Cage Looking at my options

[DreaminZorro]

Hi there!

I'm not new to the world of pigs. I had two wonderful boars a few years ago who lived long and happy lives in their C&C cage, so I know the power of having enough room to roam. It's been a few years since I had pigs, so I wasn't really expecting to get another one.

Then in June, PetCo had a guinea pig boar with a sign that said 'Free to good home'. Since they never screen for "good" homes, and I had had two boars in the past, I told them I'd take him, and got him out of that store. (And didn't buy a single thing from them by way of supplies since I went and dug around for the old stuff) He had to live in a storage tote tub for a few days since I couldn't find any grids and I knew I didn't have any coroplast left (I last had pigs back in 2008, so didn't have that stuff anymore) but I got him set up in a "large" SuperPet cage that I got from the Humane Society for donating $5. I have that set up with a playpen barrier, and towels and cardboard blocking off the playpen fence so he can't jump out. He uses the cage as a kitchen, and he can run down the open door into a space on the floor which gives him a little more area space although it's not nearly as big as a C&C cage. I've named him Zorro. He's been treated for mites as a precaution, and gets plenty of greens, hay and Cavy Cuisine from the feed store.

This whole set up is pretty temporary, I'm looking at my options and am trying to find a more permanent solution as I unfortunately can't quite do a 2x3 (or 2x4) C&C cage. The length itself isn't much of a problem since I can make it pretty long, but I'm no long in the same room that I used to keep my old C&C cage in, which had a little more space to let it spread out. The room I now live in has a weird closet feature that stick out off the wall, and a little beyond that is the bedroom door. The cage has to go on the wall facing the door, and if it's too wide, it'll be a bit of a squeeze to get around it and past that sticking out part of the closet. I can do it during the day, but in the dark, at night, and stumbling around blind without my glasses, makes it a bit tricky.

So ... I can only go about 22" off the wall. I might be able to manage 24" so a 24" wide cage (of which there are several could be an option) and can have a longer cage than 42" to make up for less width. I know it's not ideal, but I'm trying to work with what I have best. At the moment, I won't be getting a second pig (what I'd like to do is get this guy neutered so he can be housed with a sow as I don't feel I have enough room for 2 boars again, but that's something that needs to wait, I'm saving my money for a trip in the fall to go to Kentucky to visit the horse farms) so I also need to consider size options for the future.

I've pretty much narrowed things down to:

• Marchioro Tommy 120 cage: I know it's a little narrow, and a little small, and only has about 6.1 sq ft, but ... someone's selling one locally for about $50, and I'm waiting to hear back from them. If I set things up right, I can arrange the playpen I have to allow for more floor time during the day and allow Zorro to go in and out. I wouldn't buy it otherwise, but the price is pretty tempting.

• Midwest Guinea Habitat: I'm on the fence about this one. I don't much like the bottom of the cage. But it's big enough, if barely, and not too expensive if bought new.

• Building a 24"x48" cage out of grids (or wire shelving) and coroplast: This would be my third option once I figure out how big a sheet of coroplast I'd need. I can only get it at one sign store in town, and they might charge me significantly for it. I'd get the grids at K-Mart or the shelving at Home Deport. Those will cost me at ~$20 so I think I'd be spending as much if not more for a homemade cage as buying the used Tommy 120 (if I can get it) or a Midwest cage.

Any thoughts on pros and cons here? I wish I had space for a 2x4 C&C cage, as that would solve the problem nicely, but alas, I don't, and I have to make do, but making sure I can give him as much space as I can within my limits. I plan to bed on fleece. I loved that stuff when I had it in my C&C cages, and I plan to keep using it as long as I can.

 

[sdpiggylvr]

Honestly, C&C cages are so much better than even the largest pet store cage. C&C cages are so durable, easy to clean, and allow for so much more space and interaction between you and your guinea pig -- which, ultimately, will make your guinea pig much happier and healthier.

So am I correct in saying that you cannot build longer than 42"? If you can, I would seriously consider adopting a second guinea pig. It's so important.

Have you checked this site for coroplast near you? (broken link removed). They have the cheapest coroplast - $10 a sheet!

