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C&C Alternatives Designing a Classroom Guinea Pig Cage

CavyOwner

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I'm trying to design a cage for a class guinea pig. I've come up with the basic design, but there are a few details that I would love some advice on.


Basic design (attached rough draft)
1) has to be on wheels
2) has to have a base to lift it to the right height
3) has to have a tortoise tank on top of about 2/3 (not exact measurements for either yet)
4) has to be strong enough for the tank
5) loft next to cage (optional)


Other questions:
1) Would it be safe to leave the loft uncovered? We want to give her as much light and openess as possible and this would make it easier to feed her treats and interact with her. There are no other pets like cats or dogs, but it is a classroom so we want to make sure it's safe.
2) What would be the best type of door for us to use? Our idea is currently to have two doors on the front of the bottom part that cover half each and open outwards so that we can pull the coroplast out to change bedding but can open only half to take her out so she can't accidently fall out while we are getting her. We don't know for the loft yet.
3) What would be the best materials for us to use? Our only idea so far is a wooden frame and back, some sort of chicken wire like mesh on front and sides, coroplast stuff on the bottom and part of the back. We want to make sure that is safe for guinea pigs and strong enough to support the cage while giving her light and openness. We also have a very very limited budget so we are trying to find the cheapest way to make the best cage we can.

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TheGuineaPigGal

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I wouldn't really recommend a guinea pig as a class pet, unless they are older than 5th grade. Kids of any age can be obnoxious, and frighten the poor thing. That is why guinea pigs are not "Great pets for kids, but if you teach the kids to be quiet around the pig, you might be able to work something out, Amazon.com: LANGXUN 16pcs Metal Wire Storage Cubes Organizer, DIY Small Animal Cage for Rabbit, Guinea Pigs, Puppy | Pet Products Portable Metal Wire Yard Fence(14" H): Pet Supplies I would recommend this, if it is in your price range,
 

CavyOwner

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It's a small school, and it's a late middle school classroom where she has lived for a couple years since she was very young. Allergies don't affect her, she can hide wants but doesn't need to most of the time, she loves people and is very outgoing and well suited to the environment, and is given lots of love and treats. She is taken care of just as well as my two babies are and I visited her nearly every day before she went home at the beginning of the COVID stuff. The only problem that has bugged me is the fact that she has a small cage and no friend so I'm working with one of my friends and the teacher for a project to build a cage that will work in the room while still giving her more space to move around and hopefully have a friend.
 

CavyOwner

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I could really use some advice so please don't only post the things that I have thought through multiple times. The faster we finalize the plan the faster she'll be in a cage that meets her needs and opens up the possibility of getting a second guinea pig, which is what she actually needs.
 

LittleWheeks

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I could really use some advice so please don't only post the things that I have thought through multiple times. The faster we finalize the plan the faster she'll be in a cage that meets her needs and opens up the possibility of getting a second guinea pig, which is what she actually needs.

You posted on a UK guinea pig forum about this too, and admitted she's spent 2 years in a small cage with no friends and still claim she's happy. You also got banned because you lied about your age and are actually a minor.
Guinea pigs aren't meant to be classroom pets. No pet is. Class rooms are meant to focus on the kids, and pets are nothing more than a side thought. That's why she's in a tiny cage all alone. Because your teacher doesn't really care.
Also if you don't already have the tortoise, don't get one. They need a ton of space (most experts recommend at 8x4' preferably outside which you can't provide). Plus they need a variety of veggies daily and heating and uvb. If you can't take care of a guinea pig properly, you definitely cant take care of a tortoise who's needs are greater.
You may not want to hear this, but realize that you don't really love animals if you aren't willing to listen. If you really love her, then do what's best for her. She needs space, a friend, a calm atmosphere, and stability. She needs a healthy varied diet of veggies and hay. She needs a stable loving home to live the rest of her life in. She's spent her entire life right now in a terrible environment, lonely and cramped. Give her what she needs to spend the rest of her life happy and encourage your school to find her a permanent home.
 

CavyOwner

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Let me clarify:
1) She lived in a larger cage for a year but was switched (I don't remember why). The first year she also had a friend in the room with her (male so in a different cage). She hasn't been in that small cage alone for very long because the year isn't even over yet. This cage has been something that I've been working on because I know how important it is.

