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Post by grah7325 on Apr 8, 2012 22:18:50 GMT
Hello! I'm new here so wasn't sure whether to put this in the beginners section, or cage section! I don't yet have degu's but plan on getting 2 rescue's soon. I have a large cabinet that would be perfect as a cage (once mesh doors etc had been added) but is the wood safe? Hope that makes sense! Thanks  |
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Post by deguconvert on Apr 9, 2012 4:31:42 GMT
Hello, Grah, and welcome to the forum!!
The wood should be fine . . . but it would be easier to answer that question if we were able to see the cabinet. Can you post a picture for us?
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Post by grah7325 on Apr 9, 2012 10:59:12 GMT
Yes I have a picture here, excuse all the junk in the cabinet at the moment! It's really not a good picture & its much bigger than it looks in the picture I just couldn't take it from far away because the door kept shutting for some reason! There are another 2 levels below that aren't in shot but I think I'd keep them for storage. So my plan was to remove the glass from the door & put mesh in & cut holes into each level & add ramps? I'll add up close pictures of the wood aswell if that makes any difference. Attachments:
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Post by grah7325 on Apr 9, 2012 11:01:39 GMT
Up close of wood Attachments:
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Post by deguconvert on Apr 9, 2012 14:31:38 GMT
Well . . . it looks great! I think it will work really well for a cage, and looks like it will give amazing room for your degus. Cutting holes through to give them access to each level is also a great process to use. I would like to suggest that you add wood to the edges to act as a barrier to keep in substrate, which will help keep your degus comfortable, will prevent your degus from chewing on the edging of the shelves as they are now, will keep your levels cleaner of wee, and your cage fresher for longer. If you also edge around your openings to the other levels, it will keep the substrate in there. We find that a least a 10 cms height for the edging works really well, AND helps keep the substrate inside the cage instead of so much (if any) being kicked out by active degus. If you use kiln dried pine (the soft woods sold by most DIY stores is usually kiln dried and safe for this use) then the wood is also safe for your degus to chew on . . . which they will and need to do. So to employ the edging is a very useful thing to do all around!!
I think your plans sound excellent, and you will thoroughly enjoy this cage, as will your degus!!! I look forward to seeing it completed!! So exciting!!
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Post by moletteuk on Apr 9, 2012 15:30:23 GMT
The way it works is that they don't usually chew the flat surfaces of the structure of the cage, so it's not all that important what it's made of. The crucial bit is edging all the chewable bits, like edges of shelves, openings in the levels and so on, you need to do this pretty carefully. Some places are best edged with metal, and other edges are best done in wood and are designed to be replaced as necessary. You might need to cover the little shelf widget holes with a strip of metal or else they probably won't be able to resist chewing outwards from those weak points. Cabinet looks good Welcome to the forum |
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Post by grah7325 on Apr 9, 2012 19:46:04 GMT
Ok thanks guys! What kind of metal would be used to cover the parts that can be chewed?
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Post by moletteuk on Apr 10, 2012 16:39:36 GMT
Aluminium is easy to get hold of in angles and flats and is easy to work with BUT degus can chew through it if they really want to. My degus are totally chewtastic though, and I'd still happily use aluminium, except in places they have a particular incentive to chew, for instance protection around a door - they might chew this a lot if they think they could get out. For places like this you might need steel.
I was thinking about your cabinet, it might be easier and/or cheaper to get some thin plywood or mdf to line the sides of your cabinet rather than use strips of metal to cover the holes.
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