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Author Topic: Ferret Nation Modification tutorial with Measurements  (Read 11980 times)
Mischief Mistress
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« Reply #90 on: December 22, 2007, 12:08:29 PM »

In the second picture is there a reason why you zip tied it on the second square and not the first one?
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« Reply #91 on: December 22, 2007, 01:27:02 PM »

I was starting to get nervous that just putting around the one wire in the first square wouldn't be secure enough, if it bent or they chewed through it, so now I'm trying to put them all through the second square.
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« Reply #92 on: December 22, 2007, 02:52:17 PM »

Well... I could only afford 3 rolls of the green mesh. I'm not doing the top because it's covered already with spare cages. Do you think it will be enough?  Puppy Dog Eyes:
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« Reply #93 on: December 22, 2007, 03:04:57 PM »

Let's be clear. The doors are 18' wide. Not 16.  Roll Eyes
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« Reply #94 on: December 22, 2007, 08:15:34 PM »

Let's be clear. The doors are 18' wide. Not 16.  Roll Eyes

But, assuming you're only putting the mesh inside the frame, you only need to cut the mesh to 16".
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« Reply #95 on: December 22, 2007, 09:16:37 PM »

I did.  Unless I counted wrong, but then I counted 18 inches and it worked fine. I must be losing it! We should also talk about utilizing mesh space. I was able to cover all the bottom FN with one roll (3 by 5) by zip tying the scrap together. In total it might take me 2 and a half rolls.
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« Reply #96 on: December 23, 2007, 08:33:31 AM »

Did you cover the middle floor under the pan?  And the bottom floor under the pan?  I'm doing those, just because I'm so paranoid that a baby will get under there and then get strangled on one of the bars.  Blue Dumbo Big Eyes
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« Reply #97 on: December 23, 2007, 08:54:25 AM »

Did you cover the middle floor under the pan?  And the bottom floor under the pan?  I'm doing those, just because I'm so paranoid that a baby will get under there and then get strangled on one of the bars.  Blue Dumbo Big Eyes
What?Huh? You have to cover the bottoms too?
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« Reply #98 on: December 23, 2007, 09:02:28 AM »

Did you cover the middle floor under the pan?  And the bottom floor under the pan?  I'm doing those, just because I'm so paranoid that a baby will get under there and then get strangled on one of the bars.  Blue Dumbo Big Eyes
What?Huh? You have to cover the bottoms too?

I'm not sure you "have to", but I'm worried that the babies might somehow get under the pan, and then either get out, or get trapped between the pan and the bars and get killed.  It has happened once or twice on this forum, unfortunately.  Blue Dumbo Big Eyes
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« Reply #99 on: December 23, 2007, 09:05:50 AM »

Oh... Blue Dumbo Big Eyes
I don't have enough to do it, and I don't think my dad will want to do it, so I can't. I'll just hope for the best.  Undecided
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« Reply #100 on: December 24, 2007, 05:08:50 PM »

Yeah. COVER THE FRIGGIN BOTTOMS! Especially if you have girls and boys. And the boys would be in an unmodified FN. Yeah. I found a girl in with my 3 boys emile remy and poof. I think you'll see a new "eepers" post here in 23 days. I already have 18 rats! %$^&$*@*$&%$%

 Undecided Anyone want a free rat?  Just kidding. Lil nitwit.
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« Reply #101 on: December 26, 2007, 08:55:37 AM »

COVER THE FRIGGIN BOTTOMS!

Seriously? I don't have any boys, and my girls aren't very naughty and aren't desperatley trying to get somewhere/escape. I'm not really worried. The cage is modded and put together, and my girls really like it.
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« Reply #102 on: December 26, 2007, 01:43:22 PM »

cool. but mine are freaks.
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« Reply #103 on: December 26, 2007, 02:48:45 PM »

Ack. I just got all the pices out of the box, bought the supplies and now I have no idea what to do, since no one will help me in my house xD

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« Reply #104 on: December 26, 2007, 03:37:46 PM »

"Simple" of what to do - cut the mesh to size, attach to the panels, build cage. 

Reality - it's NOT easy.  You really need 2 people to build it, unless one is in urban development and has a background in construction (aka my father), and even then, you'll have blisters and bruises. 

