Going Into The Cage

[RamiS]

Hello everyone,

So, I have a dilemma on my hands, I will be very honest about this situation. I rescued a baby fox squirrel two years ago, he is the best of the best, I live in a two bedroom apartment, and have no roommates, so he gets his own room, as well as the rest of the place to roam around in as much as he wants, me being a full time graduate student I spend lots of time at home studying and doing my research work from home, so again, he gets most of the day outside of the room going nuts!!
now as I go into my final two months of my program at school I find myself spending between 6-7 hours in the lab, and he is not liking that at all, I come back home around 2-3pm to find him chewing on the door, walls, I must also mention the fact that I tried to release him last summer (soft release) God knows how hard that was for me, but he kept on wanting to come inside, after about a month, I brought him back to our place, and not to sound selfish but I was so happy he decided to stay inside :grin2

But now, I am thinking of buying him a large cage, and keeping him in it when I am out, I know it was a mistake of mine not to keep him in one from day one, but I couldnt get myself to confine him in such a small environment! maybe that sounds stupid, but its what I felt at the time, and still do. but now I tried putting him for 1 hour in a large dog crate, and he wouldnt stop chewing and trying to get out!! having me worried that he may hurt his teeth doing that if I stick him in a cage for 6 or 7 hours a day.

please anyone with such an experience advise me on this, and keep in mine to think of him as your own when making this adjustment.

Thanks everyone:grin3

[Mel1959]

I don't know how you have managed to not have everything in your apartment chewed up if he has had free roaming abilities! :eek:eek. He is not going to like being put in a cage, but it is the best and safest place for him to be if you can't be there to watch him. I think he will adapt. There have been other members on here that have constructed very large cages inside their houses for their squirrels. I would suggest checking out the section about cages and supplies on this forum to see if you can get some building ideas.

Best of luck!

[RamiS]

I don't know how you have managed to not have everything in your apartment chewed up if he has had free roaming abilities! :eek:eek. He is not going to like being put in a cage, but it is the best and safest place for him to be if you can't be there to watch him. I think he will adapt. There have been other members on here that have constructed very large cages inside their houses for their squirrels. I would suggest checking out the section about cages and supplies on this forum to see if you can get some building ideas.

Best of luck!

I wont lie, he did a few things, but nothing major haha:grin2
So you dont think I should just buy him a critter nation cage?

[SammysMom]

I have a free roaming boy who does have to be in a cage at times when we are not at home. I went with a three level Critter Nation and it worked fine. I would suggest that as a solution for your situation.

[RamiS]

I have a free roaming boy who does have to be in a cage at times when we are not at home. I went with a three level Critter Nation and it worked fine. I would suggest that as a solution for your situation.

Great idea, but remember, my main concern here is that he is now two years old, and never been in an inside cage! I worry about stress, and him hurting his teeth trying to free himself out of the cage!

[Rexie]

I think it would be best to start him out a few hours each day in the cage. Put lots of things for him to do in there. Branches, wood bird toys, paper towel rolls stuffed with treats and paper towels on each end so he can dig out the treats, deer antlers. Put a few beds in there with cut up fleece for him to build a nest. Make it inviting and comfortable. Hide little treats in there too. The more inviting it is the less stressful it will be for him to become used to being in there when need be. I hope this helps, good luck and keep us posted.

[Spanky]

If you get the Critter Nation with the horizontal bars, the 1/2" does not allow for them to chew on the bars.

[RamiS]

I think it would be best to start him out a few hours each day in the cage. Put lots of things for him to do in there. Branches, wood bird toys, paper towel rolls stuffed with treats and paper towels on each end so he can dig out the treats, deer antlers. Put a few beds in there with cut up fleece for him to build a nest. Make it inviting and comfortable. Hide little treats in there too. The more inviting it is the less stressful it will be for him to become used to being in there when need be. I hope this helps, good luck and keep us posted.

wow that sounds like a lot of stuff in a cage that wouldnt allow for too much roaming space for him! let me tell you what I have for him now, I have a cat tower in the living room that reaches the roof he climbs all the time, I have another tower in the bedroom, this is the one he sleeps in and its amazing quality (ARMARKAT), he also has organic dirt to hide his stuff and dig it out, with about 5-6 toys.

[RamiS]

Could you please give some good brands for the cage, or any links for what you guys would recommend?

