Playpen Recommendation?

[Hyrika]

Hi all!
New Chin owner here, he's still a kit so I'm in no rush in letting him roam out of the cage yet.
However, I'm curious of what would be the best suggestion for Playpens?
Ideally, ones that is Climbing-Proof and Foldable.
I heard about Tespo Playpen, but unsure if it's high enough for Chins. Any thoughts?

 

[Amethyst]

The Tespo pens are popular, the plastic ones are climbing proof, but since chins can easily jump 5-6 feet if they really want to escape, so no pen is really tall enough if they really want out, other then maybe a dog kennel. However not all chins realize they can and the Tespo ones are stack-able, so if you get two sets of 28" ones for example you can make the pen 4 feet tall. I have also seen people clip a blanket or sheet over at least part of the pen so there is a "roof" preventing them from jumping out. Another option is a pen like this https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07PSKMWV...d_r=e63474f7-61af-4714-81e5-0632955000e3&th=1 it has a zipper top so they can't jump out. It is chewable though, so you would need to keep a close eye on the chin.

 

[Hyrika]

The Tespo pens are popular, the plastic ones are climbing proof, but since chins can easily jump 5-6 feet if they really want to escape, so no pen is really tall enough if they really want out, other then maybe a dog kennel. However not all chins realize they can and the Tespo ones are stack-able, so if you get two sets of 28" ones for example you can make the pen 4 feet tall. I have also seen people clip a blanket or sheet over at least part of the pen so there is a "roof" preventing them from jumping out. Another option is a pen like this https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07PSKMWV...d_r=e63474f7-61af-4714-81e5-0632955000e3&th=1 it has a zipper top so they can't jump out. It is chewable though, so you would need to keep a close eye on the chin.

Ah I see, yeah was leaning towards Tespo, but do you know if it's easy to put away? Or do I have to completely disassembly the whole thing? Since I need to put the Playpen away everyday once he had his time outside.

 

[Amethyst]

Ah I see, yeah was leaning towards Tespo, but do you know if it's easy to put away? Or do I have to completely disassembly the whole thing? Since I need to put the Playpen away everyday once he had his time outside.

That I don't know, sorry, it doesn't look foldable without disassembling. I have a metal fence one ( https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/ware-small-animal-playpen ), it folds up nicely, but a chin can easily climb it if they want to (which is why I didn't mention it) and it's also only 2 feet high, my guys haven't bothered to try to jump out but most chins do.

 

[Nan]

Hi all!
New Chin owner here, he's still a kit so I'm in no rush in letting him roam out of the cage yet.
However, I'm curious of what would be the best suggestion for Playpens?
Ideally, ones that is Climbing-Proof and Foldable.
I heard about Tespo Playpen, but unsure if it's high enough for Chins. Any thoughts?

Hi! I love the foldable Jespet pen we bought! We bought the large one, and have been using it for our chin’s daily exercise (we put boxes to climb in/on, etc.) His dust bath is in there too. It’s canvas and mesh, and we’ve been using it steadily for 5 months with no damage to it (he hasn’t been able to gnaw through it anywhere, though he tries!). It has add-on zippered top and bottom, so you can make sure he can’t get out, and I like to sit in there with him (with the top unzipped) so he can climb on me. I just roll it outside periodically to clean it out, and it folds pretty easily.

 

[Hyrika]

Hi! I love the foldable Jespet pen we bought! We bought the large one, and have been using it for our chin’s daily exercise (we put boxes to climb in/on, etc.) His dust bath is in there too. It’s canvas and mesh, and we’ve been using it steadily for 5 months with no damage to it (he hasn’t been able to gnaw through it anywhere, though he tries!). It has add-on zippered top and bottom, so you can make sure he can’t get out, and I like to sit in there with him (with the top unzipped) so he can climb on me. I just roll it outside periodically to clean it out, and it folds pretty easily.

Ah that's Awesome! Funny enough I did wound up ordering the Jespet pen too yesterday and I'm glad hearing it works well for you.
My main wary is trying to figure out how to get him in there without having to pick him up as he hates it lol.

