[2015] Cage Review: Multi-level Ferret Bird Cage with Wheels.
On the 8th of June I ordered a cage on ebay since I couldn't find any appropriate cages for my ferret babies.
Originally I was going to get the Ferret Kingdom (Ferret Nation Australian Twin) but I could not afford the $350 at the time. I was on the bridge of despair, How could I get a nice cage that is cheap but not cheap on quality that it could fall apart on me... While on Ebay, I came across this particular cage. To me, It looks alright however the one thing that I wasn't particularly happy with was the wired platforms or the opening cage doors.
After ordering, It only took 3 days before I got it from NSW (I was pretty sure it came from Sydney).
It was very fast and I was quite pleased with how little time I had to wait on it. The box was huge and I was quite excited to just tare it off. 10 minutes after I FINALLY got the box off the cage, I pulled out all the cage parts. The over all weight of the Heavy Duty Frame was quite impressive. It felt like it was made to last.
The box included
3 Platform + 3 Ladders (despite saying 2 + 2 on the ebay listing)
Slide-out Tray for easy cleaning.
1 Hammock.
8 x Anti Rust Heavy Duty frames. (2 having large square opening doors)
Heavy Duty bottom Frame and Mesh and one mesh for the top.
4 Wheels, Screws etc.
Despite having Instructions and the ad saying an 'easy assembly', I had a few complications with putting it together. Its fairly easy to put together, but putting the right parts in the right places is another story. The parts don't come with numbers so you're blindly figuring out if they are going in the right spot. I had to unscrew, and take out one part, to put the right on back in at lest 4 times [img src="http://i1105.photobucket.com/albums/h352/JW_2012/Emoticons/
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.gif"]. The assembly took me an hour and a half to fully have the cage up.
Once the cage was done, I was impressed with the size. The size was much larger than I had imagined it would be. It didn't take me long to get some decorations in, before I put the ferrets to explore their new home [img src="http://i1105.photobucket.com/albums/h352/JW_2012/Emoticons/
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Yuki ran up the ladders all the way to the fourth floor (at the time i had it put together like that), Haru was reluctant to use the ladders and slept on the base for a while. Yuki slept with her, but was more willing to actually use the rest of the cage. I had no issues with the cage for about 3 weeks. UNTIL YUKI ESCAPED.
See above? The tray can slide out easily. That feature I loved! However, Yuki managed to get out through that very feature. He scratched the bottom, pulled up the tray and easily pushed his head through it, until he was out having a field day in the room at 8AM. I was out of rubber bands and couldn't find any string, so I easily fixed this by cutting off some handles from a canvas shopping bag and secured the bottom. With that fixed, Yuki hasn't escaped since.
The next thing I had an issue with was the doors.
I would have preferred if they where the open doors like on Kingdom or Nation. The lock pulls up to release the door down, and since the bars are only roughly 2.5cm, Ferrets could easily stick their little nose up and open the door themselves. (once they figure that out and believe me, they will. It took Yuki 5 days. )
The cage is great and it will surely last a long time, However there are its pro's and cons. All will be listed below so you can easily see what I mean.
Pros:
The cage is made from a high quality metal with vein powder coating so it is tough and durable.
The cage is anti rust.
Its very large even for two ferrets, so it could easily house 4-5 ferrets at a time.
Pull out bottom tray for easy cleaning.
The cage is close to the ground, so you can leave the bottom cage door open so the ferrets can go in and out as they please.
Nice and Wide ladders.
Even with 2-3 levels, there's still heaps of room for added hanging toys or hammocks.
It has four wheels, so you can move it around. The wheels also have locks.
Cheap price of $146 and is worth it. Thats more than half of the price of a FK.
Is perfect for a second cage or even a back up cage if you prefer to not have as a main cage.
The cages can be split into two, with the appropriate parts.
Fast Free Delivery Around Australia.
Perfect for cats and ferrets.
Cons:
Ferrets can escape the cage through two means, One being where you pull the tray out so be sure to secure that. The other being the two doors since you have to pull the lock up to release the door. Put a clip on it and it shouldn't be an issue.
The doors can make it complicated for putting the levels in or other cage accessories like hammocks.
The levels are wired, so you may need to put some carpet, or lino tiles, or some thick towels down.
Complicated assembly.
The hammock is comes with is too small for a ferret, Mine would not use it even if I extended it. May as well just buy some nicer hammocks or make your own like i did.
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The cage cannot be shipped overseas. Australia only.
For more information here's the
link.