In this article, we’re going to look at ways to improve your rat cage set up. The basic principles of how to set up a good, active cage set up are covered in my book Pet Rat Care and in my 10 mistakes article so I won’t go through them again here. Instead, I’m going to show you some examples of cage set ups that people have kindly submitted and give some feedback on what makes that cage set up good and what could be improved, and then I’ll link to some accessories I’d consider adding.
Cage 1
Best aspects: As far as first rat cage set ups go, this has gotten off to a great start. We have a lovely big cage with wide opening doors, a lovely big TicTac wheel and I can see a variety of places for the rats to explore and sleep at different levels. There’s a few different climbing options and a substrate base to forage in.
Ways to improve: There are a few little tweaks I would make to this cage set up that are going to make a big difference. My first step would be to take out the middle layer that splits the cage into two – this is going to open up the cage and give a good few more options for cage accessories. Along with that I’d take out the wire ladders- rats don’t need little ramp style ladders and I am always concerned about their feet getting caught in the wire. Next, I’d make the cage a bit busier by adding more ropes, branches and wooden structures both from the sides and across the cage. There’s going to be quite a bit of space here to fill, so I’d invest in a couple of bigger items for now that will also act as fall breakers.
I would personally switch out the ceramic bowl for a crock pot that fastens onto the side, but that’s because I couldn’t be bothered replacing the water as often as the rats want to fill it with soggy bits of substrate!
Suggested additions: Larger cage accessories to fill the space:
- Cargo net– this is one of my cage staples for providing a fall breaker that was also good for enrichment and active layouts.
- Komplement scarf hangers from IKEA
- Rope toys to stretch across the cage from one side to the other
- Java branches that bolt onto the side of the cage would be a great addition for climbing and also for chewing!
- Wooden structures can include things like bolted shelves, bamboo towers, and wooden ladders.
Cage 2
Best aspects: There are a lot of excellent aspects of this cage- the multiple textures, fully active set up, good use of fall breakers, high range of different items, deep bases with lots of space for burrowing.
Ways to improve: There is nothing glaringly lacking in this cage, but if Dyana wanted to change a few things for her boys then I’d recommend adding in a few different types of ropes. Ropes of different tautness and width are a great way to challenge your rats and to get them using those core muscles to balance. Zig zag these in between the current furniture set up across the cage for the best set up.
Suggested additions: Either rope sold by the length or some pre-made rope accessories such as:
- These sturdy ones that go across a corner of a cage.
- Softer and slightly thicker ropes.
- These boredom breakers ropes. I like to unravel them and then you have two thin ropes. I found that you could stretch each one from one side of an SRS95 to the other side, attach it on with a pear clip and stretch it back.
- These spiral ropes that you can stretch across the cage from one side to the other.
Cage 3
Best aspects: These new owners have got off to a good start with their cage. From this photo I can see multiple sleeping options, some good rope accessories across the cage, and a number of things to chew like coconuts, pumice stone and wood.
Ways to improve: It’s worth noting that this cage is a little more challenging to set up because it is taller rather than wider. As rats are naturally ground-dwelling animals we want to give them the option to run full pelt across a base, so a wider base would make a better option.
To improve this cage however, we first need to think about how we can make it busier. More ropes and wooden items across the cage would help immensely, as would baskets and other cage accessories. I’d probably actually ditch one or two of the sleeping options in favour of more space to fill up! Next, I’d remove the Back2Nature from the bottom of the cage and invest in a litter tray for it instead. At the bottom of the cage, I’d select a more appropriate substrate such as cardboard shavings or kiln dried pine shavings.
Finally, I’d probably think about investing in a good quality wheel. As this cage doesn’t have a large footprint, this is a great way to give your rats the opportunity to run really fast!
With small doors, this cage is going to be physically more challenging to furnish, so definitely take the top off and build up from the bottom after clean outs!
Recommended additions:
- Rope Bridges like this one from Rat Rations.
- Bolted log to aid climbing like this one.
- Wooden swing toys like this one from Ratcessories
- A wheel like any of these metal wheels from TicTac– go as big as you can afford, minimum 12″ but more likely to be used if it’s bigger.
- Litter tray such as this corner tray or this square tray from Amazon.
Cage 4
Best aspects: This cage is looking pretty good already so there’s not going to be a huge amount to change here. I can see a great sized cage with a deep layer of appropriate substrate. There are lots to do in this cage- things to chew and lots of little perches to climb up sides plus a good range of textures.
Ways to improve: The main thing that I notice when I look at this cage is that there are a lot of hammocks- about 6 or 7 from my count. In addition to those, there are at least 2 other sleeping spaces (a bowl and box), so these rats have a huge number of places to choose to sleep, which is great, but we would probably be much better off repurposing that space to give them opportunities to do other ratty behaviours, like climb, jump, balance, and chew. The large flat hammocks in the middle are clearly acting as fall breakers, I would switch those one out first for other items that can act as fall breakers such as cargo nets or wooden structures. Then I’d take out a couple of the others and add other items that encourage climbing such as branches (also great for chewing).
Recommended additions:
- Big cargo nets
- Larger wooden climbing frames
- Large java branches
- Large hanging basket to explore
Cage 5
Best aspects: It’s a little tricky to see everything in this cage so there may be aspects I’ve missed, but I can see a few good items that rats will love here- the cargo net and rattan tubes will be much enjoyed, the hammock at the top right, and the play toys placed at the top of the cage.
Ways to improve: There’s lots of ways that we can make this cage more rat-friendly. The first steps is going to remove the plastic shelves that cages get sold with- they prevent us from creating an active layout and tend to just make the cage smell more because urine sits on top of the shelf and then gets walked through. Once those shelves have gone, there’s lots of space to create an active layout with lots of ropes, branches and other toys.
Next, let’s ditch that bowl- rats don’t need constant access to food and when we do feed them it is best to encourage their natural feeding instincts and scatter feed in the substrate. While we’re at it, this isn’t to do with the cage, but I’d ditch the nuggets too and get them on to a more suitable mix.
Finally, the last big change is to change out the substrate. I can’t see too well, but it looks like Carefresh in the bottom. This is pretty terrible in terms of enrichment and odour control, and can be too dusty for rats, so switching to a suitable substrate such as kiln dried shavings will really help.
Recommended additions:
- Raid Rat Rations for items to fill the cage with- you can’t really go wrong so just pick what you fancy!
- Choose to make your own mix or purchase one of the pre-made mixes from Rat Rations. If you’re overwhelmed with the choice, I have a cheat sheet to help you pick.
- Substrate such as Littlemax if you have space to store a larger bale, or Econest if you need something smaller.
Please note that I have no affiliation to any of the places linked- I do not make money by sending your business their way, they’re just sellers I have good experiences with and who I want to see supported.
If you found this article useful, did you know I have a whole book of me going through how to give your rats the best life possible? You can purchase it from Rat Rations, Ratcessories, Boggle Buddies and Amazon.
Azuline Rattery 