 

[Nan]

Ah that's Awesome! Funny enough I did wound up ordering the Jespet pen too yesterday and I'm glad hearing it works well for you.
My main wary is trying to figure out how to get him in there without having to pick him up as he hates it lol.

My method is to open his cage and hold his dust bath container in front of him - he can’t resist climbing in, and then I just put it down in the Jespet. Works great!

 

[Jawramik]

I just ordered a Jespet. It should arrive this weekend. Super excited to try it out! The Jespet was recommended on several chinchilla sites I came across. I liked that it came in several sizes and colour options (I have limited floor space, so I ordered the medium size). It also seemed like a good value in terms of price and quality, and people say it's easy to fold down and store.

I may also end up getting a play fence of some sort (either plastic panels or a wire kennel style with small spacing), but I want to see how things go with the Jespet before I spend that money.

 

[Nan]

I just ordered a Jespet. It should arrive this weekend. Super excited to try it out! The Jespet was recommended on several chinchilla sites I came across. I liked that it came in several sizes and colour options (I have limited floor space, so I ordered the medium size). It also seemed like a good value in terms of price and quality, and people say it's easy to fold down and store.

I may also end up getting a play fence of some sort (either plastic panels or a wire kennel style with small spacing), but I want to see how things go with the Jespet before I spend that money.

Good luck! I hope the Jespet works for you and for your chin!

 

[Jawramik]

Good luck! I hope the Jespet works for you and for your chin!

I got my chin in the new Jespet today, and it was a complete success! She absolutely loved it! She was popcorning and wall-jumping and throwing her toys around for about an hour. I put her litterbox in there with her, and she didn't leave any pee spots for me to clean up. Yay! I'm glad it has a roof, though, otherwise she would have been out of there in about 5 minutes.

 

[borwin98]

The Tespo pens are popular, the plastic ones are climbing proof, but since chins can easily jump 5-6 feet if they really want to escape, so no pen is really tall enough if they really want out, other then maybe a dog kennel. However not all chins realize they can and the Tespo ones are stack-able, so if you get two sets of 28" ones for example you can make the pen 4 feet tall. I have also seen people clip a blanket or sheet over at least part of the pen so there is a "roof" preventing them from jumping out. Another option is a pen like this https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07PSKMWV...d_r=e63474f7-61af-4714-81e5-0632955000e3&th=1 it has a zipper top so they can't jump out. It is chewable though, so you would need to keep a close eye on the chin.

I clip a sheet over the top of my playpen, chins love to jump and can easily get out.

 

[Nan]

I got my chin in the new Jespet today, and it was a complete success! She absolutely loved it! She was popcorning and wall-jumping and throwing her toys around for about an hour. I put her litterbox in there with her, and she didn't leave any pee spots for me to clean up. Yay! I'm glad it has a roof, though, otherwise she would have been out of there in about 5 minutes.

Yay, I’m glad it’s working for you! Watching them popcorn around in there is so much fun! I’ve found that I don’t need to use the roof, since I think the fact that it has that 3-inch inward top section where the roof zips in, my chin just can’t figure out how to jump it. But I have the large one, so I think the sides are taller. (31”) And he has never once peed in there! (Pooping is of course a different story.) But I think folks on this site will tell you that an hour is probably too long; most people seem to recommend no longer than 30 minutes of play time, but I hope those with more experience will weigh in on that. Good luck with your fuzzy friend!

 

[Jawramik]

Yay, I’m glad it’s working for you! Watching them popcorn around in there is so much fun! I’ve found that I don’t need to use the roof, since I think the fact that it has that 3-inch inward top section where the roof zips in, my chin just can’t figure out how to jump it. But I have the large one, so I think the sides are taller. (31”) And he has never once peed in there! (Pooping is of course a different story.) But I think folks on this site will tell you that an hour is probably too long; most people seem to recommend no longer than 30 minutes of play time, but I hope those with more experience will weigh in on that. Good luck with your fuzzy friend!

I was doing some modifications to her cage, which is part of why she was out so long (though I probably would have been done sooner if I didn't keep getting distracted watching her, haha). It was also a cool day, so I figured I didn't have to be too worried about overheating. But I'll definitely try to limit her playtime in the future if an hour is just too long.