The Cage is DONE - Just a few more questions

[Gabby88]

I think my cage is complete now! It's come a long way since I first purchased it. I'm still going to rearrange things a bit, but it's pretty much done. I also have a hay box and some hanging toys that I ordered that haven't come in the mail yet, so I'll add those when I get them.

I just have a few more questions.
Does everything look safe?
Will the eye screws and s hooks on the hammocks be a possible hazard?
Is everything in a good spot?
Is it true that since they'll only be 12 weeks old I shouldn't really let them out to play because they need to save their energy for growing?
I just have the single cavy carrying cage from Quality cages to bring them home in. Will that work? I have two of them?
If those work? Should I put fleece liners in them? Or should I line them with something?
Should I bring food or water bottles for transporting them? Or will they be fine for an hour?

Any other advice or opinions would be great, too! Thanks so much everyone! I love this forum! Without you guys I'd be lost!

 

[LovinTheSmallAndFurry]

Yaaay! :clap1:


I've read here on several threads that it's best to wait until they're 6 months before letting them have playtime, since they do keep growing for several more months (better safe than sorry ya know?).

Many people here use the Quality Cages, so I think you're good. And since it's just an hour, I think they'll be fine with some hay to chew on, maybe line the bottom with fleece. Otherwise they should be good to go.

The cage looks good! My babies were the same age when they came home, and you've got tooons of good ledges for them to land on,

Again, MUCH kudos to you!

 

[Andrea]

It looks great! You did an excellent job. The only thing that would concern me is the plastic on the doors...just keep an eye on your chins to see if they bother with it or not.

 

[Gabby88]

Yaaay! :clap1:


I've read here on several threads that it's best to wait until they're 6 months before letting them have playtime, since they do keep growing for several more months (better safe than sorry ya know?).

Many people here use the Quality Cages, so I think you're good. And since it's just an hour, I think they'll be fine with some hay to chew on, maybe line the bottom with fleece. Otherwise they should be good to go.

The cage looks good! My babies were the same age when they came home, and you've got tooons of good ledges for them to land on,

Again, MUCH kudos to you!

Thanks so much!!

I think I'll make some little fleece liners for the travel cages. I'll bring some hay, too. I just wasn't sure if I'd have to buy another small water bottle for the trip since I only have one small one.

That's good to know about playtime! That's what I thought, but I wanted to make sure.

 

[LovinTheSmallAndFurry]

It looks great! You did an excellent job. The only thing that would concern me is the plastic on the doors...just keep an eye on your chins to see if they bother with it or not.

Good point. Though from the picture it sort of looks like the metal frames the plastic on the inside of the door as well.... ?

 

[Gabby88]

It looks great! You did an excellent job. The only thing that would concern me is the plastic on the doors...just keep an eye on your chins to see if they bother with it or not.

Thank you!!

I'm going to remove the plastic since it's super easy to take off. I can tell the chinchillas that were previously in that cage loved to chew it since it's been chewed to bits. I just need to find something to help hold the door closed since there's a small gap. If I can find some metal clips or something, that might work. I would just need them to be easy to take off since that's the main door I'll be opening and closing often.

I already took of a few of the plastic pieces, but I kept them on for the photos since it made it easier to tell where the doors were. Haha!

 

[Gabby88]

I wish metal framed the plastic. But unfortunately it's just all plastic. I'll be heading to Walmart or the hardware store this weekend to see if I can find some sort of clip to hold the top and bottom of the door closer to the cage so they can't escape.

Anyone know of something like that? Haha!

 

[LovinTheSmallAndFurry]

In regards to the clips, I think I've got your answer. http://www.amazon.com/Acco-Metal-Ri...office-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1305995888&sr=1-1 I'd gotten them for about $5 but still it's a good price. The best part is their NON-CHEWABLE!!!! And if you can't wait to order those, I think you can get a decent amount of them from Staples/Office Depot, etc.

Pretty sure they sell them at Wal-Mart, just look in the office supplies section.


And yeah, for just an hour drive, you won't need water bottles,

 

[Gabby88]

In regards to the clips, I think I've got your answer. http://www.amazon.com/Acco-Metal-Ri...office-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1305995888&sr=1-1 I'd gotten them for about $5 but still it's a good price. The best part is their NON-CHEWABLE!!!! And if you can't wait to order those, I think you can get a decent amount of them from Staples/Office Depot, etc.


And yeah, for just an hour drive, you won't need water bottles,

Perfect!! Those will be easy enough to take on and off. Just what I was looking for. I can probably find those at Office Max or around my area, too.

Thanks!

 

[LovinTheSmallAndFurry]

You're welcome. They are fantastic. I had to use them to keep a temporary cage closed. Just make sure you have them closed well; my chins like to chew on the ones I have that my toys hang from, and sometimes they get them undone, which fall off, :tease:


And also, when they're open the ends are flat, so no pointy ends hurting the babies.

 

[Andrea]

That looks like a good solution! Good luck with your final cage alterations...you've done an excellent job!

 

[Gabby88]

Thank you!!

I was also wondering about the lighting in their room. Should I keep lights on during the day? At night? Never? Just have a night light at night? Haha! So many questions.

 

[Andrea]

I keep my chins in the basement and we have the lights on whenever we are down there...never seems to bother the chins at all...in fact we are in the basement watching a movie right now and they are all passed out in their hammock together fast asleep! I know some people keep a night light for them...I think that may be personal preference and your chins will adapt to whichever lighting/noise conditions are in their space.

 

[Gabby88]

Great to know, Trio! Thanks!!

 

[caiti]

Looks good! If you're worried about safety, maybe you can add another full length shelf. I like full length shelves, or even L shelves and I always make them big and wide.

I have those eye screws and they seem fine in my cage. Chloe sometimes chews on them, but it's never done anything. Those circle fasteners someone linked to she has chewed apart one once. I like those those carabiner-type hooks personally. They are easy to take off and put on and their at most hardware stores.

I have the same carrier and it could fit two of Chloe. I'm assuming these two chins you're getting are already living together? If they are, then they should be fine in one carrier, and they'll probably be too nervous to drink any water if you put a bottle in there. It certainly won't harm them to be without water for an hour. I usually put a few sticks or some hay in and line it with a spare piece of fleece. The fleece is longer and wider than the carrier and its sides, so the edges are outside the actual carrier (if that makes sense).

I've also heard the 6 month rule about no playtime, but I haven't researched it any since I've never needed to so I wouldn't know for sure.

My chin never seems to care whether the lights are on or off. Yours will probably just get used to your routine, I wouldn't worry too much about it.