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Making Cages

5K views 22 replies 15 participants last post by  Truckinguy 
#1 ·
I had asked a question on the general question page about latches.
I was now wondering if anyone has used a 1" x2" wire for the sides/top? I'd use the 1" x 1/2" on the bottom. It's 30" wide and my cage will be 24" so I'd fold it up 3" on each side to help with the babies
Here is what I'm looking at:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0009...=cage+wire&dpPl=1&dpID=41myfWHL7RL&ref=plSrch

Trying to figure out the cheapest route to go making cages. Only place locally to get wire is Lowes Hardware. May order some, or drive 30 min to a tractor supply (not convinced they're cheap). Any place online to offer?
 
#3 ·
I was debating the idea. I will have to make some as the area I've built will require a cage that's 24" x 40" in order to not have wasted space and yet open a door. They will be 2 against each other, and the door needs to be beside each other.
 
#4 ·
Are you building only a few cages ? Or a lot of them ?

I went to a Agway store this past week and bought rolls of wire. 100 ft each.
24 inches high. I got the 1/2 by 1 inch for the floors. Then a roll of 1 by 1 inch
for cages I am building for me. Then a roll of 1 by 2 inch if I need to build a few
cages for resale. I always get extra wire so I don't have to make the trip
again for quite awhile. I buy latches, drop pans, and j clips online, as that
is the cheapest way for me to get those items.
This way I can build the cages the way I want them. And if I have a odd pan,
then I can custom build a cage to fit it. I use to build metal pans myself but
I sold my 4 foot brake years ago.
 
#5 ·
I've built a shed out of pallets. It's 80" x 80". For the easy if my kids feeding band caring for them, I'll go 2 cages high. Leaving room for the entrance, I'll have 4 2'x2' cages on one wall, 4 2'x40" on the back, and 2 more 2'x2' on the 3rd wall. That should leave me room to get in and move around.
Right now, we have 4 rabbits I'd like to move out there. I'll start with that, and add on after some more paychecks.
 
#6 · (Edited)
I built my first group of cages from rolls of wire from Amazon . I've also bought cages from Rual King farm store. I have to say I liked my handmade ones better. They were also custom sizes to get the most room out of the floor space I was using.l had fun making them. Make sure you use 14 gauge wire on all the sides. On mine the floors were also 14 gauge 1/2 x 1. Can't tell what gauge wire that roll was you had a link to but its either 16 or 14 l'm sure. I'm sure it was "galvanized before" as well. There's no right or wrong answer to your question. Think about it and do what's right for you.
 
#7 ·
Take the cost of the wire plus the cost of the tools( Wire cutters,J-Clip pliers) shipping for everything. Plus what you think you are worth a hour? At home I say I am worth 15$ a hour( Less than my day job). Is it worth the Hassle? I can make a Single Cage in under a hour. It took me 3 Hours to make a 30in by 120in 4 hole Cage. For my meat rabbits. Which with material costs and Labor Comes too about 80$ For 4 About 20$ a cage.

Given Klubertanz is 15 minutes out of the way on my drive home from work.
Now a cage like the one I built from Klubertanz is Would be 120$-150$

I therefore saved myself 40$
Thats 3 bags of feed.

The satisfaction of making the cages my self and designing my setup my self is priceless.
I hang my cages from the Ceiling of my "Barn" (Old 2 horse Stable).

I run Galvanized conduit around 5 Seams on the cage. (Where each Divider is).

This was all easy for me with the Knowledge I have in the sheet metal Trades.

Here are the pictures of the cages while building them I will send some of the Cages hanging in the barn soon.

Vehicle Car Tire Off-road vehicle Automotive tire
 
#9 · (Edited)
I ordered stuff from klubertanz when I revamped my rabbitry. Galvanized after weld, thick gauge for floors. I wanted well made cages. 1"x1/2" for floors, walls and top were all 1"x2". Vertical for the walls, minimizes losses per cut. Cage units were 10' long, divided into various numbers of cages depending on purpose , doe cages were 24"x40" (so 3 cages per 10' unit), bucks were 24"x30" (4 cages per 10' unit), and growouts were 24"x 5'. I bought solid plastic cage dividers for sanitation purposes.

