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Twitch
Thu Apr 07, 2005 12:36 am
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 puzzle hutches. |
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tomorrow i'm going to make a hutch from sctratch. i'm trying to amke it so they connect ina puzzle peice like pattern. my tester hutch will be made out of plexi glass but i want to make some wooden ones too though i'm not sure whast type of wood to use. i know cedar and pine aren't good but other then that...? it was also suggested to make one out of metal where they wouldn't be able to chew that one up.
any suggestions on what to make them out of would be great. when i have one finished i'll post a pic of it so you can see what i mean about puzzle pieceing it.
also i would be willing to make more if anyone would like to buy some from me. i live in canada so candain fund through mail order would be best. i'm not sure what i want to chage for them yet though. i'm going to try selling them in local petstores too so when i figure out a firm price with them i'll nock some off and then sell them to you guys.
i'm also experimenting with rat blankets with tunnels, rat toy balls and hammocks. these are only in nice idea/mild planning stages though. i'll keep you updated on it all though.
so any suggestions on what types of wood or toys that you think rats would like i'd really appreicate it.
thanks
-Raven
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Ellies_girl
Fri Apr 08, 2005 2:52 am
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Maybe try rattie bean bags. What about hanging rat cubes (if you can sew). And making cloth with a good grip for ramps would be nice.
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Rosie
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I miss you Tut, Goldy, and Raoul  |
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MerlinsMagic
RP Supporter
Sun Apr 24, 2005 11:56 pm
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| making toys? |
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I was thinking on making some rattie ladders and other toys..I was planning on useing apple wood and soft rope but I am not 100 percent sure where to get good rope or what kind. I have enough apple poles...we had to trim back our apple tree...and no there has never been any pesticides used on the tree I figure since its a soft wood it shouldnt splinter..I know my rabbits loved chewing on the sticks I imagine the ratties would too. Any ideas? Shaz
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LittleWillow
MODERATOR & RP Supporter
Mon Apr 25, 2005 12:11 am
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Apple wood, as long as it's pesticide and disease free, is fine for them, and ropewise, I'd want to go for something natural (cotton or hemp for example) rather than the more synthetic ones. I've put natural hemp and cotton rope into the cage before now and they are fine with it. 
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Andy & The Rats
 ~ Darwin ~ Maisie ~ Ella ~ Zak ~
 ~ Finn ~ Malachi ~ Azrael ~ Newton ~ Charlie ~ |
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Ratwitch
Mon Apr 25, 2005 8:34 am
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I get my hemp rope at a craft store. I love the stuff and it seems to take longer (for a rabbit anyway) to chew though. cotton is ok but when I had a rabbit she would chew through it a lot faster.
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Jill
RP Supporter
Mon Apr 25, 2005 9:22 pm
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| Guess who's gettin' a jungle gym?! |
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Alright, Matt still has another three weeks in New Jersey sans me, so I think in that time he needs to be productive!
Maggie and Sydney especially love to climb, and they manage to use our blinds, my closet, etc to get their fix (I found Sydney running across the tops of my hangers the other day on one of her "escape" outings). I was hoping ot make a "modified," pre-fabricated jungle gym for the girlies to play on in New Jersey. Handily, the basement is quite a bit larger than our bedroom at the moment, so it should be able to be pretty big .
I'm looking for any strange ideas that I wouldn't usually add to a jungle gym. I'm thinking the base will be similiar to the "cat condos" that pet stores sell, though ours will be homemade since it's much cheaper, and Matt is very handy with tools. I also want to include a "blinds" sort of portion that they can climb on, but I'm at a loss over what to make those out of. It needs to be cleanable. I think we're giong to plastic-cover the wood base and use carpet pieces that can be removed and washed on the main body.
I want tubes, tunnels, ladders, shelves, the whole works!
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dragynflye
Mon Apr 25, 2005 9:39 pm
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awsome! i'm jealous! one thing you might do is get one of those tire dog toys, either get one with a rope already attached, or make a hole and attach your own, and hang it so they can have their very own tire swing! and of course take lots of pics!
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i miss you dove, oz, briar and fern. liam, my love, i 'll never forget you. |
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Jill
RP Supporter
Tue Apr 26, 2005 2:33 am
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Tire Swing! AWESOME! But I read something about rats and rubber...? Will it hurt them to chew it?
