Ok so it looks like I am going to need to do a NIC cage..

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BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

This topic has 19sd replies, 8 voices, and was last updated 16 years, 6 months ago by Scarlet_Rose.

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- 05/08/2008 at 8:14 AM
  Alicia Conklin
  Participant
  721 posts
  I hear NIC cages are a rather cheap option right? We were going to buy a large cage online but..it turns out we will not be getting our stim. check direct deposit (grrrr don’t even get me started lol) so….. I need another cheaper option. I have made NIC condos before..but I never found a way to get it easily cleaned..however that was for different bunnies that we were fostering and they were a larger bonded pair. Anyway, those bunnies were grumpy and they were not so fond of us but were very fond of coming out of their cage. My tuckerbunz is a sweety and so I don’t think I’d have an issue with building a cage where he’d let me in
  
  Ok so here is my actual question! Tucker is not yet litter trained..we are working on it but it will be a month or so before we can get him neutered, sooooo I’m concerned with my floor and walls getting ruined..which is what happened with the fostered bunnies back when. We even had them on TILE and they destroyed the tile with their poops and pees! So, this being on carpet..what can I put below it that it will not be destroyed?
  
  I was thinking of a painters tarp..but do you think he would be able to dig through that? And then if he ate it get sick? I’d put something above it of course.
  
  How would I protect the lower section? So that pees didn’t fly out or poops or hay and everything alll over the place. A little bit, that’s fine but I remember the other buns it was insane. Any ideas for that? I’m creative but I am not good with tools..my husband is alright with tools, but we don’t have much besides a hammer and nails here. And we could borrow a saw but not this weekend and so I need something atleast for now…I was thinking maybe 2x4s? But would that be bad wood? Maybe the painters tarp over the wood? I dunno.
  
  So I guess my basic issue lol, is would painters tarp be ok? That’s all I can really think of to protect the floor and walls.
  
  Ok and also…if you have pictures or a link to a thread with pictures let me know!
  
  THanks!!!
- 05/08/2008 at 8:40 AM
  JK
  Participant
  2223 posts
  If your bun is a chewer I would not use a tarp. What you can use is a piece of remnant linoleum that extends beyond the edges of the cage. I have linoleum over my hardwood floors and have it curved up behind the cage and xpen so hay/poops, whatever is contained. You could put a sheet over the linoleum but it’s not necessary. Cleanup is easy with linoleum. Edson is not a chewer so I have throw rugs and towels for cushioning over the linoleum. Hope that helps!
- 05/08/2008 at 8:45 AM
  Alicia Conklin
  Participant
  721 posts
  Ok, he’s not a huge chewer other then cardboard, but I will look into linoleum…I’m just worried about cutting the linoleum.
  
  What do you think about the tarp being on the outside though? Like underneath the linoleum and up the wall a bit? My husband is really nervous about NIC cages because of the last issue and he’s worried that the wall is going to get ruined.
- 05/08/2008 at 8:51 AM
  Beka27
  Participant
  16016 posts
  i would get a remnant of linoleum, it will be much sturdier and easier to clean. when building the condo, make sure there are access doors on every floor so you can easily clean or get to the bunny.
- 05/08/2008 at 8:52 AM
  JK
  Participant
  2223 posts
  This linoleum is really easy to cut and can be found in rolls at home improvement centers. Yes then put a tarp underneath for more protection. My cage and xpen is a couple inches away from the walls and the linoleum extends beyond a couple inches and up the wall and I have never had any problem at all. Good luck!
- 05/08/2008 at 8:55 AM
  Alicia Conklin
  Participant
  721 posts
  Ok we will go to the surplus warehouse tomorrow and look for linoleum for it and my husband said we could cut it with a utility knife, so we’ll go with that.
  
