How I built my cage

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gpeiw

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Here are some instructions on how I built my cage:

I will start with -

List of “Ingredients†for the cage:

61 grids – (7 boxes from costco) if you don't use perspex for the hayloft you would need an extra 6 grids.

18mm plywood for the base and the lower ramp – cut to size at B&Q

4 flight case wheels bought on Ebay

literally hundreds of cableties also bought on Ebay

3 bookshelf brackets “flexi upright†(2 x 71cm long 1, x 160cm long) (B&Q)

wood screws (B&Q)

a padsaw and a set of metal files (B&Q) for cutting and filing the grids where the ramp hole was made

a screw driver

Perspex custom cut and finished by The Plastic Man – aka a division of Holloway Plastics

5 sheets of coroplast 61 inches x 41 inches (mdpsupplies)

fleece bought from Abakhan Fabrics – both online and in North Wales

sewing thread from Dunelm Mills – I lost the thread I bought from Abakhan!

Zorb bought from Wazoodle in Canada for the absorbent under layer of the bedspreads.

I have not added all this up as I don't want to know – some women buy shoes, some women buy bags...

The cage (any pigs in the cage are toys - I haven't got my herd yet!:

2cage030210.jpg


This post will be followed with a few posts about how it was made.
 
Stage One – The Design

I looked at a lot of designs in the photo galleries on Guinea Pig Cages, and I read a lot about how guinea pigs behaved and what they liked to do. I also watched a lot of videos on YouTube -I particularly liked Pigjes videos on there – she has a huge cage along the wall of a room and her pigs seem to loves running about and exploring.

I decided on the size 2 x 3 grids – and very quickly decided that would be too small - especially as we decided on more pigs! Each grid measures about 14 inches or 35.5 cm square.

By this stage I had got my grids. I got these from Costco in August 2009 for £10.72 a box (They seem to be still available there now but a couple of pounds cheaper.) Each box had 10 wire grids in and 6 mesh grids. I got cable ties from Ebay – and kept having to order more as the cage progressed – you wouldn't believe how many I got through – it must have been in the hundreds – however this is probably because I totally changed the design halfway through.
 
Stage Two – Building the Cage

I started to build my cage as a 2 x 4 grid two storey. I thought I would worry about the ramp later as I could not decide what to do. This is one of the reasons it took me from August 2009 to February 2010 to finish the cage. The cage has been designed on the hoof – I thought I would see what problems needed solving as I went along as I had never built a cage before.

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I built the cage out of grids, then added a plywood base that I made using a piece of 18mm plywood from B&Q, This base was the same size as the base of the cage (2 x 4 grids at this stage). I got them to cut another two pieces that were almost as long as the cage and about 23cm wide at the same time. These were screwed to the base lengthwise so that there was somewhere to mount the wheels. The wheels I bought from Ebay – I got four flight case wheels. At this point I just plonked the cage on top of the base as I knew I might alter the cage to do with the ramp, and I didn't want to be heaving a big heavy wooden base around at the same time. Once the base was finally nailed on with *-shaped staples it made the whole structure much more solid.
 
Stage Three – Hugh Hefner's Conservatory

During my research I found that a typical guinea pig's life seems to consist of eating, sleeping, running about and “doing itâ€, so what better than to provide them with a hayloft with mirrored walls. I put the conservatory on the top level originally as a 1 x 2 grid as the cage was a this stage a 2 x 4.

cagehideys2.jpg


I found a website The Plastic Man who cut and finish perspex (aka acrylic or plexiglass) and perspex mirrors to size – you just need to work out what size to get and where you want holes putting in (to cable tie it to the cage). This was quite expensive but I am glad I did it as it makes the cage look less – cagey, and more acceptable to OH. It also means we will be able to see the piggies better in the hayloft, and it will keep the mess down from the hay. There is plenty of ventilation to the hayloft too.

4cage030210.jpg

The porthole and ramp

It had a back wall and a side wall that were made of grids with perspex mirrors cable tied to them, and the other side and front wall were clear perspex, the front wall having a big circular entrance in it for access from the ramp up from the top large level. I also made a perspex ramp up to the hayloft, so that you could see the pigs as they ran up it towards their penthouse suite.

My cage was now starting to resemble a piggy night club – I suppose this bit was the VIP lounge!

My partner managed to talk me out of the mirror ball.

I was well on the way to being a piggy slave – I just didn't know it yet.
 
