The Ferret Nation Club

[Brittxo]

YAY! I just went two hours away to get a FN142 from some lady who was selling it on craigslist for $70! I just cleaned it and now I'm going to leave it outside to dry over night... I can't wait to make mine look as amazing as all of yours! I have a long way to go though and tons more things to buy! I have a feeling I'm not going to be buying anything but Chin things for the next couple months! haha =) Can't wait to be finished so I can post my pics on here!

 

[Dawn]

for those who have a ferret nation cage and opt not to order from bass equipment, I've just found that ferret nation is now offering "scatter gaurds" for both the upper and lower portion of the cage.
http://www.amazon.com/Ferret-Nation...UI/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&qid=1302500553&sr=8-16

http://www.amazon.com/Ferret-Nation...52/ref=sr_1_18?ie=UTF8&qid=1302500601&sr=8-18

 

[Brittxo]

Pixie's new FN 142!

Here is my new cage that I got for 70 bucks off of craigslist! My chin Pixie seems to be confused so far about all the space and everything and keeps running around pulling at the bars... I think she was mad the first day... but now she is getting used to it! I ordered a couple new things like a hammock, a tube, and some liners before I got the cage and they should come in this week! Other then those things I definitely need to get tons of wood shelves, bass pans and some more toys for her.. I think tomorrow I'm going to go get some little toys to keep her happy till I get everything done. It's a work in progress! If you have any suggestions please let me know! what size shelves do you all have in your cages??

 

[VolunteerChin22]

Brittxo are you using the bath house for a house or is there dust in her cage all the time? If it has dust in it you'll want to not leave it in the cage all the time - will dry out her skin.

Have fun decking it out!

 

[Brittxo]

No I don't leave it in there all the time, I just had it in there for a couple hours because when I first put her in there i wanted everything she knew was hers in there too so she wouldn't get upset with the change of cages. But thanks for the advice! =)

 

[jfirefighter390]

Our First Chins and Cage

We decided that we wanted to have a companion, but were not looking for a dog, and fell in love with Chins. So we each got one, we have to males from the same litter from a local breeder and a FN cage.

first picture is my wifes chin, no name yet, and suggestions
second picture is my chin, Kahlua. *and no she doesn't like the name cream for heres lol
third is our cage, more pictures to come

justin

 

[Dawn]

New Photos are up showing the ferret nation cages finally done with fleece.
http://www.chins-n-hedgies.com/forums/album.php?u=4571

 

[Shooper]

New Photos are up showing the ferret nation cages finally done with fleece.
http://www.chins-n-hedgies.com/forums/album.php?u=4571

Dawn, your babies are too cute. All the plastic in their cages is kinda scary though, I see where they have chewed it :hmm:

 

[Angelyco]

It's official...I finally ordered my FN142 from Amazon. I'm a little disappointed that it won't be here until May 11!

 

[Dawn]

Dawn, your babies are too cute. All the plastic in their cages is kinda scary though, I see where they have chewed it :hmm:

yea, the waffle houses and litter pans took a hit early on.
Since then they haven't chewed it any more, but always did wish I could find a similar configured litter pan and house in galvanized metal.

 

[Smokeymylovingchinchilla]

My ferret nation,tell me what stuff needs to improve on it

smokey's ferret nation

 

[Smokeymylovingchinchilla]

what do u think

what needs done on it?

 

[ChinnyMom]

take out the ramps, they are dangerous.

add lots of wood shelves

get your chin some loose timothy hay

take out the dust bath - they should not be in the cage

switch the water bowl to a water bottle - water bowls and chins are not a good mix.

move your cage so it isn't right beside the front door, and so it isn't by a window that will let in hot sunshine and overheat your fuzzy guy.

cover the plastic pans and shelves in fleece.

get him a pyrex baking dish and fill it with kiln dried pine shavings, for a litter pan.

all the above will be a start.

 

[Juzza24]

Great cages! You guys in the US are so lucky, no one in the UK makes the fleece covered PVC tubes or cuddle ledges and they look great, would love to get them myself. No one makes the personalised wooden items either

 

[ChinnyMom]

Juzza, there are UK suppliers of fleece items.

one that comes to mind is Hammocky Hammocks. their site mentions they make custom orders. they also have a soft tube that isn't too far a cry from the pvc tube covers.

http://www.hammockyhammocks.co.uk/store_front.htm

just be sure to get 100% fleece items, without the fuzzy white lining.

