good night.

 

[Night]

Why ignore me? All that I'm saying is fact. Go ahead and look up everything I'm saying if you'd like. Go to Martinscage.com - there AREN'T any $200 rat cages. Google "rat cage calculator" and put in the dimensions for both a 20 gallon and a 10 gallon - neither are large enough for the rat(s) you have in them. In fact, just in case you don't feel like looking up a cage calculator, I'll do it for you.

For a 20 gallon, you can only fit one rat in it.
For a 10 gallon, I get the result, "This cage is too small for an adult rat."

You just choose to ignore me because I'm telling you you're doing something wrong. Although I'm right, you'd rather just pretend to not hear it.

 

[Stephanie]

My god night she is doing the best she can lay off!!

 

[Night]

Okay, everyone who's flipping out over this is insane. Simply because I mention someone's doing something wrong, doesn't mean I'm attacking them.

Seriously, grow up.

Moreover, it's not as though anything I'm saying is judgmental or pure opinion. I'm stating facts.

 

[Stephanie]

but you are stating them in a way that makes you see arogant and judgemental in my opinion .... just stating what i see

 

[Vixie]

I see someone just putting out there that something is wrong.

Night isn't as rude as all of you seem to make her out to be. You just continue to take what she says negatively.

****, if she was just trying to attack someone her message would sound way different and she wouldn't have given any way to solve the problem.

 

[DonnaK]

But Chivahn only posted about her set ups and asked questions about making new cages - she didn't ask for opinions on what she currently has. I understand that Night only cares that all rats are treated well and have the best that life can bring, but it's not really her place to berate people because they can't/don't keep their rats up to her standards.

 

[radical]

i don't think night is attacking anyone at all. she is right, tanks are terrible for rats. and cages to fit three rats in aren't that expensive if you know where to look, i got mine for $45 (although i'm planning on upgrading).

 

[reachthestars]

Guys chill out, Night wasn't attacking anyone. she's trying to help, and dosn't deserve to have everyone jumping down her throat. She has ALOT of good information and knows what she's doing, and I personally would have to agree 110% with all the information she's given in this thread.

 

[Vixie]

but it's not really her place to berate people because they can't/don't keep their rats up to her standards.

Thos aren't her standards, they are standards for healthy living.

(edit) Also, I haven't seen her berate anyone, she's just stated what's bad for the rat and stated her logic. I certainly agree that you should have a cage before you get a rat. But unbeknownst to Night the rats were "dumped" on Chivahn, which is an understandable scenario of not having a cage before getting a rat.

 

[DonnaK]

but it's not really her place to berate people because they can't/don't keep their rats up to her standards.

I don't disagree, she is right - aquariums can be bad, I know that. Night has a lot of good information and is very helpful; she just doesn't have a very nice way of putting that information across - it comes across as very hurtful to a lot of people.

My point was, unless somebody is specifically asking if their set up is good enough, it's not really her place to start telling them that what they have is wrong and that they don't know how to look after their rats - whether it's true or not. Perhaps she could be a little more gentle and start her comments with something like "do you mind if I give you a little advice?"

I'm done talking about this, now. I've said what I think and I shouldn't have even done that, really, it's not my business. I just think it's a shame that this place was pretty harmonious again, until Night came back.