  What I wanted to do was to have two big large doors in the front that go up the entire length of the cage…of couse..never done that before I have no idea if that will be sturdy enough..I think we’ll be doing alot of experimenting before we come up with something!
- 05/08/2008 at 8:59 AM
  JK
  Participant
  2223 posts
  Sounds like a good plan! Did you check out habitats under Bunny Info above? Some great ideas. Let us know how it goes!
- 05/08/2008 at 9:06 AM
  babybunsmum
  Participant
  3896 posts
  i agree… a piece of vinyl / linoleum flooring is the best option for flooring over carpeting. also, you can buy plastic from larger fabric stores – it’s on a roll & you cut whatever length you need – and tack it up on the wall behind the enclosure to make wiping up any sprays easy. i use it under my enclosures to protect the floor where the buns can’t get at it unless they’re supervised. (they’d chew on it if it was accessable)
  
  15865990771.JPG
- 05/08/2008 at 9:07 AM
  Beka27
  Participant
  16016 posts
  i don’t know if having two large doors that completely open will be sturdy enough. you might have to play around with it a little bit to get it to work.
- 05/08/2008 at 9:12 AM
  Alicia Conklin
  Participant
  721 posts
  Not yet! I will go check that out now! To tell the truth I am kind of glad that we can’t afford the other cage LOL, I think a NIC condo will be much nicer for him, and this way if the first style doesn’t work out we could always just change it, those other buns were just crazy and hopefully now with Tucker my husband can see that not all bunnies are like that! Luckily those other buns went to this nice lady who had a house full of bunnies and she had been looking for some big ones becuase her husband wanted ones that he could bond with and he apparently has big hands and is always afraid that he’ll hurt all the little ones she has So it ended up perfect for them because they were more then we could handle.
- 05/08/2008 at 9:15 AM
  Alicia Conklin
  Participant
  721 posts
  Yea, I was concerned with that as well. I know I’ve seen it on some people’s condos but thinking about it I don’t see how it would work, I might do scattered doors throughout it so that I can get in from different angles.
- 05/08/2008 at 9:56 AM
  Sage Cat
  Participant
  1883 posts
  Hi TuckerBunz,
  
  Here is a photo of the first Rabbitat I made out of NIC pannels.
  
  The 4 Pannels in the front of the pen compleetly open up. They are hinged lightly with zip ties on the sides but attached tightly up and down to each other. Then I used caribiners to close them in the middle. This made cleaning very easy.
  
  Here is a site that hassome really cute photos & a great discription of how they made their buns 3 level condo: //breyfamily.net/bunnycage.html
  
  I think the linoleum is a good idea.
  
  158564027671.jpg
- 05/08/2008 at 10:02 AM
  Alicia Conklin
  Participant
  721 posts
  Sage,
  
  I would love to do something like that, but I just can’t leave his open We have two cats who I don’t THINK would do anyhting, but at night while we’re sleeping I’d be worried that they would possibly try something that they wouldn’t while we were there. I do think though that I want to do something like that outside his cage as an exercise area that maybe I could take out and then fold up at night or when company is over.
- 05/08/2008 at 10:20 AM
  Beka27
  Participant
  16016 posts
  cages are kind of a waste of money. you can make better, larger ones for as much or less money. i got a marchioro cage (which is really nice) but i’ve since expanded it with a NIC cube enclosure. i have carpet as the flooring, but my bun is completely littertrained so i don’t need to worry abot it being waterproofed. all of the grates just fold to the side to allow open space when she’s out.
- 05/08/2008 at 10:30 AM
  Alicia Conklin
  Participant
  721 posts
  That’s similiar to what I was going to do when we were going to buy the bigger cage, it was 46 1/2 ” by 32″ and 28 ” high. Then I was going to put a pen like that around it so that he had free time during the day whenvever we’re home..I just don’t trust those cats 100% yet…but it looks like I am going to try to make a NIC condo as the base cage as well! I’m just worried about the construction of it and not having something up the sides incase he pees near the edge I think litter training will work better once he is neutered.
- 05/08/2008 at 2:06 PM
  skunklionshow
  Participant
  1257 posts
  Leo is not neutered yet, so he does over- spray/poop on occassion. The pee is the real problem. I have big pieces of cardboard covered w/ pee pads and/or newspaper. I use this as a barrier b/t the cage and wall. The problem really only happens on the bottom level where the litterboxes are located. Our NIC condo is against only one wall in our apt. I have 4 cats and got really leery of letting the buns roam, unsupervised, when I caught one of the cats “tasting”, I mean “grooming” Leo. Unfortunately he tends to licky licky bite bite during grooming sessions. He used one of his paws to hold Leo down, for that extra grooming. It made me worry about what could happen if I couldn’t keep an eye on their bonding. So I cage them when we are not home. However, both bunnies have little escape bunny only access areas in the living room, that I feel they can use for their safety, if necessary.
- 05/08/2008 at 4:34 PM
  BBMommy
  Participant
  57 posts
  Well, what I did was to buy a large plastic kennel pan…the kind used inside dog crates. I have a large piece of washable indoor outdoor carpeting over that, and the NIC condo built to sit right outside the kennel pan. The carpeting kind of flops up the sides a bit, and I also zip tied some peg board that I cut to about 3 inches high to keep things from flying out the bottom…it’s worked great for us, and I can simply lift the cage up, slide out the kennel pan and wash it when I need to. I got the kennel pan online from a store that sells dog show supplies, but now I realize I could have gotten it cheaper at Farm & Fleet.
  
