Homemade Rattie Enclosures?

[MooreSpino]

Pre-manufactured cages look great, but I'm a hands-on kinda person. I'd really like to build my own rat cages before I go out to adopt. I found this one:

http://www.dapper.com.au/cagebuild.htm

Does anyone else have or know of plans online for building rat-safe homes? Any tips, also, would be helpful! 

*EDIT* I just noticed there was a sticky on this subject, so I'll change it a bit. Has anyone built their own rat cages, or purchased one? How do they hold up? Any issues?

[Dori]

It will be cheaper in the long run to buy a ready made cage. 

[MooreSpino]

Perhaps... But where would be the fun in that? 

Really, I want full creative liscense with it and I can get materials pretty cheaply. It'd be a great weekend project.

[Ratsndogs]

I wish I was handy with that kind of project... I'd spend the money.  I say if you can do it... DO IT!

Isn't there a stickied thread somewhere on the forum for plans?

[cerulean.blue]

It will be cheaper in the long run to buy a ready made cage. 

Yeah, it will. I found this out when I was looking into building my own cage a while back too. If you want to go ahead and try your own there are a bunch of sites with homemade cage plans. I'll try to pull some up for you that I found nice ideas on.

Better Holes and Garbage
Rats in the Workshop- this one has LOTS of links to plans (some are broken though)

If you use Google there's plenty more out there. I also started this thread a while back, which could give you some ideas. If you search, there's a few other threads on homemade cages too.

[MooreSpino]

Thanks for the links. 

Did you ever get your own built or was it abandoned to the lures of premade? 

[TheZookeeper]

We built this cage.......


I just put a third door on it too.  Now I am told this cage will absorb urine odors so I have done some reading and have concluded that once it warms up a bit we will paint it with bird safe paint...that will in turn be rat safe.  I have read about some durable ones that will work great.  The bin at the bottom was from walmart for like $7 and the fabric was bought at Tractor Supply for like $12 a roll (36" tall by I think 10') and I used another piece I already had to finish it as the 10' was not enough.  I bought the hook things for the doors (that are now on--were not in the photo) and the plastic edging stuff for the raw edges from http://www.klubertanz.com/Catalog.htm and www.bunnyrabbit.com has them too.  We did buy the tool to crimp the c clamps ...also from Tractor Supply for like $10 and then the c clamps.  We have been making cages for our rescued ratties too....we have built around 10 now....I am getting pretty good at it.  I enjoy it and hardly ever even bleed anymore.  LOL.

I hope that helps.

[MooreSpino]

Thanks for the info, and thats adorable with the little rattie hiding in the corner and the dog looking in.  I'll have to look into some bird safe paint, non-toxic water-based in a pale yellow (rats are supposidly healthier in yellow enviroments... supposidly).

[bloodraven]

I must say, a homemade cage, if done properly, is cheaper and just as easy to maintain as a pre-made cage. Understandably, the grotto style cages are going to cost more in the long run due to what the main component is. However, there are many more homemade cage ideas out there than that. I built my cage for 55 bucks after all materials and it came out very nice. In the style of an FN but smaller. 24x24x40 to be exact. They boys are soon going into a different cage, but this is still a great cage for a great price. It did take some labor, but I don't think there is a nicer cage for the price that I paid, or even twice what I paid.



As far as plans go...well...you shouldn't really need them. It was just zip tying different panels together until it formed that. The mesh cubes can be found at Target for about 15 bucks. For something that size, it took 3 boxes of them, two bags of zip ties, and some wood over the wire floors covered in fleece (if you use wood, make sure it is a small, but strong wood topped with a waterproof coating.)

[cerulean.blue]

Thanks for the links. 

Did you ever get your own built or was it abandoned to the lures of premade? 

Not really. I ended up buying a used bird cage, and I'm in the process of modifying it for the rats (adding levels, painting it, etc).

Painter's Touch by Rustoleum is a safe paint and it comes in a lot of colors.

[MooreSpino]

Painter's Touch by Rustoleum. Gotcha, thanks.

Modified bird cage? Coolio. Sounds like the best of both worlds. 


I like the cubed cage, bloodraven, especially the basketball basket.  Very cute.

[KoalaLou2]

I had a friend at college who modified a curios type cabinet.  The top was glass doors with shelving and the bottom had drawers, so all their things in the drawers and the top was waterproofed and the glass changed to wire mesh and just holes drilled for ramps or to hook in hammocks.