DIY Guinea Pig Cage
DIY Guinea Pig Cage
After bringing my Guinea Pigs indoors i decided to research DIY Guinea Pig Cages. Many shop bought cages are too small for guinea pigs - the minimum recommended cage size for 2 female guinea pigs is 120cm x 60cm - Boars will need more space.
If you are looking into building your own guinea pig cage - details on how i built my cage and materials used are listed below.
Things you will need
- Plywood (i used 9mm thickness)
- Pet safe paint (i used cuprinol garden shades, widely recommended for painting pet housing)
- Screws
- Power Drill / Screwdriver
- Jigsaw or Circular saw for cutting plywood
- Perspex
- No more nails tape
- Shelf Brackets
- Lino / other floor covering
The Build
I would recommend if possible to purchase your wood from a local wood supplier if possible. This makes the job much easier as wood merchants will usually cut the wood for you free of charge saving you alot of time!
Cage Dimensions
The bottom level of the cage measures approx 135cm x 121cm and each level measures 135cm x 55cm with wooden ladders joining the levels. Your sides and back panel will need to be secured with screws. The front gate is made from lengths of 2 x 1 wood which the perspex sits behind securely attached with no more nails tape. The gate opens outwards for easy access.
As the cage has no base, I have used lino/vinyl flooring which I sourced again from a local company, this was free as it was an off cut so worth asking before buying.
The front of the cage is one large sheet of perspex (2mm) All my perspex was purchased online as I have no local supplier. Postage is quite expensive for perspex so it is best to order all your sheets at once. Online companies will usually cut to size for you. All perspex is attached with no more nails tape. The second level has a shorter piece of perspex (15cm high) to act as a barrier. The pigs love to put their feet on this and wait for food.
The top level has a higher piece of perspex for safety. (25cm high)
To fix each level we used shelf brackets available from regular DIY shops. The top level was added at a later date so we have added straight brackets as well as the shelf brackets to secure the additional wood needed to extend upwards.
To fix each level we used shelf brackets available from regular DIY shops. The top level was added at a later date so we have added straight brackets as well as the shelf brackets to secure the additional wood needed to extend upwards.
I have two ladders in the cage, these have padded fleece pads on them to provide grip. They are attached with velcro.
All the fleece items including the cage liners were made by myself.
Links
Perspex - Midland Plastics
Hay Racks - Zooplus
Pet Safe Paint - Cuprinol Garden Shades
No More Nails Tape - Amazon UK