 

[Isabella Whateva]

take out the ramps, they are dangerous.

add lots of wood shelves

get your chin some loose timothy hay

take out the dust bath - they should not be in the cage

switch the water bowl to a water bottle - water bowls and chins are not a good mix.

move your cage so it isn't right beside the front door, and so it isn't by a window that will let in hot sunshine and overheat your fuzzy guy.

cover the plastic pans and shelves in fleece.

get him a pyrex baking dish and fill it with kiln dried pine shavings, for a litter pan.

all the above will be a start.

Yes, all of this. Number one priorities would be
Water bottle
Get rid of ramps
Some kind of bedding for the bottom. Fleece liners you have to make or order, but you can get pine wood shavings from any pet store and even most common grocery stores. It will be pretty messy with the plastic bottoms in, but it is necessary. Without it, your chin is gonna be running around in his pee and will get disgusting very quickly. Eventually you can order Bass pans (from this website) which will keep the shavings from going all over the room.

These three things are essential, as in do them TODAY

Also, about the bath in the cage. My craigslist chin's old owner used to keep her bath in her cage 24/7. She would sleep in it all the time and dust constantly. Because of it, she has such such dry skin. It even made her fur constantly caked with dust so when I got her, her fur was terrible. Her poor skin was so dry that her feet had cracked and started bleeding. Not to mention she barely cares about her bath now, since she was so used to having it all the time. It's like she's forgotten how to dust

 

[Dawn]

{*}remove the ramps or get fleece covers for them, chins feet/legs can get caught in between the bars!
{*}get yourself a glass water bottle (love my lixit brand one)
{*}get yourself a clamp-on coop style small bowl for their food
{*}use whichever bowl is chewproof (ie. galvanized or terra cotta) and use that for fresh or cubed hay
{*}use a weighted chewproof bowl (ie. pyrex or terra cotta) and place litter inside it for a potty spot (urinal)
{*}when/if they chew that dust house you might want to grab a round glass jar of empty coffee can to use as a dust bath. I know mine only chewed theres a tiny bit (same superpet dust bath house you have), but I've read others had chins that completey chewed the entire opening lip. Anytime you have anything plastic with a chin your taking a chance.
{*}check your local hardware store for a section of tile (ie. quartz/granite) ... which will be a way cheaper version of the chin-chiller stone. A cool spot's important, especially with summer temps on their way...dependant upon your temps you'll probably want to invest in an a/c if you haven't already. Chins can get heat exhaustion at temps over 70F
{*}Get yourself one of the many chin approved woods (kiln dried pine) from a hardware store and cut yourself some shelves for inside the cage. I attach mine with a fender washer and galvanized wood screw so I don't gore myself when doing daily cleanings. Sidenote-You might want to attach a back piece of wood to the shelves to prevent poo from falling out of the cage.
{*}remove the plastic pans and replace them with galvanized ones (bass equipment)..they'll make them up to a 3" depth, or cut wood such as pine, or even marble.
{*}optional would be to order or make some fleece cage liners, hammocks, and a hidey house. Also some chew toys to prevent boredom (also beneficial for their teeth since they NEED to have something to keep them ground down)...think natural pumice, natural loofah, willow balls/wreaths, finger traps, apple sticks etc.
I've seen some wonderful chews offered here on the forum!

 

[Antbritt]

Just got my 142 yesterday. Really liked how easy it was to put it together. This 142 came with fleece liners for the ramps already. We are having a great time filling it up.
I will try to get pictures up soon.

 

[GorillaJTA]

Just got my 142 yesterday. Really liked how easy it was to put it together. This 142 came with fleece liners for the ramps already. We are having a great time filling it up.
I will try to get pictures up soon.

They really don't need the ramps at all as they are jumping animals, not walking animals.

 

[Beanbag_131]

Does the legs/ under storage come off so you can sit in on a table? or do the legs/ under storage stay attached?