Michael & Jordan were adopted yesterday. Their original pet store cage is about the size of a 1x2; they are now in a 2x4 C&C. I built the cage myself and even sewed a fleece liner for them. (First time sewing, and it was a pain in my @$$).
So here's my problem. I was going to have a 1x2 kitchen loft for them but changed my mind because I just didn't like how it would make it more difficult to clean the cage. I desperately wanted a separate kitchen area so my attempt at this was to take the bottom and top off of their original cage and place it inside their current cage. It fits perfectly inside the depth of the two grids and is slightly wider than 1 grid but it looks nice because of the arch opening into their little eating area and it helps keep the hay in that area. My mistake?.....it has now shortened their running area to a 2x3 and I'm just not happy about that.
So I guess I have three options:
1) Add the kitchen loft upstairs and just deal with a more difficult cleaning routine. I already have the 1x2 C&C made, I just have to purchase those connectors that make it easy to just detach it and lift it off. Then I have to sew another liner for that area. :grumpy:
2) Extend the cage to a 2x5 and do the same thing I'm doing now (using their original cage inside their current cage as a separator). The problem with this....since the Coroplast is already cut/molded to fit a 2x4 and 2x1, I would need to somehow have the 2 separate areas just next to each other and cut the Coroplast of the 2x1 so they can walk into it.
3) Somehow attach the old cage to the current cage rather than having it inside the current cage. I'm not quite sure how I would figure this one out. My cage is on a grid storage base so I don't know if I would just set the old cage on top of the extended base or how that would work.
I realize this is really confusing to just read about so I'm going to attempt to sketch out the 3 separate possibilities so you guys know what the heck I'm talking about.
Now that I've drawn it all out, I realize #2 and #3 are basically identical. I would still have to purchase more grids (just wouldn't need to use as many), more Coroplast, and sew a new liner. So I guess the choices come down to whether I should have a kitchen upstairs (which the ramp may take up running space) or have the kitchen attached on the side (which would require me to purchase more materials). When it all comes down to it, I don't mind having to purchase more materials if absolutely necessary. So which would be better for the boys? Or does it matter?
So here's my problem. I was going to have a 1x2 kitchen loft for them but changed my mind because I just didn't like how it would make it more difficult to clean the cage. I desperately wanted a separate kitchen area so my attempt at this was to take the bottom and top off of their original cage and place it inside their current cage. It fits perfectly inside the depth of the two grids and is slightly wider than 1 grid but it looks nice because of the arch opening into their little eating area and it helps keep the hay in that area. My mistake?.....it has now shortened their running area to a 2x3 and I'm just not happy about that.
So I guess I have three options:
1) Add the kitchen loft upstairs and just deal with a more difficult cleaning routine. I already have the 1x2 C&C made, I just have to purchase those connectors that make it easy to just detach it and lift it off. Then I have to sew another liner for that area. :grumpy:
2) Extend the cage to a 2x5 and do the same thing I'm doing now (using their original cage inside their current cage as a separator). The problem with this....since the Coroplast is already cut/molded to fit a 2x4 and 2x1, I would need to somehow have the 2 separate areas just next to each other and cut the Coroplast of the 2x1 so they can walk into it.
3) Somehow attach the old cage to the current cage rather than having it inside the current cage. I'm not quite sure how I would figure this one out. My cage is on a grid storage base so I don't know if I would just set the old cage on top of the extended base or how that would work.
I realize this is really confusing to just read about so I'm going to attempt to sketch out the 3 separate possibilities so you guys know what the heck I'm talking about.
Now that I've drawn it all out, I realize #2 and #3 are basically identical. I would still have to purchase more grids (just wouldn't need to use as many), more Coroplast, and sew a new liner. So I guess the choices come down to whether I should have a kitchen upstairs (which the ramp may take up running space) or have the kitchen attached on the side (which would require me to purchase more materials). When it all comes down to it, I don't mind having to purchase more materials if absolutely necessary. So which would be better for the boys? Or does it matter?