Flooring for NIC cage shelves?

[undergunfire]

Hey guys! As you all know, Ryan and I get our first house in 5 days and I get a bunny room...so I have to build new cages !


I am wondering what I should use on the shelf floors of the NIC cages that I have in mind design wise.



* Is using linoleum tiles wise? Would the bunnies be able to lift them up and chew them?
* How about using ceramic-type tiles? What if they some how fell off the shelves and onto a bunny?
* How much on average does Lowe's or Home Depot charge for peg board, ply wood, or particle board? Are these safe if the bunnies chew them? Will these stores cut my wood to the size I want for free that day?
* Any other ideas on what I can use as a "hard floor" for the shelfs? No chloroplast or cardboard, please.


I guess I am looking for something that looks nice and will be durable. I've been thinking a lot about what I can use, but would like some input.

 

[AngelnSnuffy]

Hey, Ame, will you be using panels for the bottom part of the "shelves"?

We did and used those sticky tiles in the middle of the panels. (Well, Robgot the first one aligned at the front of the panel, but it hasn't been an issue. So, I suggest those, they look really nice and you can get many patterns to choose from.
Oh! And they're about a dollar a sticky tile:yes:.

 

[undergunfire]

Do those tiles really stick well to a NIC panel, though ? I guess I don't see them sticking good enough for a bunny's teeth to not come along and rip them up!

 

[AngelnSnuffy]

undergunfire wrote:

Do those tiles really stick well to a NIC panel, though ? I guess I don't see them sticking good enough for a bunny's teeth to not come along and rip them up!

Seriously, no. Has not been an issue for me at all. They actually stick real well also. The only thing that will bother you? Is that for a bit, while the glue is fresh underneath? All hair will stick to it. It'll be okay though, I bet you'll really like it!

Oh, you could, even put a tile underneath those panels to reduce the hair stickings too.

 

[spoh]

For Lucy I have found that the stick on tiles are to slippery, I use carpet samples on the shelves. I bought a bunch of them very cheap so that if she does mess one up I can always swap it out. She doesn't chew them and (knock on wood) has been great with her litter habits so she doesn't potty on them either. For the floors of the entire condo I use the foam puzzle piece things, for the first few weeks she was great about not chewing those. Now she has nibbled all the way around the edge, I will eventually have to change them out, luckily they are pretty inexpensive. She doesn't eat the stuff she just tears it apart and leaves the mess for me:X I did have the stick on tiles on the bottom but she tried to jump onto one of the shelves one day and slipped and fell, I switched that day.

Good Luck!

Joy

 

[Thumpers_Mom]

I didn't use the sticky tiles but I did use the peg board for my buns. I was worried about their nails getting caught in the holes but it hasn't been a problem. I used the same ties that I used to hold the NIC panels together to stabilize the peg board and have never had a problem. I don't remember the price (I got it at home depot) but it wasn't too expensive).

I guess it also depends on the buns. I know if I would have used the sticky tiles or carpet Thumper would have left it alone, but Peaches is a different story!:foreheadsmack:

Congrats on your house. Can't wait to see pics of the bunny room. :biggrin2:

 

[Michaela]

I use fleece on the upper levels, and just leave the wooden floor of my room for the bottom. Wood under fleece works really well for me, but if I was looking something different I'd probably go for lino. I'd get a roll of lino rather than tiles, then stick the sites underneath the sheets of wood, so bunnies couldn't chew the edges. Does that make sense?

So excited for you Amy!! :hug:

 

[Alexah]

First off, congrats on getting the house. How exciting!

I did not like how the lino tiles stuck to the grids. My bunnies would try to push them up off the ledges and then chew on them. I also didn't like that the buns were able to easily pull up the edges and chew on the tiles. It didn't work for me at all.

I'm presently using the lino tiles stuck onto plywood for the base of my cages as well as for the shelving. The plywood is thin and lightweight, but the tiles are able to stick down really well to it so that the buns can't pull it up to chew. I also think it's made moving the cages as well as cleaning them about a zillion times easier. With the lino tiles only, sometimes urine would soak through the cracks and onto the carpet or hardwood floor. The plywood stops that completely. And it wasn't very expensive at all. I think for 4 pens it cost $40 for the plywood and tiles. And that was for both the base and the shelves!

