Hi everyone,
I am employed at a local shelter. Since the early 1960's, we've rented out the same building for $1 from a very generous company that owned the land. A little while ago, that company went bankrupt and had to sell its property, which means the land our shelter is on. Long story short, the shelter is now being evicted by the new property owners so that a strip-mall can be put in place.
After much fund-raising, we are finally able to build a brand new facility. This means more to us than could even be imagined. In this facility, we will be having a small animal room. My boss, who knows I absolutely love the small and fuzzies, gave me the amazing responsibility of choosing cages for our new room.
Of course, I automatically thought of C and C cages. They are what I use for my own critters and I absolutely love the versatility that is offered. However, I began to toss this idea around in my head and I'm not quite sure how they would work in a shelter environment. My worry is that the coroplast base would be destroyed from the sanitizing chemicals, chewers and who knows what else. Not to much that I would most certainly need to find a very good locking system so that all of the goofy people that come in don't decide to stick a hand in and harass any of the little critters. I want something that is basically a heavy-duty C and C cage.
Here's what I'm hoping to find (but don't know where to look) :
- Durable and Easy to sanitize
- Preferably something with solid sides and a vented top.
* Solid sides make it much easier to sanitize, as opposed to
wires. Also, Id like to keep the open area at the top so that
people wont go from cage to cage and stick fingers in.
Additionally, solid sides will help to prevent any sickness
transfer.
- Must fit standard for the small animal that will be using it.
* Basically, Id like to make sure I have a cage for a guinea pig
that is at least a 2x3 or 2x4. And of course rabbits, chinchillas
rats, ferrets, etc also need cages appropriate for them.
- Preferably off the ground or with storage underneath
- I would also love to be able to have a few cages that can be
functional for various types of animals. For instance, we tend to
have a lot of guinea pigs and rabbits surrendered, but once in a
blue moon we do get a ferret or chinchilla or rattie. Just because
We don't get them in frequently, doesn't mean they should have
to be in an improperly sized cage. (Hopefully that made sense)
- I also have to take in to consideration prevention of any illness.
I am open to any ideas possible. It would be best to find cages that can be ordered, but Im open for any suggestions. This is so terribly important to me and I want to make sure that what we get is appropriate for our needs. I want to be able to show potential adopters that small animals SHOULD be cared for in a particular way, with spacious cages, veggies/hay/pellets and whatever else they require.
Ideas?
I am employed at a local shelter. Since the early 1960's, we've rented out the same building for $1 from a very generous company that owned the land. A little while ago, that company went bankrupt and had to sell its property, which means the land our shelter is on. Long story short, the shelter is now being evicted by the new property owners so that a strip-mall can be put in place.
After much fund-raising, we are finally able to build a brand new facility. This means more to us than could even be imagined. In this facility, we will be having a small animal room. My boss, who knows I absolutely love the small and fuzzies, gave me the amazing responsibility of choosing cages for our new room.
Of course, I automatically thought of C and C cages. They are what I use for my own critters and I absolutely love the versatility that is offered. However, I began to toss this idea around in my head and I'm not quite sure how they would work in a shelter environment. My worry is that the coroplast base would be destroyed from the sanitizing chemicals, chewers and who knows what else. Not to much that I would most certainly need to find a very good locking system so that all of the goofy people that come in don't decide to stick a hand in and harass any of the little critters. I want something that is basically a heavy-duty C and C cage.
Here's what I'm hoping to find (but don't know where to look) :
- Durable and Easy to sanitize
- Preferably something with solid sides and a vented top.
* Solid sides make it much easier to sanitize, as opposed to
wires. Also, Id like to keep the open area at the top so that
people wont go from cage to cage and stick fingers in.
Additionally, solid sides will help to prevent any sickness
transfer.
- Must fit standard for the small animal that will be using it.
* Basically, Id like to make sure I have a cage for a guinea pig
that is at least a 2x3 or 2x4. And of course rabbits, chinchillas
rats, ferrets, etc also need cages appropriate for them.
- Preferably off the ground or with storage underneath
- I would also love to be able to have a few cages that can be
functional for various types of animals. For instance, we tend to
have a lot of guinea pigs and rabbits surrendered, but once in a
blue moon we do get a ferret or chinchilla or rattie. Just because
We don't get them in frequently, doesn't mean they should have
to be in an improperly sized cage. (Hopefully that made sense)
- I also have to take in to consideration prevention of any illness.
I am open to any ideas possible. It would be best to find cages that can be ordered, but Im open for any suggestions. This is so terribly important to me and I want to make sure that what we get is appropriate for our needs. I want to be able to show potential adopters that small animals SHOULD be cared for in a particular way, with spacious cages, veggies/hay/pellets and whatever else they require.
Ideas?