I also think they need a long rope ladder connecting two of the top balconies... anyone have good luck with a certain kind of rope for one of those? Gah, I can just picture Maggie now in heaven running back and forth on a rope ladder...
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Jill
RP Supporter
Tue Apr 26, 2005 7:19 am
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Okay, how about something like this:
or...
but I like the step feature on this:
I definitely want rope ladders, some sort of soft hammie, and as many tunnels/hidey boxes to run through as possible. I'm also thinking the "blinds" portion can be done as the way to get from one of the levels to another...
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dragynflye
Tue Apr 26, 2005 8:05 am
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i've looked at something like that before... they would have soooooo much fun! there's so much to climb and play on! i think i like the bottom two better... the spacing seems more "rat friendly" i mean, you could always add your own ramps and such, but the top one just seems like there's too much room between, say, the top of the house and the perches.... i think they's have an easier time climbing and jumpin on the bottom ones. and you can always hang your own hammies! and i don't know if rubber would hurt the rats... but you could always use something like maybe a small willow wreath... that would definately be safe for them to chew!
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i miss you dove, oz, briar and fern. liam, my love, i 'll never forget you. |
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Jill
RP Supporter
Tue Apr 26, 2005 9:00 am
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Oh, I'm not going to buy a pre-fab one, so we can change the dimensions to be rattie friendly . I just want to give Matt and idea of what sort of layout I'm looking for. I think I am leaning towards the bottom one, though. Although, I do want at least one "space" where I can hang a rope ladder accross.
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dragynflye
Tue Apr 26, 2005 12:33 pm
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Oh, I'm not going to buy a pre-fab one |
which will save you a buttload... those things cost a small fortune! i know! you can hang little rope "bridges" between the platforms... from the low one up to the tall one and back down! for some reason it makes me think of the lost boys in peter pan!
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i miss you dove, oz, briar and fern. liam, my love, i 'll never forget you. |
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Kate
ADMIN & RP Supporter
Tue Apr 26, 2005 9:21 pm
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You know what... look at any local maternity/kids consignment shop, and/or Goodwill -- they usually have loads of old Barbie Playhouses, Cinderella castles, Playskool gas stations, and things like that. Washable, pre-built, connectable with tubes and a little elbow grease... FUN. 
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Kate & the M.O.U.S.
If you saw a man drowning and you could either save him or photograph the event ... what kind of film would you use?
~ Anonymous |
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Chester
Tue Apr 26, 2005 10:24 pm
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i have used cotten rope for my rats cage i hung them from the celling he loves it is is always chewing and climbing on it. you can find the rope at alot og craft stores i got hime @ home depot i would suggest washing before you but it in yout rats cage jsut to be say (dont wash with soap jsut hot water and let it soak)
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From,
Devon
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Chester (my rat) 
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dragynflye
Tue Apr 26, 2005 10:52 pm
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apple wood is fine, but i read somewhere (on a rabbit site i believe) that if you use any other type of fruit wood, you have to let it dry before it's safe for them. and i agree with using hemp rope. the stuff is sooooo durable!
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i miss you dove, oz, briar and fern. liam, my love, i 'll never forget you. |
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Jill
RP Supporter
Tue Apr 26, 2005 11:50 pm
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Hrm.. those sound fun, too! I wonder if we could connect all that together! Lol, rattie play room!
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Jill
RP Supporter
Wed Apr 27, 2005 3:19 am
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I can still see them. They're linked from the website, and I know that others can see them. However... I just got off the phone with Matt, and HE says that he wants to "modify" my idea... he claims this was supposed to be my graduation present, and I apparently blew the surprise by thinking of it in the interim.
Well.. I've been planning to get a RUUD, but Matt doesn't want the girls to be able to climb down to the floor anytime their cage door is open (It would be pretty hard to put a RUUD on a table ). What he's proposing is getting ANOTHER R-670, and attaching them, putting that monstrosity on a shelf, and building the jungle gym right against the wall, so that it does not touch the ground and allow them to get down whenever they want. I'm dubious at the moment, but he swears it'll be cool.
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kalynhanna
Tue Jun 07, 2005 11:18 pm
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| Decorateing cage |
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Hey guys well I was redecorateing the cage today because u guys have so much stuff in your cages it made me feel like a bad mom.  U can go to www.petsmart.com its the Super Pet Deluxe Multi Ferret Home. It is home to 2 spoiled babies. I have already got in it two hammocks,basket,jean tube,a couple cardboard boxes. But I need MORE ideas and I can't go out and buy much of anything ( parents on a strict budget only the things my pets really need like food,bedding,and litter  ) . Any ideas would be appreciated.