IMO - if you don't have escape artists or unaltered boys and girls in the same cage - I'd only modify under the pans, to prevent someone breaking their neck when they get the bright idea to see if they can stick their head down under the pan.  If you have escape artists, little females or babies, both sexes, or squabblers, I'd modify the entire cage.  That's just me and my opinions.  I've modified both FNs now, since the girls are escape artists and little, and the boys will eventually have babies with them.
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« Reply #105 on: December 27, 2007, 12:20:00 AM »

I did it by myself, I had HUGE wire cutters though, and little ones for touch ups. It's not that hard if you follow the instructions, make sure you have something heavy to held down the wire because it tends to bounce back and hit you in the face...  It's just tedious and if you have the right tools it goes by fast. Minus the breaks I took it probably took 3 hours.
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« Reply #106 on: December 30, 2007, 09:16:11 PM »

You have to make sure that you check all screws and screw holes, in case the instructions didn't say. You could end up with a very wobbly FN...
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« Reply #107 on: January 12, 2008, 02:15:23 PM »

I just bought my 2nd FN and decided to modify it prior to assembly. I have a feeling its a LOT easier to zip tie prior to putting the cage together than it would be to do all that zip tying after its all set up. Still, I had HOURS invested in this mod... But honestly, it wasn't difficult and I did not need my hubby's help until it came time to set up the 2nd level of the cage...

I ended up using 4 rolls of 2' x 5' wire but did not have enough to cover the top. I had very little waste, so I'm not sure how I only got the sides covered with 20' total length of wire  Huh

I would make sure you have a GOOD pair of tin snips/wire cutters... that helps Smiley  And I had rolled out the wire the night prior to assembly and flattened it down with weights. That made measuring/cutting pretty pain free. I also made the error of zip tying the first panel with the little nubbies facing the inside of the cage.  Those little nubbies can be quite sharp, so I had to make sure I had the cut-part of the zip tie facing out so my girlies' little feet wouldn't get hurt Smiley

So far, the girls are loving the cage! The wire allows them to climb all over and provides me with a little peace of mind... Thanks again for your ideas on this mod!! It made my life a lot easier  Grin


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« Reply #108 on: January 12, 2008, 11:09:39 PM »

 

SO, my fiance and I...about a week ago...did the EXACT same modification, but we hadn't found this thread.

I JUST finished their bottom level tonight!!!

We used a thick, black, plastic hardware cloth found at HD as well. It was more trouble bending and keeping it in place...but it was cheaper and less SHARP edges. We fore-went the zip ties, and used plain old wire. Just wound it around the bars. It took about 3 hours in total, maybe more. But it worked really well!

Has anyone wired the very top of the cage? My girls are smart and found they can climb the sides and get their heads through the bars going across the top of the cage. Right now we just have a big piece of press board and some boxes up there, but I was wondering how ya'll dealt with tha?  lovestory (<-----cutest smilie ever HAHA)
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« Reply #109 on: January 20, 2008, 04:24:23 PM »

My fiance and I are considering getting a couple of FN's for the crew. I already know we will have to modify the girls cage of course. The boys we will have to test and see if we decide to get them a FN. Anyways, Most say they got the coated wire at home depot? how much was it? We haven't tried to look locally yet but there is a Ace hardware and a Home Depot near by. We also have a lowes, a bit farther. I was wondering if we can't find the mesh locally, has anyone found it reasonable online?? If so, could you please post a link. Thanks!  Smiley
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« Reply #110 on: January 20, 2008, 06:17:39 PM »

My fiance and I are considering getting a couple of FN's for the crew. I already know we will have to modify the girls cage of course. The boys we will have to test and see if we decide to get them a FN. Anyways, Most say they got the coated wire at home depot? how much was it? We haven't tried to look locally yet but there is a Ace hardware and a Home Depot near by. We also have a lowes, a bit farther. I was wondering if we can't find the mesh locally, has anyone found it reasonable online?? If so, could you please post a link. Thanks!  Smiley

We got our coated wire at Home Depot in the outside garden area by the fencing material... I got four of the 2'x5' rolls for $31.00


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« Reply #111 on: January 22, 2008, 02:25:27 PM »

My friend and I went to Home depot yesterday and could not find it. We went to the garden center and wondered around. We also looked in the regular fencing area but only found the galvanized.  Sad

Anyone in FL found it?  Tongue
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« Reply #112 on: January 27, 2008, 05:48:07 PM »

My friend and I went to Home depot yesterday and could not find it. We went to the garden center and wondered around. We also looked in the regular fencing area but only found the galvanized.  Sad

Anyone in FL found it?  Tongue


Maybe try Tractor Supply? From their website, it looks like they might have it.
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« Reply #113 on: March 02, 2008, 02:16:10 AM »

where did you get your ferret nation from and how much did it cost you?  I am looking into buying one and I am trying to find the best price.  It seems that online is the best, but I dont want to have to wait for it very long.  thanks!
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« Reply #114 on: March 03, 2008, 02:44:08 PM »

Thanks so much for the measurements, it made it so much easier for me to mod mine. I found it to be easy to do, on my own - I think the trick is to have a really good (sharp!) pair of wirecutters. Mine cut like butter and while it took me some time to cut it and then attatch it it wasn't hard to do, just time consuming.  The hardest part was finding the hardwire cloth - went to two lowes and two home depots before I finally found one that had it in stock.

No more Anya jumping on the bed at night!