Stage Four – Starting Again

I puzzled for ages about the ramp to connect the bottom and top big levels, and actually made an external ramp out of eight bent grids that went up the back wall of the cage, but realised that by making the cage 3 x 4 it would only be about ½ a grid bigger but would give the piggies a lot more room. This meant dismantling most of the cage I had already built and re-doing it bigger but- I just knew I would be looking at those piggies and thinking – that cage could have been bigger.

At this stage I believe that I had surrendered and become a piggy slave – and I hadn't even got piggies yet!

So I rebuilt the cage bigger, and was very happy with it – so far.

But how to get that one past the OH?

At first the cage was going to be in the lounge (we have a though lounge/dining room). When it was a 2 x 4 he was just about dealing with that.

When I decided to make it a 3 x 4 I felt that some diplomacy was needed. I built the cage and plonked it in the original site next to the fireplace. It looked monstrously big. But don't worry – there was method to the madness!

OH took one look and said – “I think that will have to go in the dining room.†Well that had been my intention all along, but I think if it had been put in the dining room straight away he would just have been appalled at how big it was. At the age of 42 ½ I feel that I am just starting to learn “the ways of womanâ€. It was “his idea†to put it in the dining room so in the dining room it went.

3cage030210.jpg

The cage in the dining room

The new improved cage unfortunately started to sag a bit in the middle – this was fixed by putting in a bookshelf bracket from B&Q. This was cable tied underneath the top big level diagonally across the cage, and made the floor pretty rigid.

P130110_1941_01.jpg

You can see the bookshelf bracket here
 
Stage Five - Ramps and TV Lounges

Once Christmas was out of the way it was back to the cage again. I had a 3 x 4 two storey cage with a 1 x 2 hayloft with a 1 x 1 grid cupboard next to it.

Guess what I wasn't happy with the hayloft yet. I changed the hayloft to a 1 x 3 grid and was left with the 3 grid back wall of the hayloft to re-do. OH had come round completely by this point to the whole cage inside thing and suggested that we put another perspex wall along this bit so that we could see the piggies from the lounge aaawww. He is now in apprenticeship as a piggy slave although he doesn't know it yet.

And the piggies have a better view of our telly than we do!

I will be ordering that perspex soon. The latest developments are that I got another piece of plywood cut so the cage is now the right size.

When I got this plywood cut I got a piece cut for the ramp to the bottom level as I had had an idea how to do this.

I got two bookshelf brackets 71cm long from Band Q, and laid carpet tile over the top of the ramp. I then slotted the bookshelf brackets on, one on each side, and screwed them down. On one side of the ramp, the side that faces into the cage, I screwed on a piece of carpet tile wrapped around a piece of coroplast to form a banister so they won't be scared of going down the ramp.

This ramp attaches to the grids in the floor above using cup hooks screwed into the end.

5cage030210.jpg


Both this ramp and the perspex one have a carpet tile top, which I will cover with a little fleece and zorb mat that can be washed easily.

I also made a ramp for floor time by cable-tying one of the grids on the side of the cage so it drops down towards the floor, and covering it with a carpet tile that is also cable tied on. I have since decided to switch this grid to the end of the cage so that I can attach a corral to the end for floor-time without having to move the cage.

8cage030210.jpg
 
Stage Six – The Coroplast

I have made all the trays for the cage from coroplast and gaffer tape. I chose to do the construction double-walled as I will need to pull the trays out to change the fleece bedspreads – and I found that when I made the first coroplast tray for the 2 x 4 cage it didn't seem that stable to me.

I have made a “bannister†to stop the piggies falling down the hole where the ramp goes down to the bottom level.

6cage030210.jpg

The bannister around the top of the ramp

The trays were quite easy to make – instead of the scoring method where you score the coroplast and fold the walls up, I made the walls out of separate pieces, which made it easier to dot he bannister section and made for a stronger construction.

4cage030210.jpg

You can see how thick the walls of the coroplast trays are here.

The next stage is the piggy bedspreads – I have made the one for the top hayloft already – this was made by cutting a piece of fleece the same size as the tray by drawing round it. I feel that this is a bit baggy so next time I will do it the same size as the inner part of the tray. This has walls sewn to it, and secured underneath like a fitted sheet with elastic in the corners, and then I sewed a piece of zorb the same size as the base to the bottom. I have tested it for wicking and it was great.

The next one will be made slightly differently, I think I will start with the zorb cut to size and build it up from there. The other trays are a bit more complicated to make so I will post back here when I have done them.

More pictures later when the bedspreads are finished.

I have been really enthralled by the whole cage making process - all the time trying to think of the piggies and what they would want. I am happy with the design so far although I may make a few tweaks later - this is the best thing about C+C - it is so easy to alter if you decide things are not quite right - even to re-doing the whole cage again like I did.
 
