Shelves and ledges

[fbodgrl]

I'm pretty excited. :bliss: I went to home depot and got wood for shelves and ledges for the cage. I had them cut some of the pieces. Just so i could fit the wood in my VW beetle :rofl:

For the shelves I got wood that was 6" wide. I forget how I had them cut the ledges, but that wood I believe was 4"wide.

What is the right size for just leaping ledges?

Also I think I read that the shelves and ledges should be set up in kind of a pattern so they can jump from one to another. Is that right?

How much space should I leave from the top shelve to the top of the cage? I planned on having the top shelve just be long across the back, but I forgot I am going to order a corner shelve with a food dish from simply chintastic. I think the food one should go at the top :confused2:

The cage is a ferret nation 142

 

[greychins]

There really is no "right size" for leaping ledges, you can have them as big or small as you want. In several of our cages, we have grapevine or other-wood (couldn't tell you what type off the top of my head) perches that the chins sit on, so it doesn't have to be any certain size. So how big are your leaping ledges? 4x6?

Ideally, yes, you do want the chins to be able to hop from one ledge to another. Since you said you have a FN, I suppose you could put a shelf or ledge so that the chin could jump from the bottom of the level up onto the ledge... and back down... but I think chins have more fun hopping from ledge to ledge, so that's how we set up our cages here...

You can leave as much or as little space for the top shelf as you'd like. I think we try to leave 8ish+ inches, so that the chins can sit on the shelf without being thisclose to the top of the cage, but it's personal preference.

Do your chins ever dig in their food? If that's the case, I would put their food closer to the pans/bottom of the cage.

 

[fbodgrl]

I believe I had them cut the ledges 4x6. I still have more wood to cut shelves and ledges.

I don't have a chinchilla yet, so I am not sure about food digging. I just have the cage and am getting it set up and ready before I get a chin. This will be my first Chin, so I keep asking lot's of questions...I want to make sure I get everything I need and set up right

 

[greychins]

Oh ok. Yeah 4x6 should be fine... you don't have to have ledges any specific size... With our cages, there are some shelves that run the length of the cage, and then others that are smaller, a little bigger... I'll find a pic of one cage that's easy to see shelves on and attach... Whatever wood we have left over after all the cuts becomes a shelf... it just depends on how you want to set your cage up.

I suppose it's not super-obvious in any of the pictures, but a lot of the shelves in these two cages don't stretch all the way from front to back. You can see in the 2nd picture how the shelves are staggered across the cage so that the chins can hop jump from one shelf to another (you asked about that in a previous post).

Ah ok. I just thought I'd ask about the food digging because we used to keep one of our food bowls (attached to the side of the cage so it couldn't fall) near the top of a 6' cage. Then our chinchillas started digging, and so there would be pellets, not only all over the ground, but littering alllllll the shelves on the way down. Ugh. If your new chin digs, I mean that's still not exactly desirable, but at least if it's lower, it doesn't have as much room to fall and scatter...

Kudos to your for setting up BEFORE you get your new chin. There are so many people out there that get the pet first and worry about the cage later... which I personally would think is stressful... but the way you're doing it is good, so that when the chin comes home, you'll be ready for him/her.

Keep asking questions - even if you think they're stupid - we'd all rather you learn and do things the right way the first time than have to tell you "well, it would have been better had you done it this way"...

 

[fbodgrl]

Thanks. The pictures help!

Once I get the cage entirely set up(which will probably be a while) I will post a bunch of pictures so you guy's can tell me if it is set up alright or if I need to move anything around.

I come on her almost everyday and have been reading here and all the sites recommended for supplies and stuff too.

I have a dog, 4 cats and a turtle as well. My 15 year old cat passed away in June. I used to joke and say she was my learning experience. She was the first pet I had that was all mine and the first cat i ever had(I grew up with dogs). My turtle has been a HUGE learning experience. I have had her for 14 years and have been through multiple tanks, filters, etc. I learned a lot about her diet and health and tank AFTER I got her. I'm older and more experienced now, so I know that you should try and know somewhat what you are doing before you have your pet...although I am sure after I have my chin I will still have plenty of questions!

 

[GorillaJTA]

I have leaping ledges that I made that are only about 1.5 inches wide. My guys will spend as much time on them as any others and really use them to rocket around the cage. I have heard that you want it set up so that they never fall more than their body length, and I tried to set mine up that way, but they still miss the backups and look no worse for wear.

 

[greychins]

Alright, well whenever you get it set up, we'll be here to look at it and help.

I think, especially for some of the first pets that people ever have to really care for, a lot of times the way they learn is through experience. Like you said with your turtle - after you got her, then you learned about the filters and the tanks and the diet... I know when we first got chins, almost 8 years ago now (doesn't seem that long!), we started them out in a 10 gallon tank for two adult chins (I know, I know, even I cringe). Eventually we did move them to a wire cage with a plastic base and plastic shelves... which of course were chewed to bits. We had good intentions, but no practical idea of what to do. At some point within the first year, I found this forum...well, it was CnQ then, but anyway. I remember the first cage we ever had (the purple-based cage in that picture of the two connected by the PVC) when I got in a shipment of ledges and chew toys and other supplies that I bought from members on here... I attached a picture of the cage with all the new wooden perches... it doesn't look like much, and now, looking at it, it really wasn't much... but it was so much better than how we started out, first in the tank, and then with the plastic shelves that were mangled so so fast...

Course now we build our own shelves, and our cages look at bit different than that, but it was like you with the turtle... at some point you do learn and get on the right track, even if you didn't realize how little you knew to began with (I mean no offense).

When do you plan to get your new chin?

 

[fbodgrl]

I hope to get my Chin in the fall. Although I am not sure where from yet.

I am having surgery on my left arm on the 25th, so that is going to set back the cage prep time a little depending on how functional my arm is after my surgery. I am going to try and get the shelves in this week. I have a ton of fleece I need to get sewn into liners and hammocks, etc. I have a list of stuff almost complete of what I need to order. Then I just have to start ordering things.

 

[greychins]

Ah ok. Well don't overdo it with the arm! Every time I injure myself, I always try to hop back into the regular swing of things muuuuch too quick and end up hurting myself and keeping myself from doing anything for longer time than if I'd just waited another week... I have no patience.

I don't know how close you are to Houghton Lake, MI (I think that's it), but if you're close, JAGS (member on here, large breeder) has a lot of nice chins to choose from. Don't know if you're going that option or just going to get one from a small breeder, but just thought I'd mention that (they're the only people I know in Michigan).

Good luck with the fleece.... ordering things (I think) is the most fun. Haha. Despite the spending money part, you get to be like oh they'll enjoy this... and this... and this.. oh and look at this!!! haha.