If you can see in this picture, they overlapped the grids to make it 24" wide. You could do something like that. (broken link removed)

 

[DreaminZorro]

Oh, believe me, I know how nice C&C cages can be. I had a 2x4 with a 1x2 loft for my last boar pair and they got along swimmingly. With fleece blankets. It really was the bee's knees for them. They lived a good 5 and a half years that way, and then Ferdi took ill suddenly and Skunk only managed another 6 months without him, despite all I could do. If I had the space for a reasonable sized C&C cage, I'd do it in a heartbeat. Especially because I still have my 2x4 fleece blankets. It's just unfortunate that my room's configured in that odd way. The cage is going to have to go next to my gecko rack, my bed's on the opposite wall, and no cage will fit on the dresser in the closet. My desk is wedged in on the wall beside my bed and between my bookcase, and I have shelves under the window, but that wouldn't work for putting a cage there because that's too close to my desk and chair.

So am I correct in saying that you cannot build longer than 42"? If you can, I would seriously consider adopting a second guinea pig. It's so important.

I can build longer than 42". I'm actually hoping to go out to about 48" or so. The problem is, I can't have a cage wider than 24" and 2 grids are wider than that. And, yes, I know having a second pig is important. Like I said though, I'd like to aim for a sow this time as I feel like I got lucky with last boar pairing, and I'd be pushing my luck to have 2 intact boars in the size of the cage I can manage. That'll have to mean Zorro needs to be neutered (or I get lucky and find a spayed sow to adopt) but it's really a financial expense that's not high on my list of priorities right now.

Have you checked this site for coroplast near you? (broken link removed). They have the cheapest coroplast - $10 a sheet!

Alas, San Diego and San Jose are the only ones I could find. And I'm between them. Home Deport didn't have it, much to my dismay. The one sign store in town is probably going to charge me at least $20 or so for just the cut size rather than a whole sheet.

Building a cage is definitely one of my options. I'm just trying to look at all of them right now before deciding.

 

[lissie]

There are other plastic stores around here.
(broken link removed)
TAP Plastics

How about a cage made from shelving? Like this one. It's about 2x4 feet (not grids).
https://www.guinealynx.info/forums/viewtopic.php?p=1898988#1898988

 

[sdpiggylvr]

And, yes, I know having a second pig is important. Like I said though, I'd like to aim for a sow this time as I feel like I got lucky with last boar pairing, and I'd be pushing my luck to have 2 intact boars in the size of the cage I can manage. That'll have to mean Zorro needs to be neutered (or I get lucky and find a spayed sow to adopt) but it's really a financial expense that's not high on my list of priorities right now.

It is possible to comfortably fit two boars in your alternative-size C&C cage. A few inches off the width is not going to spell fighting - that is, if you can fit a sufficient length in the area you are planning. Based on the square footage requirements explained on the Guinea Pig Cages homepage, around 13 square feet is a good size for two males. That would mean a 24" x 77", or 24" x 5.5 grids. Now, I understand that is a rather large cage and you may not be able to fit that in your planned area, but just wanted to let you know of the possibility, since neutering is cost-prohibitive.

 

[3littlewheekers]

I would just make a custom size c&c. Overlap or bend grids around the corners to make it the right width. You could always do a second level that way. We had ours done that way for a while aprox 2.5 grids wide we just bent them around the corners instead of overlapping but either way will work. Good luck!

 

[sdpiggylvr]

Just keep in mind that a second level won't count for the overall square footage. Yes, it's more space, but really the bottom level is the most important and needs to be at least minimum size to ensure a happy pairing.

 

[DreaminZorro]

It is possible to comfortably fit two boars in your alternative-size C&C cage. A few inches off the width is not going to spell fighting - that is, if you can fit a sufficient length in the area you are planning. Based on the square footage requirements explained on the Guinea Pig Cages homepage, around 13 square feet is a good size for two males. That would mean a 24" x 77", or 24" x 5.5 grids. Now, I understand that is a rather large cage and you may not be able to fit that in your planned area, but just wanted to let you know of the possibility, since neutering is cost-prohibitive.

77" ... yikes. It's doable, but it might be hard to open the bedroom door. hmy: I think I got pretty lucky with my last two boars being in a 10.5 sq foot cage, and they were pretty hefty boys to boot, easily in the 5 lb range. Zorro's pretty tiny at 2 lbs, 11 oz. He's supposed to be 6 months old, and I'd like to get a baby boar, should I choose not to neuter him, if I had to rather than trying to find an adult male over a year old to avoid the youngster squabble of two pigs the same age. I'll look at my options and decide what works best for me.

Thanks for the help.