[ellismera]

Just as a general idea for me as I'm shopping for a decent cage for my two male rats for Xmas. What do you think of this cage in terms of suitability? Just want to get a good idea. Thanks http://www.petplanet.co.uk/product.asp?dept_id=456&pf_id=63423

 

[mimsy]

Great cage for spoiled ratties! Also looks easy to clean, so a plus for you too.

 

[ellismera]

Looks amazing but I'm trying to find the space to put it somewhere. It massive. Better get saving . The bars are 1.6 cm wide is this ok?

 

[Kitterpuss]

This is like the Rolls Royce of cges here in the uk. Your ratties will be very happy indeed!

 

[ellismera]

Exactly Kitterpuss. I had a look in 'pets at home' and a few of my local pet shops. I wouldn't even put my hamster in some of the cages they sell for rats, chinchillas and ferrets. Its quite sad really.

 

[hrl20100]

I have this cage!!!
Its HUGE.

-Bar spacing is fine. I have females and they are smaller than males. We have had no escapees!

So much space for toys, hammocks and everything you need to keep ratties happy!
You will want to use fleece to line the pans though. I have used both bedding and fleece in this cage and they will kick the bedding out, making a huge mess on the floor!

Brilliant cage. Worth the money!
(I got it for cheaper on Zooplus. £180 on there!)

This cage is the UK version of the Critter Nation and its brilliant.

Tip: Assemble the cage in the room you plan the cage to 'live' in. It's really really heavy and it bearly fits through doorways.

I'm 5'1 and its just about, taller than me. Thats how tall the cage is! (Including the stand)

But yeah, its a brilliant cage, easy to clean, the doors are great because they open so wide. Urm... The coating on the bars is really good! I've had this cage for about a year now (well.. nearly) and there is no rust on it anywhere! (I wish I could say the same for my old cage...)

The downside is that the smaller levels don't really fit on the supporting frames, so it can be noisy when the rats jump onto the levels. But its fine, its not like it falls down or anything. Its just not as stable as it could be. And obviously as I said earler, that if you wanted to use a substrate (say, paper pellets for example) then its not really a good idea because they will kick it everywhere.

Worth the money! My girls LOVE this cage!

 

[ellismera]

Thanks for the reply hrl. Sounds as if its a decent cage and nice to hear from someone who has had it for well over a year. Its just convincing he boyfriend because its soooo big and sooo pricey. If I cant convince him. I will have to look for something smaller and cheaper! We currently use carefresh substrate so that will be every where like the bio catolet that our cat uses in his tray lol. My boyfriend would be thrilled with all the extra mess . How many rats do you have in the cage? and I know you said it washavy, but is it easy enough to wheel round? I wanted a cage I might be able to move if needs be with us living in a flat, we haven't got a massive amount of space and would it be high enough off the ground to stop issues with my cat?

 

[mimsy]

I noticed the link today has it for 44% off the regular price. Thats cheap!

 

[ellismera]

If it was full price....what nearly £400. I would not even consider it. £200 is a bit more reasonable, but my partner is still having a heart attack lol

 

[hrl20100]

Thanks for the reply hrl. Sounds as if its a decent cage and nice to hear from someone who has had it for well over a year. Its just convincing he boyfriend because its soooo big and sooo pricey. If I cant convince him. I will have to look for something smaller and cheaper! We currently use carefresh substrate so that will be every where like the bio catolet that our cat uses in his tray lol. My boyfriend would be thrilled with all the extra mess . How many rats do you have in the cage? and I know you said it washavy, but is it easy enough to wheel round? I wanted a cage I might be able to move if needs be with us living in a flat, we haven't got a massive amount of space and would it be high enough off the ground to stop issues with my cat?

I have 3 rats in the cage at the moment, however, I am currently in the process of introducing 3 other girls to the group so soon i'll have 6 in there. According to the cage calculator it can hold 12 rats (if there is enough enrichment in there) but I wouldn't keep anymore than 8 females or 6 males in there. Just to be sure they all have enough space!

Its easy to wheel around on hard floors. Not on carpet! The breaks on the wheels tend to get caught up and scrape along the carpet. It is moveable, but if you care about your carpet (I don't) then you won't want to move it much at all.

As for the cat...
Standing on its hind legs, your cat will be able to see in and possibly irritate/annoy the rats. I don't have a cat and when there was one in our house, she wasn't bothered by rats or any small animal for that matter, so we didn't have a problem with that. Can't really help with this question i'm afraid!

 

[ellismera]

Thanks, well I only have 2 males. So they would be really spoilt. Or I may have to downsize the cage...like my partner wants. The cat isn't interested in the rats as we have lizards that run everywhere. So he's use to these and he desnt bother wen I have the rats on my knee and watch TV so he would probably be alright if he has to stand.

 

[hrl20100]

What cage do you have at the moment?

 

[ellismera]

What cage do you have at the moment?

Its a ferplast. top opening cage. But its small 78x48x38. Like I said. small and temporary until I find them a really good one

 

[hrl20100]

The cage I had before the one I have now is this the Furet Plus Rat Cage.
According to the cage calculator, it can hold 4, I think... I can't really remember. At the moment I have 3 girls in here but its temporary.
The cage is good as a first cage, but it does rust. Its fine for 2 males, but with the rusting issue, you might find yourself wanting to change cages again.
(I would send a link! But PetsAtHome website is playing up for me so I can't)
£85 on PetsAtHome

Jenny Rat Cage
This cage is bigger than the one above and can hold 4-6 rats. They had it at my college (I go to an animal college) and it is certainly larger.
(again, I would send a link! But the website's playing up)
£100 on PetsAtHome

 

[ellismera]

I have looked at both of these and thought. Gosh, they are small for two male rats. I am obviously wanting to spoil them. It ended wrong with our lizards though. Were I brought a viv I thought looked to small ended up, up sizing it anyway. This cost more money and effort in the long run lol. Just want do best by the rats but not annoy the partner!

 

[hrl20100]

Hmmm
We will find you a cage!!! hahaha

 

[ellismera]

Indeed. It Is annoying me now. I will have to look at the cupboard dimensions and the floor dimensions and see what space I'm working with. **** me for living in a flat and filling it with nice furniture lol.

 

[hrl20100]

The best thing you can do is get a tape measure and measure out the dimensions of each cage you are considering. Whichever one fits in your flat best, will be your best option. You don't really want a huge rat cage taking up a whole room! Trust me! I have had this problem when I did have my wardrobe! I had the cage in the middle of my room (literally!) for about 6 weeks... It got annoying! haha

 

[ellismera]

Well the savic fits and would be out of the way (between a cupboard and a bookcase). However, it would cut off the radiator and we don't think you will beable to open both doors at the same time because of the sofa. But would be really easy open one then the other . My partner has said yes to the savic as the other cages I wont beable reach to get in them. So at the moment the savic is the only plausible option. Hes just sitting crying in a corner about it!

 

[hrl20100]

Is a brilliant cage! Just... HUGE.
I cant open one of the doors fully due to my sloping walls in my room (god I hate them so much...) but it opens at a 90 degree angle, so thats fine

But yes, for a rat cage, it is a lot. But its really sturdy and really well put together. Its a very good design, its just wide! (and tall) but it was waaayyy wider than what I was expecting!