2) You can be 18 and still in high school. I admit I made the account when I as underage but that hardly matters. I needed advice on guinea pigs and that was one of the best places I found to get that advice so that I could provide a good home to my two Guinea pigs. I'm not in middle school, that's just the room that the guinea pig lives in and I visit her there before/after school and during our free period.

3)Classroom pets are all bad. you can't judge whether it is or not without knowing the situation. The teacher has plenty of time to regularly clean the cage, keeps fresh veggies in a fridge in the classroom, and the students also help sometimes because they love the guinea pigs sweet personality. We have been working on getting a larger cage but there is also a space limit that we have been working through. The classroom is also quieter than you might think, and Willow is usually moving around, eating hay, and saying hi to anyone who goes near the cage. The male that used to live in her room, however, wasn't happy and so he went home with my friend for the summer and we decided that he was better off staying there with her other two guinea pigs where he would be happier. If the same were true of Willow me or one of my friends would have done the same thing.

I don't know if Willow would be better off because she has been a class pet since she was young and she loves the attention she gets. The only two problems that you pointed out that were actually true were the space and the lack of a friend, and that is what I am trying to fix.

If you don't agree, then you don't have to help but Willow isn't leaving the school so please help me actually make a difference by doing something instead of just lecturing. I know and have thought through all of this, and so has the teacher. She's a nice woman who puts in time and is more than willing to help us figure out this solution.

The only thing that can help is if someone would give me some advice on the building of the cage.

I'm sorry if that came off as rude, I'm not trying to be, but I really want to finish this cage quickly for her and so far all I have received are lectures about people who make assumptions based on miniscule information because that part isn't relevant.

If someone would please give me advice I would really appreciate it and so would she.
 

LittleWheeks

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Can you provide her with at least 8 sqft of space inside her cage (not the outside of the cage but the inside)? If not then you aren't able to meet her needs in a classroom. If you are then okay. You're looking at making a strong enclosure, meaning sturdy lumber, but you also can't use pine. Meaning this is going to be more expensive. Keep that in mind.
However please don't ignore the tortoise either. I know this isn't the forum for tortoises, but there no way you guys aren't neglecting the poor thing. I seriously doubt you can give the tortoise an outdoors enclosure or an 8×4 table. Humidity requirements, a rich and varied diet (more than spring mix and lettuce land including many foraging foods like clover) and proper cub lighting and heating are all required too.
I seriously think that the best thing to do would be to petition your school to find good homes for these animals if you really do care about them. Use what money and resources you want to put towards building this cage and find the best forever home you can. Show students what it means to really love animals, not just to treat them like toys to be played with and used.
 

CavyOwner

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I can't speak anything reguarding the tortious because I am useless with reptiles. I've spent far too much time researching mammals like guinea pigs, horses, cats, dogs, etc. instead of doing homework, but reptiles I've done little on.

Willow can easily have 8 square feet of ground space plus we are thinking about adding a loft as well. My cage is 12.5 and we are planning on making it a little bit bigger if the measurements we have will work (have to retake them and measure the tortoise. our planning is flawed and we are planning to ask the engineering teacher to help us a little bit).

What about designing the doors, especially the loft? We haven't figured out the best way to do that yet...

Thanks for you help. I know you don't necessarily agree but I truly do care about her and if I thought for even a second that she was stressed or unhappy in the slightest bit I would try to convince someone to find her a new home like we did with the other guinea pig.
 

CavyOwner

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Also, would some kind of chicken wire work for the mesh? I'm finding very mixed information on it...
 

LittleWheeks

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I can think of a few ideas and I can draw them out in a bit. I'm not an expert though. Whether they're realistic is something you'll probably need to ask your engineering teacher. How tall are you wanting the cage?
Also expect a lesson on tortoise care. While I'm only a newbie to tortoises, I've been learning to care for ours and I 100% know that a tortoise is not a suitable pet for a classroom. I've owned basically every pet you can think of, and if you asked me what pet I thought was the most unsuitable pet for a classroom I'd hands down say tortoise. They just really are specialized care animals. Do you know what kind the classroom has? And what kind of lights it has above it? Luke does it have a heat lamp, and a uvb? The uvb light is super important for health, but something a lot of people ignore. It wouldn't be hot, just look like a fluorescent lamp. Maybe a compact fluorescent or a long bar one? Without it they have growth deformations
If you can answer those questions and think on the tortoise (I know it isn't cute and fluffy but they're super intelligent and deserve care too!) I can write some stuff up. But it'll take me a bit. I'm actually on the way to get coroplast for my own cage so I'll do it when I get home
 

