Containing heat in larger cages?

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Joined
Aug 25, 2010
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Hey everyone! Just a month ago, my first hedgie -Stevie- made her way over rainbow bridge, and I miss her with all my heart. But my love for hedgies continues to grow, despite the lack of one. It could be several months before I decide to get another, but when that time comes I wanna make my new hedgie feel welcome and spoiled to the max. I had Stevie in a Ferret Nation Cage which she 100% loved, as most Hedgies -and people- should. I had a 150 Watt Ceramic Heat Emitter on top of the cage which worked just fine, but I also planted some shelves to keep her stuff on, around her cage. The shelves were taken out for convenience issues after Stevie left us, but now I'm wondering if the shelves were trapping any heat in her cage. The Ferret Nation cages are obviously very open aired, so I'm thinking without something to keep the heat in, the temperature may change drastically. I'm looking to get some sort of clear plastic to atleast cover the back of the cage- possible the sides. I'm hoping this will keep the heat in so I'll have a consistent temperature of about 75 degrees, while still allowing me to see and play with my hedgie. Does anyone have an opinion/any experience dealing with this kind of issue? Thanks a lot!
 
I throw a flannel sheet over the top and down the back of mine during the winter. My FNs are against an outside wall and it does help hold the heat in the cages, while yet still allowing for good airflow.

I don't use a ceramic heat emitter though, I heat the entire room due to multiple cages, so I cannot comment how well that would work with a heat emitter inside.

I also have a thermometer clipped to the inside of each section of the FN to ensure that the temperature is good.
 
In winter, I put fleece around the sides and top of my hedgies' cages. They're wire-top, plastic-bottom. There are fairly large holes on top so I can slide the heat emitter and light around, large holes the size of the entire doors in the front, and big "windows" on the sides - so there's still fresh air coming in and out, but enough fabric to hold the heat in.

All I did was get a few yards of fleece from a fabric store, lay it over the top, and let it drape over the front and back & cut the excess away. To make the side panels, I left about 4" of fabric sticking off to the right and left sides and cut those into 1" strips. Then, back to the remaining yard(s) of fleece, I cut two rectagles a bit larger than the size of the side panels - leaving 4" margins around the sides and top; cut those margins into 1" strips, then used all those strips to tie the sides to the part I had draped over the top. Once all tied up, I grabbed the scissors and cut out doors and window. The remnants turned into wheel mats.
 
Clear plastic works great and is just about invisible. I use the heavy really clear stuff that comes on a big roll and you buy it by the yard. It attaches easily with binder clips or even clothespins so it can easily be removed as needed.
 
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