C&C for Rats

[CrazyZookeeper]

I have a friend with a pet rat. She is very impressed with my cavy cage and would like to make one for her rat. The question is... where do you get the smaller spaced grids? Or even the mesh ones? I am in Ontario and haven't seen them before. Or, do you have another suggestion for making a cage rat proof?

Thanks in advance

[wickedrodent]

I would suggest a store bought cage for a rat. Ferret Nations are my absolute favorite.

[Toadies]

Ferret Nation is a great cage. If you don't need the base with wheels, the add-on top is less expensive and would work very well for one ratty. Wickedrodent and Night have some great pictures in the gallery (cages for other pets). I think that it is Jadedragon that shows how a C&C cage was adapted for rats.

[Ly&Pigs]

A C&C would have to wrapped in hardware cloth or something to prevent rats from escaping. My males are a good size and they can get out of grids.

I have an FN for my ratties and it works great. I need to put some pictures of it in the gallery.

[Caviekisses]

I'm on a rat forum and a lot of people there like Martin's cages.

[Tserisa]

C&C cages are really not the best for rats, though with modifications they'll work.

If you do line grids with wire mesh, be sure that you use a wire that is not galvanized or zinc-coated. Rats may chew on the wires, or climb it and then lick their paws, and they can get heavy metal poisoning. The wire must be stainless steel, pvc-coated or powder-coated.

Rats, like guinea pigs, should not walk on wire, so be sure every level is covered with something hard like ceramic tile or coroplast. Fleece or towels work as a bedding, in conjunction with litter boxes using the same kind of bedding as for pigs.

I've seen people use the mesh panels for a cage for rats. I haven't ever seen these panels in person -- I would worry about rats getting their claws caught in them. Mesh that fine is usually not recommended.

I agree that the Ferret Nation is a great cage! Check out this rat palace made with one! However, only *fully grown* rats are okay in it without modification, as it has wide bar spacing. Some females are never big enough. However, it can be be modified as well, with safe wire mesh.

Just this month, however, the same company released an alternative! The Critter Nation is the same cage, but with smaller wire spacing. It's brand new, so I don't have an experience with it. The main problem people have had is with the cage being damaged in shipping, though the company has been very good about sending replacement parts. They should sell it at PetSmart soon.

The other option is building a cage out of a cabinet. The Dapper Rat shows their own cabinet cage, the Grotto, and how to build your own. It's a great rat site with lots of information.

Another great rat community is Rats No SPOs.

Rats also are very social animals, like guinea pigs, so once she has an appropriate sized cage, she probably wants to get her rat a companion!

[cavyluv2]

You could probably order them online, or if there's a target near you. (5-Section Honeycomb Cube - Silvertone : Target)