CavyOwner

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I don't know what kind he is, what he has, or anythnig else. To be honest I haven't been there in a while cuz Willow is at the time living with a student until COVID is over and the furries can be brought back. I know that the tortious is currently there, and I can ask my partner (she knows more than me about this stuff) or the teacher when I get the measurements sometime next week.

thank you so much! I'm usually more creative than this, but I'm currently struggling to come up with ideas.
 

LittleWheeks

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Alright this took me a bit but I have a couple ideas. Also this is super long... Sorry. First: somethings to think about. I don't mean this as a lecture, but rather as some things to think about and make emergency plans for. What happens when you graduate and your teacher leaves? Who will care for her if she or her new friend is still there? Will the next teacher care as much or will she end up neglected? This is part of the reason why people are so against classroom pets. Even if the current class cares, will the next one? Or will she end up like the little Melvin story the other forum linked? If she gets a new home now you can personally find the best home. But once you go to college or work you likely won't have the time or influence to do anything anymore.
Also what happens if she bonds to a new friend but that friend isn't happy at school? How many pigs can you go through and find new homes for before you stop? And should you do it in the first place? Personally I think that if she makes a really good friend, but that friend is unhappy that it would be cruel and stressful to your current girl to separate them. So you may have to consider, that if her friend needs to be rehomed, she has to go too.
Secondly the tortoise. I know you don't know much about tortoises, but since you seem to love animals I encourage you to go to tortoiseforum.org and read around. It's a forum like this but for tortoise owners who love their pets like the people on here love their guinea pigs. At the very least it can help you see why I push for the poor guy to be rehomed. And if you do rehome, I actually drew out a plan that will give your piggys double the room too!
Then onto the actual plans. I don't know about what kind of chicken wire is usable, but I would suggest that if you use a plywood bottom that you line it with ceramic tile(heavy) or more economically linoleum tiles. The linoleum is super cheap and will prevent the wood from absorbing pee and stinking. Also remember: no raw pine. You may want to look into whether kiln dried pine is safe for guinea pigs. It's been treated and I know is safe for chinchillas but I'm not sure about guinea pigs. Be careful and do research about the pine you use if you go for it. It is cheap though.
My first plan is with a tortoise table and cage combined. I know you mentioned a loft, but it would be better to give her shelled friend some more space rather than give her a loft I think. And I designed it to be able to be left open and still keep her safe in the cage.20210129_230750.jpg
The top door can be swung up and latched to the wall of the tortoise table so she can poke her nose out and people can easily reach in for pets and to feed treats. The bottom door swings down separately so that it's super easy to clean up and access the very back of the cage when needed. It would also mean you need less clearance for the doors, which might be nice in a classroom. 1 ft clearance vs 2 ft clearance gives you a lot more room to put desks and things. I'm not 100% sure on how to latch the doors closed. I put sliding locks, but neodymium magnets may be useable too for both keeping the doors closed, and the top door open.
20210129_230759.jpg
This second design is for if you guys decide to rehome the tortoise. It gives the piggys twice the space because it's two floors but still takes up the same floor space as the first one. Basically with the ability to swing the top open, you can give her a whole other floor and still make sure she has no way to do a flying leap put the cage. The front half of the top swings back so you guys can pet and feed her. The front doors are cabinet style, held in place by neodymium magnets and perhaps a latch if needed. I genuinely encourage you guys to go for something like this. It's best for both animals this way.
Let me know if you have questions. I'm not an engineer (I dropped out lol) and I haven't really thought about these beyond preliminary design. There may be something wrong I'm missing but its late and I've been out all day shopping to make my own cage so let me know if I'm being dumb. But they each have lids are are secure but have doors that can be left open during the day to make her easy to interact with. Hopefully that helps?
 

CavyOwner

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Thank you! that does help a bit. I've gotten a pretty good idea now of what I'm doing.
 
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