Behavior The boys are finally in their cage! - Guinea Pig Cages, Care, Store, Photos of Guinea Pigs and More Forum!

**Cogni** · #1 10-19-09, 08:05 pm

I set up the cage for my new piggies on the weekend and then waited for a chance to move them from my bathroom floor to their new home, a grid cube cage with a base consisting, instead of coroplast, of two plastic underbed storage bins tight up against each other, surrounded by the standard cube grids, 3 grids by 2.75 (I had to slightly overlap the grids along the short side of the bins.)

The result is a kind of divided base with a long central ridge about 6 inches high--well, less because of the bedding. I made low ramps at the end of the bins, sloping upward towards each other and touching the middle ridge. I thought the piggies would use that as a bridge. But before they discovered the ramps they learned to jump over the partition!! They jump up, rest for a second perched precariously on the ridge (it is not very wide at all) and then tentatively jump down. Now they have found the ramps and used them a few times but are still jumping over the partition. I think the ramp is still just a bit too slippery - there is light cardboard on the top surface. The ramps are actually plastic IKEA in-trays--upside down to make a nice gentle slope

They have their igloo in one bin, and their nesting basket in the other. They have lots of hay and water dishes. The water bottle the girl gave me leaks too much. I hope they are drinking enough from the dishes.

Here's how I got them in the cage, after they lived in my bathroom for 2 days: I got a shallow box and filled it with hay, and cut out a piggie-sized notch in the center. Then I fit a tunnel into the notch (from a plastic holder for a stack of CDs). They cheerfully went through the tunnel and settled down into the nice big pile of hay to munch. I had the bathroom door open but blocked with one of the bin lids. The box was just inside the bathroom next to the bin lid. I then gently put a towel over the box--they froze--and lifted the box over the lid and gently carried it into the cage room, and set it down in the cage. They saw lettuce waiting for them there and went for it and seemed not at all to remember their 'ride'!

The bathroom floor is a bit of a disaster, I am so glad my husband is in China at the moment!!

I keep checking them and they just finished another of their "quiet times" and are up exploring again. They have a little dominance competition going on I think.

I love the grid cage!! I can enjoy them so much! I think I am going to die of these repeated cuteness attacks, every time I go see them! They are in our home office and when I start working there again, I am not sure I will get anything done at all.

**angiekay** · #2 10-19-09, 08:24 pm

Can you post some pics of your cage? Would love to see it and your piggies. Congrats and glad your piggies love their new home, as well as you loving them IN their new home. The cuteness attacks, believe me, never end, it's such joy!!!

**Cogni** · #3 10-19-09, 08:45 pm

A picture is worth a thousand words of course! My camera, which was fairly expensive as point-and-shoots go, is shot! Or at least I can't get it to stop saying "memory full" when there are only 7 pics on it from July. I got it from Amazon and haven't figured out how to exercise the warranty.

I think I will have a student come and take pics for me as soon as I can. They all have nice cameras. Or even pics from a mobile will do. (What happened to MY mobile? Don't ask. I'm on my third one and can't get it to work either ! Bought it from a postdoc who went back to Bulgaria.)

My technological know-how seems to be frozen in about 1999. I'll get back on track but it will take a while. However I think later this week I can get someone to help me get photos up.

**Seonta** · #4 10-19-09, 08:53 pm

Digital cameras require a memory card. Do you have one? Take your camera to a place like BestBuy or Sears (some of them have cameras) and they should be able to help you find a memory card for the camera.

**Cogni** · #5 10-19-09, 08:59 pm

The camera is a Powershot SD880 IS. It came with a memory card, which is in there now. I just looked in the little user guide and it says it holds 11 shots. Hmm, there are only 7 there now; and I hooked it up to the computer and it would not suck them in and leave me room on the card again.
Obviously I need a bigger memory card but should the memory card really not empty again when I have hooked it to my Macintosh?
I'm sorry I have gotten off-thread here, I don't know how to continue a discussion somewhere else.

**Cogni** · #6 10-19-09, 09:02 pm

Although, after looking at Angiekay's amazing piggie condos I think I'll be embarrassed to post pics of my simple little cage, LOL!

**lissie** · #7 10-19-09, 10:18 pm

I'm glad you've built them a cage, but underbed storage bins are not good cage base. They don't provide enough room for your pigs to run laps.
See the bottom of this page.
C&C Cages - Types and Styles

**Cogni** · #8 10-19-09, 10:47 pm

Yes, I knew they don't allow enough roaming space. The center ridge takes away from the free space for one thing. But, they won't be in them too long. The storage bins are what I had on hand along with the grids I had been using to store office supplies--and allowed me to get piggies sooner rather than later. I need another free day to organize the coroplast. I found some suppliers in town and will get some and make a base. I'm not handy and everything takes me twice as long as normal people. I also want to get a table to put the whole cage on. Eventually.

**Cogni** · #9 10-19-09, 11:15 pm

By the way, when reading about coroplast this past weekend, I was so impressed with the utility of this material that I filled out the entry for Coroplast on Wikipedia: see
Coroplast - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia . I wrote the section on Uses, with the subsections Lawn signs, Crafts (I was fascinated by the model aircraft/miniature flying aircraft uses), and Pet Cages. I referenced this site. I think that stuff is a fantastic invention. Cable ties are pretty great too--very multi-purpose.

**lissie** · #10 10-20-09, 03:13 am

If you haven't bought your coro, check out this site.
GE Polymershapes, Branch Locator
I got mine for $10. They have a location near you.

**Seonta** · #11 10-20-09, 05:48 am

Cogni I should be able to help you with your memory card, I can talk you through removing the pictures from it. But I think it would be best to do that through PMs. So I will PM you.

**angiekay** · #12 10-20-09, 07:25 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cogni

Although, after looking at Angiekay's amazing piggie condos I think I'll be embarrassed to post pics of my simple little cage, LOL!

Aww thank you! But I have to give all the credit to hubby, he is the architecture designer. Yours will be great I'm sure, especially after you get the coro in.

**Cogni** · #13 10-20-09, 02:58 pm

Thanks Lissie! That is very helpful. Their location is too far for me to drive but perhaps they deliver.

And Seonta, thank you too, I have responded to your private message.

**bpatters** · #14 10-20-09, 03:14 pm

Cogni, Reece Supply, 2606 Bell St, in downtown Houston, has coroplast for less than $10 per sheet. It's just south of I59, in front of the George R. Brown Convention Center, so it's not hard to get to from anywhere in town.