Home Depot and Lowes will both cut your wood for you at no cost. Just be sure to measure really well...I forgot and then had to get some additional plywood.

I think my pens look really neat and clean. I'm pleased with how they came out and would do it again in a heartbeat.

Any which way, good luck with the pens, the buns, and your new house!

 

[undergunfire]

I can't use fleece because Morgan and Brody like to "redecorate" with it using their teeth. Brody also looooves to pee on it, so he only gets fleece to sleep on every now and then. Same thing with carpet...little boogers!

I guess since I am looking for a really clean and simple design, I'll go with Alexah's idea of plywood, then using tiles over that. I'll just bring in 2 NIC panels so they can measure the wood and do it the right way.


I'll have to wait until next week to do this, as I need to build the cages and see if they fit well in the room. I want 4 NIC long x 2 NIC wide x 2 NIC tall, but I am hoping that they will fit correctly along the wall where I want them.


Here is an example of the cage I want to create. I took this picture from a girl on the goosemoose forums. She used this cage for her foster bunny:

I just LOVE how neat and lovely it looks. I like my bunny and rat cages to look really "homey" because when I have company over....they seem to appreciate them more because their cages aren't dark and boring....if that makes sence.

I later noticed that mouse_chalk has basically the same design pictured in the photo files cage thread .

 

[mouse_chalk]

Haha, I was reading down, and saw the picture of the cage, and thought 'that's similar to mine! Maybe I'll post a pic of mine here'.... and then I saw my name!

I love the layout of Barney and Snowy's cage, it gets loads of light in during the day. One of the panel shelves is only half the height though, as Snowy wasn't too good at jumping before, and it makes a little hidey-shelf for her to sleep under. The shelves are hardboard squares cut to exactly 35x35cm, with lino tiles stuck on top cut to size. They fit individually between the connectors, which keep them held in place, and also if anything gets on them they just lift right out to scrub/wipe clean!



I can't wait to see what your cages end up like Amy! How many will you be building?

 

[Offspring2099]

undergunfire,

what about regular bathroom towels. I see that you say that they like redecorate, in that case you can make tiny holes in the towels and secure the towels with a soft metal wire that can be easily removed if needed. This way you can take it out to shake off fur, towel is probably easier on the stomach than carpet if they chew it.

I think having at least a small tile section would be great for the hot days.

 

[delusional]

Instead of lino tiles, what about a piece of proper lino, off a roll?

You can cut to the exact shape/size of your shelves to minimise edges that may get chewed, and then if you're worried about slippage you can cable tie the lino down. I've done this on my piggie's shelf, and one smooth surface makes it very easy to wipe down if there's a mess.

 

[Korr_and_Sophie]

For Korr and Sophie's cage, I have carpet with blankets on top. In Penny's there are car mats that I had to cut to size with blanklets on top.

If you wanted to use tiles, then I would put the stick on kind on top of plywood that has been cut to size. A hardware store can probably cut it to size for you.

 

[thegooch69]

Very nice bunny condo you have! I really have to fix mine up, zip tie the corners and get creative with it.

I like th idea of using sticky tiles for the shelves, why didn't I think of that? Right now I am just using a towel.

 

[undergunfire]

Towels are definitely a no-go . I am sticking with the plywood/peg board/particle board (whatever is cheapest) idea, then sticking down lino tiles. It totally sounds a lot neater than carpet or fabrics for me.

No worries about messes, my guys are 100% litter box trained for their pee and about 90% litter box trained for their poops . I have a shop vac,I so I just vac up all the poopies and hair a couple times a week. Ryan and I are going to go this weekend to get the supplies for their new cages. I need to buy 4 more boxes of NIC panels, as well.

"Bugsy", my new 8 year old foster bunny...will be getting a NIC cage too...I just don't know about shelving in his...I am worried since he is elderly and blind in one eye. I'll see how stable he is once I get him on April 1st. I'll have to post all my questions about him a few days after I get him, as we move in on April 1st and I get him on that same day...so I will be without internet for a few says.


