I finished my cage :D

[Gilraen Took]

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b242/Gilraen_Took/Squib/cage2.jpg

Heh. It looks really bad, but that's only because I was in a rush to put it together. I cut out hardware cloth to size(in this case 4 feet long and 2 feet wide and high) and then I "tied" the edges of the cage together using regular wire. I was going to put dowel rods along each of the corners to make it more stable, but I seem to have wired it tight enough that I don't need to. I also had to put a support rod along the top of it because it seemed like it was sagging from the weight of their toys. The door is actually there. We couldn't figure out how to do it so my boyfriend ended up getting a few rulers and tacking the clear part of a report cover to it. We hung it with paper clips. They seem to have found out it was there with no problems and love to chew on the rulers, heh. For hanging the cage itself we got some hooks that (edit) twisted?( I wasn't saying anything bad. . . They just act like the little things that look like nails with threads :() into the wall and wrapped wire from each of the top corners onto those. So far it's held like a charm. Now I just need to make a water bottle holder for my rat's cage and I can give them back their water dish instead of a coffee mug full of water!

[Budgietom]

Great cage! I love how it hangs. Very spacious too. Well done karma for you!

[prettybird1212]

good job, I like the door idea, easy to open/close and easy to clean!

[tstmard]

Cool cage. But just wondering where does their poop go?

[Budgietom]

He must lay newspaper at the bottom and replace it every two or three days.

[Pippin's mom]

Nicely done!:D

[Gilraen Took]

Heh. . . The poop is the only problem at the moment. I HAD a big piece of cardboard that I was going to wire to the bottom a few inches under it so I could just have newspaper over that to change out. My roommate tossed it the day after the cage was built while I was at work. So now I'm just waiting to get more and scrubbing the poop out of my carpet every few days. We only ended up putting one door in and the birds would hate me if I had to get into their cage every couple of days to mess with newspaper. And so would my arms! I looked like I lost a fight with a ticked off wildcat when I put their toys in, I could only imagine putting newspaper in every couple of days :D

[Zippi]

What a neat concept....runs to tell hubby about a potential new project for him to think about doing ;)

[pal0m1n0]

Why did your room mate throw out the cardboard? I would have thought it was preferable to having the poop on the carpet.

[ETAHoffman]

Great cage. It is amazing what can be done with hardware cloth!

In the future, if you build any more, you might want to invest in a "Square cutter" to cut the wire. A regular diagonal cutter, which I assume you used, leaves sharp edges....as you are finding out. The square cutter leaves smoothe edges. I've used one for about 30 years and have saved myself innumerable scratches and cuts. You might want to file down the sharp points to help avoid cuts right now. Don't worry about stressing the birds. They'll get over it quickly.

Whatever you do, don't cover the sharp edges with any kind of tape. The birds will ingest the tape and, possibly, get sick.

I've built so many cages similar to yours and, over the years, have devised short cuts and designs that make them very easy to construct. Here are a couple.

To avoid having to make so many cuts in the wire, determine the size of the cage you want and, simply bend the cloth instead of doing so much cutting. Since hardware cloth comes in convenient widths, you can simply use the entire width for the length of the cage.

Say you want to build a cage 24 inches wide and 18 inches high and deep. Cut one (1) piece of hardware cloth 92 inches in length. Bend it so that you have the interior bottom 18 inches X 24 inches. Then, bend upwards another 18 inches. Then bend towards what will be the back, another 18 inches. Then bend down (this will be the back) 20 inches. Then bend, towards the front, that will be the bottom space for paper placement or tray placement. Next, cut the two end pieces which will be, obviously, 18 X 20 inches. Using a ferrel (sp) pliers and the inserts, attach the sides to the body of the cage. Next, you will need to cut out the door. Then, cut a piece of hardware cloth about an inch bigger, all the way around, to fit over the door opening. Use the ferrel (sp) pliers and inserts to attach the door. Voila, you have a complete cage. If the bottom paper/tray support droops slightly, you can cut a paper clip and bend it to "hook" it to the body of the cage.

This is an easy and economical way of making cages. Believe me, it beats making all those cuts which have a tendency to tire your hands quickly. Not to mention the possiblility of bad cuts.

Again, great cage.

[atvchick95]

I'd just lay a couple pieces of newpaper on the floor under the cage instead of cleaning the carpets all the time until you can get another piece of cardboard or if you have cearl boxes you could open those up and use them too

But my concern is, if your getting scraped up that much just by putting toys in the cage, The birds can get cut up Also

[prettybird1212]

I think it was the birds that attacked her...

but I would also file down the edges

[Gilraen Took]

They can't get to any of the edges, that I know of. They're all on the outer part of it and I was hitting myself on that when I was hanging stuff. And hitting myself on the other side when I was pulling my hands back out because I'm a putz like that.

Those ferrel pliers, do they attach little metal rings to it? I've seen some sort of wire cages that have metal rings to keep the wire together instead of needing to weave a dozen feet of wire all around it, but when I tried to describe them to about 8 different people at the 2 hardware stores I know of in my area all I got was blank stares. . .

[Bethany]

awesome cage! better than i could ever do!!

[Zippi]

Great cage. It is amazing what can be done with hardware cloth!

In the future, if you build any more, you might want to invest in a "Square cutter" to cut the wire....... (removed details). I've built so many cages similar to yours and, over the years, have devised short cuts and designs that make them very easy to construct. Here are a couple. (removed some more details.)

This is an easy and economical way of making cages. Believe me, it beats making all those cuts which have a tendency to tire your hands quickly. Not to mention the possiblility of bad cuts.


Thanks so much for the info, this is going to make my hubby's job much easier when we set about making an indoor aviary in the near future. Now I just need to figure how to get a removable tray built into the bottom for easy removal/cleaning! :D

[Devonbunny]

Love the new cage, well done :)

Jules x

[Grean Feathers]

An Idea on any edges you have on the cage, that might scrach you or your birds. Walmart sells protective door trim. The chrom or plastic that goes on the edges of the car door.
It will save your arms and hands when you have to reach inside the cage and change something or taking the dishes in and out. It is very durable with all my birds.
I know Wal-mart carries it. It comes in chrome and plastic.
It has saved my arms and fingers from those awful cuts.
Oh for the bottom of your cage to catch all the droppings.
A piece of plex-glass. That hangs underneath by each corner with paper clicks. ( Drill small holes in the corners of plex-glass.) Then you can put newspaper on that for easier cleaning.

Great Looking cage.

2 Doves,8 Finches,4 Budgies
http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/bb314/GreanBeans_bucket/P1010104.jpg