my aviary design

[adamclark18]

These are my designs for the cage i am having built, what do yous think?   

[Nick]

It looks smart, what are the dimensions?

[adamclark18]

Was gonna put that on but forgot, width 60cm, length 90cm and height is 170cm, funny shape because it is to fit under the stairs so blends in

[pinkpill]

i would suggest that where the cage is next to the wall, either cover the wall with a washable covering or gloss paint, so its easier to wipe down as they tend to splash pee n poo on the wall, especially if they use a wheel  well mine do anyway  i have an old bedspread against the wall, but i wouldnt advise this coz mine av chewed half of it, and used it as bedding 

[Nick]

Thats right, its like bullet fire when they are in a wheel 

[adamclark18]

lol i was unaware of the poo and wee splattering my walls would endure, just been decorated so think my lass would kill me if i painted it again but with gloss, the cage will be on wheels so i can move it out and wash the wall now and again, but i may rethink the positioning of the wheel.

i bought 2 large plantpots, what do you suggest i put in them for the chippies to dig in? i was thinking compost in one and sawdust in the other

[TeaAndToast]

Hi and welcome Adam. I have my cage in a corner and I would very rarely find any poo on the walls and never pee, although mine never get inside the wheel merely jump on top of it to make it spin.  From my experience I would probably get rid of the ramps mate so you could get a good cutting of a tree in.  My chipies would never run up those ramp, but jump to the top of the cage via the tree and wire cage.  You could have the ledges on one side to leave them with freedom to have a burst of speed.  The tree and levels will allow you suspend little treats and game type things, and its a more natural way to get to their home. Mine have just loved eating the stuffing out of mr monkey from the pound shop.  Having a nice hammock for them to lounge if they fancy a siesta is appreciated, especially if one become dominant. They also like tubing, I got some of that bendy type ducting from b&q £5. It is metal, but just make sure you round the edges enough so u can rub finger around.  You get plenty of length and its easy to form and clean.  Try and not make everything fixed so you can change things about to keep them interested.  If you don't want dirty walls don't get soil from what I've seen, although mine are not interested in soil at all.  I use a sawdust try to let them know where to pee & poo, and have the bottom done with hay and the ledges done with carpet just to mix it up.  The carpet actually looks well, it is brown mind. Think that's enough for now, happy building.

[adamclark18]

cheers for the advice, ive been on lookout for a good sized branch to put in the middle anyway, the ramps were a late addition to the design that may or not be included, might just put 1 in or 2 max as an extra surface. I have bought a hammock, wish i was small enough to go in it because it looks mega comfortable, i also have a fair few toilet tubes but presuming they wont last long, i need to go to b & q on the weekend so will look for the tubing. This website suggests using wooden litter tray pellets for the base so was planning on doing that, hopefully be easier to clean than hay, i could be wrong because ive never done this before. And also never considered carpet, might get a short tread carpet tile to cut up.
Thanks

[pinkpill]

a few ideas

cover the wall with that clear plastic stuff that they cover book covers and stuff with!

bungees stretched across the cage like a cats cradle is fun for the chips to jump on and climb!

i too love the £shops for fleecy hats/socks/cuddly toys and even little straw bird houses are fun for them to sit in and chew, and anything else you can find that mite look fun for them

[TeaAndToast]

Try and take some dimension for your hut, and when at b&q get them to cut your wood for you. All I use for a toilet is a plastic takeaway dish with a few 2p's stuck to the bottom for weight so doesn't tip with sawdust.  I'm not sure I would use wood as this would hold the smell (I presume).  I have the toilet beside their hut so they actually come out at night and go. You could therefore just put a strip of wood or cardboard around the top level to protect walls.  I would suggest surrounding the bottom of the cage with wood so you could have a little deep layer of hay.  It gives them places to hide nuts, have a burrow, and a nice soft bed if they were to fall.  I've 2 boys who often have playful rough and tumble (reminds me of the fights from the quiet man movie).  I cannot see any doors on your hut mate, I have 2 top and bottom which helps when I want to feed the chips but don't want to let them out.  I'm assuming you would need to think carfully about doors as the top is triangular and you will need in their to clean the hut.  I would suggest a small door just to get feed/water in, as since your under the stairs your chips would have access to the whole house   I bought a tadpole net to catch them, but they preferred nibbling the other end, so they just chase this to the cage - it makes me feel a bit like a ring master. 

This was my first cage design & Ive changed it a few times after.

http://super-chipmunks.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,1932.0.html


Pink you get so much stuff in a pund shop - sawdust for 50p which is £2, nuts, worms, baby food such a oat porridge and fruit salads etc etc etc   Its the right time of year right now as lots of pet stuff in.

[adamclark18]

some great advice people!

my mate is building the cage, hes a joiner so works with wood daily so leaving all the wood cutting to him 
love the idea with the takeaway dishes, got plenty of them so will be doing that.
Thought with the wooden pellets being cat litter that it would have de-oderiser in it but you have swayed me by the fact im missing a little doctors lol, wont be worried with them falling then.
Attached a pic, the white parts are where my doors will be, it was too awkward to put them in properly on the programme i was using, a large one for getting access to the cage and a small one to put food in, and yes wheres its positioned the chipmunks would have free range to the house which is why i have decided to put wheels on the bottom so i can move it to the sitting room and let them run wild in there where its contained

[pinkpill]

Pink you get so much stuff in a pund shop - sawdust for 50p which is £2, nuts, worms, baby food such a oat porridge and fruit salads etc etc etc   Its the right time of year right now as lots of pet stuff in.

i know, i must confess i am a £shop addict

[pinkpill]

also adam, in ur diagram, is the bottom a tray?? if so what you gonna make it from?? (i suggest buying the largest plastic or metal tray you can find) then build ur cage on that basis (see if anyone has an old unwanted cage of any kind thats no use anymore, but has a large tray to it, as i have lots of old hamster cages that have large bottoms, so i keep them in case i want to build a cage) and also are you gonna have a mesh floor on the bottom too?? as this makes it a bit more easier to clean if you dont wanna let ur chips out at the same time

[adamclark18]

that is my main predicament, how to clean it out efficiantly, bought some laminated wood for the base so its all one unit but its also easily wipe clean and i will probs only clean it out whilst they are having a run round the sitting room so im not worrying too much about it

just seen ya tubes in your pics which you have mentioned on this post, what are they called? searched b&q website and came up with about a 1000 results for tube lol, going there tomorrow so might get one or two as they look great

[pinkpill]

i would go with plastic rather than wood if i were you even if laminated, plus you would have to make sure all connecting wood is sealed, as their pee would soak through onto you carpet

the tubes are teaandtoasts pic, but i think they are like tumble dryer tubes, or air conditioning tubes