  Good luck!
  Kim
- 05/08/2008 at 5:37 PM
  Scarlet_Rose
  Participant
  4293 posts
  For stray slung poop, litter or hay, I drill a couple of holes in some 12″ x 14″ plexi glass that I buy from my local hardware store (Home Depot) and hang with zip-ties to the inside of the cage and place it against the floor. This will keep most stray things contained and is a breeze to vacuum and sweep. Cleaning a NIC cage can be a challenge if you do not put enough doors in it, yet keep it structurally sound. Your best friend when cleaning one is a vacuum and a little shop vac is even better. Something I also use is a one-step plastic step stool to sit on when I am cleaning the lower level. I have my NIC cage on top of a cart with locking wheels (castors) on the bottom so it is also elevated and easy to move and clean underneath. Also, I only do this major of a cleaning once a week, the rest of the week I use a hand broom and a push carpet-sweeper that you see at restaurants. I also go over with a solution of diluted vinegar and water.
  
  Here are a few more tips/tricks:
  
  Cleaning Tips & Routines:
  
  https://binkybunny.com/Default.aspx?tabid=54&forumid=2&tpage=1&view=topic&postid=242#300
  
  Cleaning a NIC condo https://binkybunny.com/Default.aspx?tabid=54&forumid=1&postid=42400&view=topic
- 05/08/2008 at 5:56 PM
  Alicia Conklin
  Participant
  721 posts
  Thanks so much Scarlett Rose, I just read through those threads and got alot of good ideas from them. I have two possible layouts in my head so I am trying to figure out which would be the best both for his personality and for cleaning. I am thinking of going with a 2×4 cube condo that’s two squares high. I think he’d enjoy more running space then he would enjoy climbing space and I think only having the one shelf would make it easier to clean. Right now he’s in the hallway and that is soooo easy to clean..I really wish it wasn’t blocking the only downstairs bathroom, I’d love to just keep letting him live there lol, his cage is pretty much just for bedtime and we go to sleep late and wake up early so he’s barely in it. Sadly though with two potty training boys and a 6 year old gates blocking the bathroom is getting really old lol.
- 05/08/2008 at 6:18 PM
  Scarlet_Rose
  Participant
  4293 posts
  You’re welcome! Also check out COOL HABITATS under BUNNY INFO for some more ideas and here too:
  
  Neat Idea Cube (NIC) Cages/Enclosures:
  
  https://binkybunny.com/Default.aspx?tabid=54&forumid=2&tpage=2&view=Topic&postid=21157
  
  https://binkybunny.com/Default.aspx?tabid=54&forumid=2&postid=14733&view=topic
  
  https://binkybunny.com/Default.aspx?tabid=54&forumid=2&tpage=1&view=topic&postid=14662#15386
  
  https://binkybunny.com/Default.aspx?tabid=54&forumid=2&postid=15112&view=topic
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