This is the latest in an increasingly irregular series of short articles
about some aspect of ferrets and their care, taken mainly from the Ferret
FAQ.  (Translation: Every now and again some topic seems to come up a lot
for a while, so I send in the relevant FAQ portion, as a basis for
discussion if nothing else.) Today's subject is CAGES.
 
Aquarium tanks have enjoyed a certain popularity as ferret cages, but
overall wire-mesh cages are much better.  Tanks may be easier to clean,
but they don't provide adequate ventilation at the bottom, and your ferret
will feel isolated from whatever's going on in the room.
 
If you plan to keep your ferret caged whenever you're not home, and you'll
be gone most of the day, a pretty good cage size is about 2 X 3 feet and 2
feet high (60 X 100 X 60 cm).  Bigger never hurts.  A second or third ferret
could share that size cage.  If you'll only be using the cage temporarily,
such as when you're vacuuming or taking your pet on a short vacation, 1 X 2
X 1 feet (30 X 60 X 30 cm) is sufficient for one or two ferrets, perhaps
three.
 
Two of the cage manufacturers that have been recommended by FML readers in
the past are Safeguard (standard or custom cages, 800-433-1819) and Midwest
(available from Dog's Outfitter, 800-FOR-DOGS, among other places).  There
are also pictures and instructions for making several different types of
cage on the Ferret Equipment How-To Page,
http://www.optics.rochester.edu:8080/users/pgreene/gallery/gallery-howto.html
 
--
- Pam Greene
Ferret Central <http://www.optics.rochester.edu:8080/users/pgreene/>
            or send INDEX FERRET in email to <[log in to unmask]>
[Posted in FML issue 1670]