Excellent floors a priority. THERE IS A RIGHT SIDE UP TO FLOOR WIRE - you want a SMOOTH standing surface. It's essentially welded perpendicular, and if viewed from the end will look like a bunch of T's in a row - TTTTTTTT. The top of the T's is the flat surface that should be UP (side bunnies are standing on). Wrong-side-up floors are a great way to ruin even good foot conformation with sore hocks.

This image is oriented right side up:


You can get 'bunny saver' for the walls. I preferred cheaper and just built tall fronted nestboxes and had acceptable losses this way.

Klubertanz is a small company and I had some issues ordering and awaiting order as they had items backordered - but couldn't complain about selection, quality, and shipping was way cheaper than I expected considering the weight and the size of my project.
 
#10 ·
We have built cages in the past. Not fun, but as said by others, 1x1/2" for floors and baby saver, 1x2 for everything else. If you have to make choices, best quality wire you can get for flooring.

Side note learned the hard way- make your doors as big as you can. Easier to reach back cage corners and to get nestboxes in.
 
#15 ·
Most folks use a standard 1x2" wire for the sides of the cage. Baby saver wire can be any smaller size wire to prevent kits from getting out. Most use a 4" tall or so section of 1/2x1" floor wire along the bottom of all sides of the cage. Some use 1/2" hardware cloth, some use coroplast.
 
#13 ·
I have not seen that term.
I assume it means what size wire cloth/mesh to use on a cage floor ?
I use 1/4" mesh.
they seem to catch their toes in 1/2" .
and anything larger seems to make walking difficult for them..

I have some brooder cages with 1" squares covered with the 1/4" . then the floor doesn't sag.
.......jiminwisc......
 
#14 ·
Wall Room Building Brickwork Floor


Here's my cage setup from a few years ago.

Each cage had a separate nestbox compartment that was able to be closed from the cage and accessed by a door directly in front of it so I could check the babies without being mauled by the mama. The nestbox was able to be removed through the door in front of it.

The nestboxes were built so they were 5 inches deep but sunk three inches in the floor of the cage so it was difficult for the kits to get out but easy for them to get back in.

A shelf was included higher up so the doe could escape the kits if she wanted to.

Floor was 1/2x1 14 gauge and the walls and top were 1x1 14 gauge wire. I didn't use baby saver wire because with the design of the nestbox the kits rarely got out while they were small enough to fit through the wire, maybe two or three times in a few years.

I really liked this setup but it was a lot of work cleaning poo pans and a few years later I needed to get my pickup truck in there for restoration so the rabbits were moved out to the backyard into a colony which is a lot less work and i"m much happier with.
 
#17 ·
I re
I had asked a question on the general question page about latches.
I was now wondering if anyone has used a 1" x2" wire for the sides/top? I'd use the 1" x 1/2" on the bottom. It's 30" wide and my cage will be 24" so I'd fold it up 3" on each side to help with the babies
Here is what I'm looking at:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0009...=cage+wire&dpPl=1&dpID=41myfWHL7RL&ref=plSrch