Thanks guys, for all your help. I can't wait to start building! I wasn't able to build new NIC condo's in the closet space that my guys currently have...so I've been dying for new cage designs.

 

[AngelnSnuffy]

undergunfire wrote:

"Bugsy", my new 8 year old foster bunny...will be getting a NIC cage too...I just don't know about shelving in his...I am worried since he is elderly and blind in one eye. I'll see how stable he is once I get him on April 1st. I'll have to post all my questions about him a few days after I get him, as we move in on April 1st and I get him on that same day...so I will be without internet for a few says.

Sweet! Also when he gets adopted, I think it would be cool if you charged a tad for the NIC cage he will be used to and the new adopter could set it up like you had it and you get something back on it as well.

Have fun shopping!:biggrin2:

 

[mouse_chalk]

undergunfire wrote:

"Bugsy", my new 8 year old foster bunny...will be getting a NIC cage too...I just don't know about shelving in his...I am worried since he is elderly and blind in one eye. I'll see how stable he is once I get him on April 1st. I'll have to post all my questions about him a few days after I get him, as we move in on April 1st and I get him on that same day...so I will be without internet for a few says.

Amy, you could make half-shelves for Bugsy, like I've done for Barney and Snowy's cage... She can't see very well at all and she uses it now, but for the first few weeks we had them she just didn't bother to even look up there. This is how the half-shelf is fixed:

There's a little piece of wooden dowel cable tied underneath to support it, and the vertical panel makes that and the higher shelves really stable. I was worried about losing the space in the corner but as you can see there's still plenty of room for a bunny to sit under there!

I guess you could always just make bugsy a pen at first and then add shelves later on if you think he'd be ok with them?

Edit: I just realised I put pretty much exactly the same thing about the shelves in the cages thread... sorry!

 

[undergunfire]

Good idea, mouse_chalk ! I'll see how Bugg gets around, then decide if he should have some little shelves.

Crystal...I don't want to charge for Bugg if he goes to an awesome bunny home. He will not be going to a home with anyone who barely knows rabbits. No newbies for Bugg, I worry because of his age....he needs experienced people. I know it may take a while to find that, but he'll stay with me until he does .


p.s....Bugsy needs a new name for his "new" life...that, and I can't call a rabbit "Bugsy"...it's not a "people" name and it's too common for me...like Bugs Bunny .

 

[undergunfire]

I got all my NIC panels, wood & lino tiles for shelves, zip ties, paint for the bunny room, ect this weekend already! I am already and set to start painting and cage building on Wednesday starting bright and early in the morning. I should finish painting the bunny room that evening and I can move the bunnies and rats into that room by Friday evening :biggrin2:!


p.s....I got more news today that Bugsy is being housed in a huge black powercoated cage with lots of levels and a slide out tray. I am assuming the cage was from Martin's or KW Cages. Paris said he hops all over it just fine, so Bugsy will be getting a NIC cage with shelves, just like my bunnies .

I already PMed Tracy (timetowaste) to see if we can fit his old cage in her car when she comes up on the 12th...and see if Brambley Hedge Rabbit Rescue wants the cage as a back-up....incase they get in a large amount of rescues or something !

 

[misbehaveqt1]

spoh wrote:

For Lucy I have found that the stick on tiles are to slippery, I use carpet samples on the shelves. I bought a bunch of them very cheap so that if she does mess one up I can always swap it out. She doesn't chew them and (knock on wood) has been great with her litter habits so she doesn't potty on them either. For the floors of the entire condo I use the foam puzzle piece things, for the first few weeks she was great about not chewing those. Now she has nibbled all the way around the edge, I will eventually have to change them out, luckily they are pretty inexpensive. She doesn't eat the stuff she just tears it apart and leaves the mess for me:X I did have the stick on tiles on the bottom but she tried to jump onto one of the shelves one day and slipped and fell, I switched that day.

Good Luck!

Joy

where do you get the foam puzzle board. i've been looking for flooring to use with my NIC cage and the tile and wood is to slippery but mine aren't 100% litter trained. but i cant find the foam board anywhere