That is AMAZING! Congratulations! I am speechless: love the perspex porthole.

If you need some soft furnishing to complete the look, then I am making and selling items in aid of a Chinchilla Rescue: www.cavycozies.webs.com

Your piggies will love their castle!
 
Here is a picture of how the bottom level opens up for cleaning and access to the pigs:

cagefulldoor.jpg

The whole side of the cage drops down for access

lefthanddoor.jpg

A smaller section can be opened up too.

Binder clips are used to fasten the side of the cage up.

csgesmalldoor.jpg

A small door allows access too - although this awas changed to this:

8cage030210.jpg


i am probably restoring the small door in the original design, and putting the drop down ramp door on the end of the cage so that I do not have to move my cage to set it up for floor time.

I would clip a corral to the end of the cage and block off the underneath of the cage with the grids from the corral so they could not get underneath. They would get an area 4 to 5 grids by 5 grids for running about this way and the cage door could be left open for them to run about as they pleased.
 
threelittlepigs said:
If you need some soft furnishing to complete the look, then I am making and selling items in aid of a Chinchilla Rescue: www.cavycozies.webs.com
Click to expand...

i have already seen your cozies - they are gorgeous! I was severely tempted by the valentines ones so cute! But I must be strong - I would expect an order from me when my will power crumbles - which will not be long! I am pretty sure I NEED four cozies for lap time!
 
I think so - some members of this forum seem to have got them recently - I should be going to costco soon and will check as I want some more to make a corrall to attach to my cage.
 
Your set-up is FANTASTIC! Its my favourite! I absolutely LOVE x) the perspex hayloft, how on earth did you come up with that idea?!? Have you got any new photos with real piggies included? I'm so impressed. Are you an architect or something? If not I think you should be! (There could be a calling for that... a C&C architect!)

Donna. x
 
the perspex hayloft, how on earth did you come up with that idea?!?
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I wanted to see my piggies eating! Chas suggested the back wall shoud be all perspex instead of a mirror so we could see them from the settee :(|)

Also the cage was designed to go in our living area so I wanted to make it look as good as I could partly because Chas was initially unconvinced on the whole fleece inside cage issue at that point I was doing some heavy selling on the guinea pigs behalf.

I am very happy with how it works out as it does keep the hay in there mainly, although it is amazing how piggies manage to scatter poops and hay all over whatever the set-up may be.

It is also very easy to clean and change the fleece.

I have a couple of pictures although I have had problems getting them into the machine so more will follow soon, here are a couple to be going on with:

berryinthehayloft.jpg

this is Berry in the hayloft!

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and this is the girls in their first minutes in the cage when they were frozen with fear, poor things - after a few minutes they started to explore.

The piggies seem to love the cage and like hanging out in the lower level under the ramp, and love to run up and down the ramps like crazy when we put their veggies in the hayloft - they tend to go up to the hayloft when they think it is veggie time!.

I will try and put some video on soon if I can get them to co-operate!

do costco still sell the grids?
Click to expand...

I checked yesterday but Leeds still had no grids - I ended up getting the grids for the corrall from a seller on Ebay.
 
The water bottles are from John Hopewell and are are really good however our girls didn't like the look of them so they are on Bunny bottles instead now which they seem to like enough to actually use!
 
I bet you are like me and wake up at 5 am and lie there planning piggie cages,it beats counting sheep and the next time I look at the clock it is 7.30!
 
I bet you are like me and wake up at 5 am and lie there planning piggie cages,it beats counting sheep and the next time I look at the clock it is 7.30!
Click to expand...

Yesssss! I do that too! I only have limited space though so when I wake up I look at my area designated just piggies (which will only just finish a 2X4) and shake my head mournfully. Just waiting for the day when I can have my own house with a huge piggies cage. Ahhhh.....that'll be the day.

Great job Gpeiw

The cage looks awesome!
 
another one that should be on mega structures! your piggies pad is excellent thanks so much for sharing how you built it all an intersting and amusing read i espcially liked the way you got your OH to think it was his idea to put it in the dining room thats how my mum works on my dad funny that they dont even realise its happing to them! :)
I'm very jelouse! all this C&C building going on makes me want to rearrange and re build mine !
 
That's absolutely amazing! x)x)x)
I got a great read out of that, but it makes me look at my little pigs in their store bought cages and I can nearly hear them looking up at me and saying "Mommy why won't you build us a house like that?" :(
Hopefully when I have my own place I can spoil my little babies :)
I'll defo be coming back to you for advise!
 
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