Trying to figure out the cheapest route to go making cages. Only place locally to get wire is Lowes Hardware. May order some, or drive 30 min to a tractor supply (not convinced they're cheap). Any place online to offer?
I realize advice is probably late! hehe however I will relate some experiences I have had during the last 45 years raising rabbits.
I started a total novice! never seen a tame rabbit! till I came across a fella selling out his meager lil bunch of rabbits he was tired of feeding! So I purchased his small rabbitry lock stock and barrel!! And went into learning mode! At the time county Agriculture extension center, was the only place to learn about such things? that I knew about! hehe I bought a couple books! and went to the Ag extension center and picked up the pamphlets they had from the Vet collieges in the area, and started learning! Still learning!! hehe All cages had 1/2 by 1/2 inch galvanized hardware cloth. I think there were four Doe and two bucks. Within a year I acquired several more cages from other people that butchered all their rabbits and wanted out, and gave me their cages to get them out of their way?
I purchased another fellas rabbitry that also wanted out! and found myself with ten Doe, four bucks! I read and learned about placing the Doe in the bucks cage to avoid fighting and unwanted castration of the bucks by the Agressive does that weren't in the MOOD? to be bred!
I found that I had many rabbits that were Hinze 57 style breeds of rabbits! crossbreeds with Flemish Giant! crossbreeds with giant English Lop! and breeds i had never herd of! which was anything beyond New Zealand white, Rhinelander, and the giant breeds? I soon found out the giant breeds pellets won't fall through a 1/2 x 1/2 inch hole in the floor! So I had to clean the wire. ages out constantly on the wire side of the cage!! most wouldn't poo in the warren side? An enclosed area I kept straw in or put in a litter box, for the. to kindle in. I had a couple cages with 1x2 inch wire on everywhere and found it quite nice to NOt have to clean the. out constantly because the pellets would easily fall to the ground! hehe liked that!!! until I found that the lil kits would fall through the wire if they fumbled their way out front onto the wire! BAD Idea!! then I had a cage with 1x1 inch wire. it was better but could still allow a tiny one to fall through if it got out onto the word somehow?? which they can sometimes!? I finally ended up with 3/4 inch hardware cloth on the floor of the cages and 1x1 or 1x2 on the sides! a lil one can still wriggle through a 1x2 inch side wire if they happen to get out front once in a while but mostly ok? I now make sure the entrance has a 4 inch raised board blocking the door so nothing can wriggle through it any way what so ever! I usually Cut a round hole into the back up about six or eight inches from the floor. this avoids problems until they chew up the plywood! the I just screw up another price! hehe I allow them to chew the wood since a rabbits teeth never quit growing and must be used constantly to keep them worn down! I have had rabbits with misaligned teeth. called a malaclusssion? where you must clip the teeth off every few months or then will grow through the roof of their mouth and can kill them? So cull rabbits with this problem! it is genetic.
Anyway as for cages I like to use 3/4 inch bottom, 1x1 or 1x2 inch side wire, a solid back area for kindling. I put a lift lid on the back area for easy access. swing doors on the front wide enough to easily lean in myself to access any bunny I want. I like self feeders and I like stainless steel bowls for waterers. I have a lot of bottles with the nipple ball. but prefer bowls! I don't think I would like to lick a ball to try to get a drink when I,m thirsty! and I want my rabbits to be able to get a natural drink of cold water easily rather than lick water off of a steel ball! just bothers me! hehe I know it's silly!! but ? hehe I know your cages will be great! no matter how you do them because you'll learn how YOU want them before long and get them custom to you! pretty soon!! I hope you enjoy raising rabbits as much as I have during my life! most wonderful animal!! watch that one biting Doe! with the nasty nature!! pure mean!! hehe best wishes, Ray!
 
#19 ·
Well I only been raising rabbits for a while---I started 40 years ago. I took a break or two until 1995---since then I have always had rabbits. They have always been on wire floor. Some say they reach back with their head while pooping and get some?? All I can say is I have NEVER seen this happen---again "I Have NEVER seen this Happen"---did not say it does not happen. I will say I have spent a lot of time with my rabbits---some times close 100---and again, I have Never seen them eat their poop. Maybe its a Night Thing???????
 
#21 ·
cecotropes
This is a interesting article about this subject.
http://rabbit.org/intermittent-soft-cecotropes-in-rabbits/

I have a house bunny and he will be sitting on my shoulder or real close to my chin doing
his kissing up to the human, when he gets the urge to eat his cecotropes which happens
during the evening. He just puts his head down there and sucks it down is about the only
way I can describe it. He looks like a round ball when this is going on. He comes up for air,
like once. And then goes back to finishing. Takes less than a minute usually.
He is a Netherland dwarf about 2.5 pounds and has angora fur. He became the house
bunny because he has a hind foot he can't use. I did not want him suffering in the cold
outside in the building if he gets wet when he goes to the bathroom. I call him Bug.
He requires a bit of maintenance sometimes but as long as I control what he eats
carefully, things go good.
 
#23 ·
I had mine in cages for many years but have been outside in a colony for the last few years. I"ve seen them many times with their head buried down between their legs for a couple of minutes. Their head is in the way but I assume that's what they're doing. I had the cecotropes stuck on the floor wire of the cages from time to time but it's rare to see it in the colony when I change the straw out.
 
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