[Scott]

Rexie is right that you should put lots of things in the cage and slowly transition your pet. A burying box could actually bring out some hidden instincts.

Below is a cage a friend and I built for about $350 and took 6 - 7 hours. It measures 6.5 feet tall, is 30 inches deep, and 8 foot wide. My squirrel loves it.

If you would like the plans, I can provide them to you. My squirrel is a White Albino, rescued in South Carolina. She is in the picture on top of one of the cubes.

Good luck with the mouse.

[RamiS]

Rexie is right that you should put lots of things in the cage and slowly transition your pet. A burying box could actually bring out some hidden instincts.

Below is a cage a friend and I built for about $350 and took 6 - 7 hours. It measures 6.5 feet tall, is 30 inches deep, and 8 foot wide. My squirrel loves it.

If you would like the plans, I can provide them to you. My squirrel is a White Albino, rescued in South Carolina. She is in the picture on top of one of the cubes.

Good luck with the mouse.


thats an amaaaaaazing cage, take about party time, but i cant do that as i live in an apartment and need to keep a low profile, also consider space:grin2

[Scott]

BTW because of talking to people on TSB, it has caster wheels. With a 30 inch opening,

one can wheel it right out the door. ....

[RamiS]

BTW because of talking to people on TSB, it has caster wheels. With a 30 inch opening,

one can wheel it right out the door. ....

I really like this cage, but i can do with half that size in my place, could you tell how you did this>?

[Milo's Mom]

Honestly, due to being in an apartment, personally, I feel the Critter Nation will be your best bet. I'd go with either 2 doubles side by side making a quad or a stacked triple.....get as much room as possible.

AND, I think they are still on sale on Amazon right now!!! Grab'em NOW the price is fantastic!!

I got your PM about my cage, but I have several different types of cages and I'm not sure which one you're asking about.

[Scott]

Milo's Mom is right. Go with Critter Nation. Just snap it together, very functional and still pretty roomy.

[RamiS]

280905

[Milo's Mom]

http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=280905&stc=1

Ahhh, ok, THAT cage! We recycled some wood from some sort of shelving or something. It was a true wood laminate (think really expensive plywood with a veneer on it). We sanded it down to get the varnish off (our intent was to stain it dark, but we never did that). Each section, the front, back, top, bottom, and sides are independent pieces...so we could fit them through the doorways in the house. The wood in each section was held together with biscuits and glue (think cabinetry), then each section was held to the other section with a little piece of plastic and 3 screws. I do not recommend using plastic in squirrel cages...squirrels eat plastic. The bottom of the cage was a standard piece of OSB with a piece of thick/padded vinyl wrapped around it and then the fleece liner went on top of that. The hinges were piano hinges and the door lock mechanism was a window latch.
If you're trying to determine time and cost of building or buying...buy a Critter Nation and be done with it. The cost is going to be about the same, the time will be drastically different, the upkeep of wood is going to be ongoing and you WILL have to replace parts due to wood absorbing urine and food debris and chewing.

[RamiS]

I just think the bigger the cage the more comfortable it will be for him, and for me knowing he is not jammed in a small cage, I had a critter nation cage before and he did not like it at all, he kept away from it:tap

[PennyCash]

I just think the bigger the cage the more comfortable it will be for him, and for me knowing he is not jammed in a small cage, I had a critter nation cage before and he did not like it at all, he kept away from it:tap

Chances are he will avoid any cage. I'm sure that this will be a process to get him comfortable with any cage. If it were me I'd load it up with fleece and toys then give him a treat to go find with the doors open. Giving him time to become familiar. Next step would be to close him in for a bit so forth and so on. Eventually he should feel quite content and it really is in his best interest to keep him safe. BTW I have a critter nation and I love that it comes apart which has proven to be a god send for travel. I would think that would be ideal for your apartment. Best of luck

[Scott]

Another thing you could do, once you decide and have the cage and have made it as comfortable as you can .... only feed him in the new cage.

It may take some baiting. Put the food just outside an access door in the beginning (that should be left open). Then he will get used to getting near the cage. Then slowly move the food dish just inside.

It will be a progression that will not happen overnight. Eventually, he will be comfortable going in and out. If you can reproduce his current bedding inside the new cage, you may find he choices to sleep in there as well.