P.S. how do you post pics in an easy version for me to understand I'm not computer savy.
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RP_Administrators
Tue Jun 07, 2005 11:53 pm
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| Re: Decorateing cage |
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P.S. how do you post pics in an easy version for me to understand I'm not computer savy. |
Image resizers.
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RatPalace Administrators |
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Ratluver0428
Wed Jun 08, 2005 1:35 am
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dawn73
Wed Jun 08, 2005 6:50 am
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Well we are on a pretty strict budget too, so no buying all those neat toys they have ready made. I can sew just barely...as long as it is only a straight line and no special stitching I am good to go, so I sewed some hammocks with pockets (square and corner), I sewed some tubes. Another thing I did was get some poster board to make into the cardboard tubes that you see at petsmart. I also am using pvc piping and dryer vent hoses for hidey holes. Although the dryer vent hose is very hard to keep clean being it's like an accordian. These were just a couple of bucks, that maybe you can buy, instead of asking your parents. All the material I bought was actually the leftovers they sell at walmart. They roll up what is left of a big roll and sell it. Couple of bucks for a few yards. I also bought the craft wood sticks...the long ones in different diameters and made my own ladders. I will be trying a swing next. You can buy 20 feet of thin chain at Walmart cheap and the s hooks at a hardware store for a few cents.
Good luck.
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Dawn
Never to old to learn something new! Open your mind and let knowledge flow in! |
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SillyRat
RP Supporter
Wed Jun 08, 2005 9:42 am
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kalynhanna, go to the Dollar store and get some plastic organization baskets and attach them to the cage so they have little perches, or turn them upside down for hidey-holes.
At Lowes you can get lots and lots of sisal rope and wind it around the bars so that they can climb. I have the same cage that you do, and I rearrange the shelves so that there are all kinds of multi-levels too. I took the top shelf off because they love climbing the bars like little monkeys. So their main play area is up there.
My ratties love balls -the solid ones made for cats with the jingles in them - I hear them rolling all around the cage at night. Right now their favorite toy is a cat toy I got at Eckerds for 75 cents - it's a little soccerball attached to a piece of elastic that hangs from the top of the cage- they played with it so hard they broke it the first night and I had to fix it. One would grab it and run, then the elastic would yank it back and the ball would fly up into the air and they would all chase it.
I try to rearrange things every week when I do the big clean - take some toys out- move other toys to different places - they get all excited when I put them back in, and run around exploring first thing.
Just wherever you go - look around for little things for them - they're everywhere that you look. 
Diana
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"You're not your job. You're not how much money you have in the bank. You're not the car you drive. You're not the contents of your wallet. You're not your f------g khakis. You're the all-singing, all-dancing crap of the world." ~ Tyler Durden |
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dawn73
Wed Jun 08, 2005 8:04 pm
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A good thing to do to those plastic baskets is to put little holes in the bottom of them with a soldering iron. That way the pee, if they pee in them, will not stand in a puddle, but go through the holes. The holes in my baskets are maybe only a few mm wide so that little feet don't get snagged. It works very well, and is easy to clean. 
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Dawn
Never to old to learn something new! Open your mind and let knowledge flow in! |
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kalynhanna
Wed Jun 08, 2005 9:23 pm
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The cage was such a hassle to put up as I bet you know Sillyrat so if I asked my mom tohelp me stagger the cage shelves she would KILL me!!!! Thanks for all the ideas me and my mom like to go to Walmart and all those places anyways. And if anybody here lives in the Charlotte region they can go to Value Village they have t-shirts and everything for like only 25 cents to the maxium $5. Anymore ideas would be appreciated!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Snufflez
Sat Jun 11, 2005 10:29 am
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| Toys?? |
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i was wondering what cheap at hoem toys i could use for my rat.... right now she has a litter box and a lil house and igloo.. but nutin else.. i was going to make a hammock but i dont know how... she is alone... yes i know.. thats bad.. but when your only 15 and your parents dont like her.. you cant get another... (she did have buddies they died of the same hting)
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"I wish people would realize that animals are totally dependent, helpless, like children; a trust that is put upon us."
~ James Herriot |
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