Building your own all
wire rabbit cages is a relatively simple process that requires only a
few tools and a minimal amount of skill. If you can use a pair of
pliers or wire cutters and a measuring tape then you can build your
own cages. The only tools you will to make your own cages are: a good
pair of wire cutters, needle nose pliers, J-clip pliers, a metal file
and possibly a flat head screw driver.
Now, when I first
started building cages I scoured the internet and read several books
regarding the topic. Each had it own useful advice and every builder
of cages has their own experiences. Although after reading some books
I am sure the author never built any of their own cages, they just
simply repeated the information they acquired verbatim from another
source. In this series of articles I will try to enlighten you to
some of the tips and techniques that I have learned over the years of
building cages. But before you can get started building cages, you
have to acquire the right equipment.
The Wire (Galvanized
Steel Wire)
As for the cages
themselves you will need two different sizes of galvanized welded
wire ½ x 1-inch for the bottom of the cage and 1 x 1-inch or 1 x
2-inch for the sides and bottoms. Galvanized steel wire is rolled
wire that has been coated or galvanized after the welding process to
help prevent it from rusting. The strength and thickness of the wire
is determined by the 'gauge' rating. The lower the number or 'gauge'
of the wire the stronger it is. The standard for rabbit and small
animal cage wire is '14 gauge'. Wire that is labeled '12 gauge' is
thicker and stronger than '14 gauge', while wire that is labeled '16
gauge' is thinner and weaker. Many wire rolls may not have the gauge
noted on the package, but my experience is that it if it is labeled
as 1 x 2-inch, or 1 x ½-inch rabbit or 'cage' wire it is usually 14
gauge. The 1 x 1-inch square will at my local Tractor Supply is '16
gauge'.
You can find galvanized
cage wire at your local Lowe's, Home Depot, or Tractor Supply. It can
also be found on-line from many vendors, but the shipping cost
generally make it uneconomical for most small breeders, and saving
money is one of the reasons most breeders make their own wire cages.
If your local home improvement superstore does not carry the size of
wire you need, they will order it for you at no additional charge. If you are an 'Amazon Prime' member, then you can find the required cage wire on Amazon and have it shipped to you for free. If you are not a member of 'Amazon Prime', then my
advice is to save yourself some money and let the other guys pay for
the shipping cost.
Knowing the size of the
cage that you are going to build allows you to purchase the most
economical width of rolled cage wire. As our cages are a maximum of
30” wide, the bottom cage wire only needs to be 30” in width. The
standard width of the most popular roll of ½ x 1-inch cage wire used
to make the bottom of rabbit cages is 30” so no wastage here.
Unfortunately, the wire used for the sides and top of the cages (1 x
1-inch, or 1 x 2-inch) comes in a variety of widths usually 24”,
36”, or 48”. So you have some decisions to make here in regards
to cage height.
A quick note about PVC
coated wire. I have seen some of this type of wire used by some
rabbitry's to make their cages. The idea is that the PVC coating
keeps the cages from rusting. I have cages that are in my outdoor
hutch that are three years old and they have not rusted as of yet.
The j-clips do rust and have to be replaced, but none of the
galvanized wire I have used to make the cages has rusted. Because a
rabbits teeth grow continuously, they like to chew, often when I go
out to the barn and the hutch I will see them working their teeth on
the wire. While the PVC coating may not hurt them, I prefer to not
take the chance that the coating that they may chew off could case
them harm. Use the PVC coated wire if you want, but I would use it
with caution. Until I know more about it's safety, I will pass on the
PVC coated wire.
Making Your First Wire
Purchase
Looking at your
choices, a cursory glance might make you believe that a 36” width
of rolled cage wire can easily be cut in half to give you two 18”
sides (36 / 2 = 18). While half of 36” is indeed 18” you are
going to lose 2” on 1 x 2-inch wire due to the cut line. Therefore
you are left with the choice of making one cage that is 18” tall
and the second cage that is only 16” tall. For small breeds (Mini
Rex, Holland Lops, Hot Tot's etc) a 16” tall cage is fine, but for
adult New Zealand's, Californian's and American's a 16” cage is not
tall enough. However, you could use 16” tall cages for what we call
“grow-out” cages that can house rabbits from the time they are
weaned until they are about 16 weeks of age.
The same can be said if
you choose to purchase 1 x 1-inch rolled cage wire. Once you cut one
side to 18”, you will be left with a a section of wire that is only
17” in height. One inch in height may not seem like much, but I
have decided on a minimum standard of 18” cage height for my meat
breeders and do not wish to make my cages any shorter. However, if
you raise meat breeds as well as smaller breeds, then the 36” width
might your best cage making choice.
A 48” roll of cage
wire will you leave you with approximately 10” of wasted wire if
you make your cages 18” in height. However you could make all of
you cages 22” in height and minimize your waste. It is debatable if
a cage taller than 18” is beneficial to the animal or not, but if
you are using racks and drip pans and want to stack cages, you just
have to remember that the taller the cage, the less room you have to
stack cages. Taller cage stacks makes it difficult for young adults
and those who are vertically challenged to get the animals safely and
easily out of the cages. If you are hanging your cages from wires,
this my not be an issue, but it is something to keep in mind.
