Need help with ideas for a C&C cage for my piggies!! (LONG, sorry!)

[shelleyd2008]

We now have 2 guinea pig girlies, Debbie, who was our first cavy, and now Neeny, who is still a baby. Actually, Debbie is still a 'baby' as I don't think she is full grown. She is probably about 3 months old. Neeny is about 1 month old.

Anyway, I asked about using a storage tote for a 'home', temporarily, since I don't right now have the funds to buy the C&C materials needed. I have been looking around though for the best prices.

I found this listing on ebay: http://cgi.ebay.com/WHITE-CUBE-STOR...34.c0.m14.l1262&_trkparms=|301:0|293:1|294:30 , which is for 32 or 33 panels.

Anyway, this site: http://www.guineapigcages.com/buycc.htm sells some 'kits' for C&C cages, and the largest one they have is 2 panels by 5 panels, and is 13.3 sq ft. That would be huge for my piggies!!

If I were to get the ebay listing for 32 or 33 panels, I could make 2- 2x5 cages, and still have 4 or 5 panels left over!!

Can anyone say 'double decker'?

Piggies will be sooooo happy!

Any good ideas on how to make a ramp? I probably won't make 2 levels that are each 2x5, I will need some of the panels for the stands, and I'll need some tops (though I might get that shelving stuff the guineapigcages site mentioned for the top).

And what type of fleece do people use as the 'bedding'?

How can you litter box train a guinea pig, and what's the best litter for the box?

Neeny, the baby, has had a rough start here. First day home, my son went outside as soon as he got up. He took the piggies out of their tote, they were both in their 'house'. Instead of putting them in their ground cage like he should have, he just put the 'house' on the grass. Needless to say, my dad's dog thought Neeny was a rat, and proceeded to grab her. She is fine, just had a bit of a scratch on her neck, but otherwise looks okay.
Second day, my son was carrying Neeny and not watching as he was walking down the steps. He was headed to put her in their ground cage, missed a step, and dropped her

She seems fine today, but I think she hit her head.
Anyway, please don't preach at about the accidents. I know the boy shouldn't be getting them out by himself, and he knows he is not allowed to carry them. He is 4, and he sometimes forgets. Accidents do happen. It's just bad that it has happened to Neeny, and all in 2 days. Debbie has had an uneventful time here, except for almost falling off the bed once or twice, but she was got before that happened!

Okay, so the question about Neeny is that I think she is staying in their 'house', which is a small #4 priority mail box. She does come out to eat, or Debbie will drag some spinach leaves or carrots inside the box and they both dine on it.
I also think she is peeing and pooing in the box. Debbie does not do this.

Is it because Neeny is a baby, because she is scared, injured, or what?

Since she is peeing and pooing in the box, how can I litter box train her?

Thanks for any and all help, and please don't preach about the accidents. We have had enough stress because of it already

 

[NancyDz]

shelley,

Did you see the pic I posted of my c&C cage on your other post? I used that black gutter pipe for ramps... it was cheap, I could cut whatever size i wanted, and my pigs learned to use it in a half hour.


Also do you not have a target store close? they carry the grids, they are under $15 bucks for a box. I think you can also order online from them but if you have one.. definitely go check.

For litter, I use wood pellets, it soaks up the urine and there isnt smell. this is REALLY important at my house as my pig is in our living room/hall/kitchen area. I clean the cage about once every 3 weeks... seriously. It stays dry and doesnt stink. I've never had health issues with my pigs at all.


Did you go to that link that was posted in your other thread? there is hundreds of pics of people's c&c cages. and a whole forum like this where people talk guinea pigs, cages, cage ideas' etc.... thats where I went and found ideas. There's lots of other ramp ideas , I found the tubes to be fun for the pigs, and easy for them to use, and I didnt worry about them falling as they were enclosed in the tube.


Let me know if you have more questions about what I did.

Nancy

 

[shelleyd2008]

Quote:
Yes, I did see your pics. Very nice by the way! But I was kind of concerned about the pipe. I have been doing a lot of reading on them, and many sites say that plastic is not good to have in their cages, because of chewing. Does your piggy chew on the pipe?

And the pellet bedding I have also read is unsafe for them. I do know how effective it is, as I use it in almost all of my brooders! I was more asking about litter for the actual litter box, is your guinea pig litter box trained?

And I live in the middle of nowhere in Kentucky. The only 'big' store here is a super Wal-Mart, and that has only been here about 6 months. I have no idea where a target store would be!

I did see something somewhere about some cubes that were available online from Wal-Mart, I'm sure I bookmarked it, so I'll have to see if that was cheaper than the ebay listing.

The tubes would be a good idea though, since mine will be outside, at least until we (my son and I), can get our own place. We do have dogs (obviously), and one of them and the 3 puppies are not confined. The tubes would ensure that the piggies were safe. I'll definitely look into that, if you haven't had problems with yours chewing on it.

But come to think of it, if I have the cage raised, I'll need to use some of the panels for the floor right? Underneath the coroplast? So that will cut down on my numbers, though not by much.

Any ideas on the litter box training? I would really like to use towels or fleece for the bedding, after all it is reusable, thus inexpensive

 

[NancyDz]

Mine dont chew on the pipe, they have chewed off a little of the cloroplast though but it hasnt seemed to hurt them

I've been using the pellets for over a year and a feed store here has used the pellets for 4-5 years. It's just wood, nothing else. I tried the fleece thing but it stunk to high heaven and my pigs shredded the fleece and ate it too, to me that was less safe for them to eat then wood pellets

You will be doing tons of laundry though. Although with yours outside it may not smell so bad.

These are the pellets I use:

http://www.eaglevalleyabm.com/about.html

With the 3 levels, my pigs use the top level for hay feeding, Middle for sleeping and the bottom tends to get the most poop. They definitely poop more in certain areas but I'm not sure they can be litter trained as they poop pretty much constantly LOL

go to target online to see if there's a store near you. Be careful with the walmart ones as they arent always the right size grid . You definitely need panels underneath the choroplast.
Also I found the tie wraps to be much easier to work with than the connectors that come with the shelving. I used some of both. Also binder clips work great to close doors.. although outside you may want to use something more secure for anything trying to get in.

nancy

 

[shelleyd2008]

Quote:
Yeah, I'm thinking padlocks to keep kid and dogs out

Someone told me before that they can be litter box trained, I'll have to find the post that one was on. It was when we first got Debbie, so it has been a little while ago.
But that's good that they don't chew on the pipe, I'll most certainly use that! It seems like it is much safer than other things, and it could be totally enclosed inside the cage.

The cubes that are online at walmart.com look like they have 9 squares. But buying online, who knows? But they are $25, and there are like 15 or 16 panels. So they aren't all that much different than the ebay one, except I believe they are colored. The biggest problem I'll foreseeably have is finding the coroplast. I will check with the local gas stations and tobacco shops and see if they ever get rid of theirs. If not, I'll have to find a different alternative.

Does yours have a hay rack in it? I saw one on the guinea pig cages site once that was made of a bathroom shower caddy! I'll have to get one of those

 

[Toast n Jelly]

Just a note here: Try to find the grids that aren't covered in plastic coating (white or black) as they'll chew at it. I've been making rabbit enclosures with them for quite a long time and I don't like to use them for outdoor cages as they will eventually rust when chewed on or uncoated.

Use the tie wraps and not the connectors that come with them as they leave spaces and are not as secure as the tie wraps.

I use the wood pellets in grid covered litter cat boxes and love them. The rest of your questions are best answered by piggy owners as I've only had rabbits.

.

 

[NancyDz]

There's a target in Elizabethtown, is that near you? All the others are in Louisville.


As far as the hay rack, I had one for awhile but it didnt hold much hay and they eat a lot of it so I ended up getting one of the wire racks that you use in your kitchen to add a shelf to your cupboard. It was probably about 12 inches x 8 inches by about 6 inches tall. I stood it in there, clipped it to the side with a binder clip so i can move it for cleaing. and just stack hay on top and the pigs go underneath it and grab hay. It also gives them a little privacy while they are pigging out heheheee

Choroplast I ended up getting from a place called Tap plastics. It was $30 for a HUGE sheet. Kinko's can get it, also sign shops use it a lot so I called some of them and they were willing to in some cases even give me some scraps once they knew what I wanted it for. You really want to get one solid piece for the bottom though so make sure it's big enough. Some have recycled real estate or politicians signs that were made out of it.

If you want I can look at my target here if there isnt one close. If that walmart price doesnt include shipping... maybe I can get you some here and ship it. they are super heavy but we could use the cheapest method and it might beat that. I've gotten a box of the grids for as low as $12.99 on sale.... but I think normally they are around 16-19 a box.


Nancy

 

[shelleyd2008]

E-town is about 1-1 1/2 hours from here, so not all that close. I did check on the target website and didn't see any of the cubes? I'll check again. If there are any near here, it would be Somerset, and that is still a bit of a drive. Unless I can find some at Big Lots in C-ville, that's not too far away.

Walmart's website has the site-to-store feature, so the shipping is free if you have it delivered to the nearest store. That might be my best bet, unless Big Lots has them.

I just checked the target store locator, and the nearest ones are either E-town or Bowling Green, both of which are at least 1 hour away.

 

[NancyDz]

i checked online and target has some but not the ones that i get listed, so maybe they are just an -in store thing. online they only have a 4 cube box for a lot more $4. i do know the stores vary a lot in color. i've found purple, white, black, steel, navy, red, pink , etc at the targets here. the brand i see is called 'organize it' and it's a light green box that it comes in.
The grids come in handy for lids or dividers to my brooder boxes and making small outdoor enclosures for my chicks to get some grass time. so if you buy any local, buy more than you think you'll need as i use them all the time with my various critters.


Nancy

 

[PineappleMama]

I've heard of people using this stuff for ramps...

Sturdy, no risk of pigs falling out, and they get to play hide and seek, and being plastic it can be hosed off, and fairly cheap.

http://www.homedepot.com/Building-M...splay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

Edit... finding coroplast wise... call around to local sign shops. Many make signs on that material, so they have sheets of it. If you tell them it's for a pen, not to make your own signs and cheat them out of a commission, then they may sell you some. OR, hit up politicians after the elections. All those signs that say 2008 aren't going to do you a lot of good in 2010.