As for me, I have come
to rely on the 14 gauge 24” width of rolled cage wire. I prefer the
1 x 2 for sides and top, but have recently began to purchase the 1 x
1-inch rolls when that was all that is available. The 1 x 1-inch
rolls however are the thinner 16 gauge, but I have not experienced
any difficulties with cages made from this wire. Depending on the
size of the wire (1x2, or 1x1) I have a small strip of 4 – 5”
leftover when cutting the sides. I then use these small scraps to
make hay hangers that I put on the doors of the cages to hold timothy
hay for our rabbits. For me it was a simple matter of availability
of the wire, and I will admit it is easier to wrangle a 24” roll of
wire by oneself than it is a 36” or 48” roll. Having the space to
work on a 4' (48”) roll of spring loaded cage wire is one factor
that people often overlook when they get ready to make there own
cages.
My recommendation at
first is to start small. Purchase a 24” roll to make your first
couple of cages, then when you are comfortable with manipulating the
wire you can make the decision whether of not you want to purchase
and work with wider rolls of cage wire.
Fasteners (J-clips) and
J-clip Pliers
If there is one item
that you need to pony up the cash and buy, it is a good set of j-clip
pliers. You can buy the cheap j-clip pliers sold at Tractor Supply
and other retailers for about $9.00, but I guarantee you you will
regret it, and I have had both the experience and the sore hands to
prove it. The cheap pliers are thin wall pressed pliers that bend and
have to be straightened often during the making of a single cage. In
addition, because they are made from pressed metal, the thin handles
cut into your hands when you have to apply pressure to the j-clip. I
am sure my friend and author 'Steve Coyne' of the Texas Bunny Barn
blog will attest to this statement as we have made many cages
together for both rabbitry's using these cheap pliers before buying a
set of heavy duty j-clip pliers for only about $9.00 more than the
cheap ones (total $18.00 for heavy duty pliers).
The second problem with
the cheap j-clip pliers is that I found that I had to use an
additional pair of needle nose pliers to fully seat the j-clip. So
you have to do twice the work which strains your hands even more.
Bottom line the cheap pliers are not worth the money you will pay for
them. You can buy, nice heavy duty j-clip pliers on-line via Amazon
for about $18.00, or check with one of the many rabbit equipment
suppliers. I bought the cheap pliers when I first got into raising
rabbits because I did not know there was an option and that was all
my local Tractor Supply carried. I had to learn on the fly so to
speak, but now you will know that there are other options available.
So just in case I haven't made myself clear, purchasing a good set of
heavy duty j-clip pliers will make your cage building go so much
faster and the experience will be more enjoyable.
As for j-clips, there
seems to no consistency between manufacturers. I say this because
over time, I have found at least three slightly different designs of
j-clips. They all work, but the j-clips that I have found that work
the best have a more flat 'J' angle. These j-clips however are of a
heavier design than the ones I have found at my local Tractor Supply,
and to be honest I could not crimp them on my cheap pliers. However
they work extremely well in the heavy duty pliers. In addition, for
best results I have to put a small crimp in the cheaper made 'Pet
Lodge' brand of j-clips available form my local Tractor Supply with
my needle nose pliers to get them to function properly in my heavy
duty j-clip pliers. The bottom line, do not waste a lot of time
searching for a particular type of j-clips, just buy them and be done
with it, you may have to make some small adjustments to them to get
them to work to your satisfaction, but it is no big deal.
I have never used
C-clips (aka hog rings) or C-clip pliers (aka hog ring pliers) to
make cages so I cannot really comment on their use and how effective
they are, but I find no reason why they should not work quite well.
In fact, some hot rings are galvanized steel so they should not rust
like the cheaper j-clips will. Just to try the c-clips, I would have
to buy all new gear, and I am simply not willing to do that at this
time. The prices for the j-clips and the c-clips are about the same,
however the pliers appear to be roughly 30 -50% more expensive.
Wire Cutters
Galvanized steel wire
whether 14 or 16 gauge is pretty strong stuff and you will need a
good set of sharp wire cutters in order to cut your roll of cage wire
to the proper size for assembly. When I first started raising rabbits
I purchased a decent pair of 7-inch 'Kobalt' brand wire cutters from
my local Lowe's for $8.98. If you have a good set of wire cutters,
that's fantastic, if you have a cheap dull pair, either sharpen them
or invest in a good pair. A good pair of wire cutters will save you
time, hand fatigue and a lot of frustration.
Bench Grinder and or
Dremel Moto-Tool (Optional)
I list these two items
as optional, but for me they are an essential part of my cage making
process. When cutting cage wire, you will discover that the wire
cutters leave small, sharp burs on the edges of the wire that you
cut. I use a bench grinder to remove the burs from the individual
cage panels (see part 3, putting it all together) and my Dremel
moto-tool to remove the burs from around the cage opening when I cut
out my door openings.
If you do not have a
bench grinder or Dremel moto-tool, then a standard metal file will
do. It is a while lot more tedious process to use a manual file, but
you have to use the tools you have. You do not have to grind the
small burs totally flat, but you do want to smooth them enough so
that you do not scratch or cut your hands and arms on the sharp edges
when removing your rabbits from their cage.
Conclusion
Not everyone can build
their own cages, nor do they want to, and that's OK. For me, I find I
can save about 30 to 35% by building my own cages. In addition, by
building my own cages, I have learned how to take them apart when
necessary and do any maintenance needed to repair, reduce or expand a
particular cage to meet my rabbitry's individual needs. As I
mentioned earlier in this article, cage building is not hard, you
just need to have the right equipment a proper workbench or table for
the assembly of the cages.
Having a friend or
spouse to lend a hand is an added bonus. As I have a shop and the
space to make cages, my friend Steve Coyne often comes over and
together we knock out cages for both our rabbitry's. Not only does it
speed the process along and make it more efficient, it gives you
plenty of time to socialize, talk rabbits, and generally just shoot
the breeze. In part two of this series I will go through the process
of how I make my cages. As always, we ask that if you find this
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