Miles
03-28-2013, 06:23 AM
Since I couldn't find a review on this cage on this wonderful site :) I thought I'd write one myself.
I've had the cage now for probably about 6 months or so, and I don't think Gus has ever been happier! I'll break the review down into sections for simplicity.
Size:
I got the bigger 100x50x75cm cage and it is absolutely huge! I believe it got delivered from Germany and it came in a massive cardboard box The cage was within the glass section and all the little bits you get with it were inside the cage. Compared to his old cage I bet the floor space is about 5 or 6 times what it was.
Functionality:
The picture on Zooplus' website shows the wood shavings filled up to the ventilation strip, but obviously if you don't want to, you can just put a bottom layer of shavings in. Although I would have liked him to dig about in a thick layer of shavings, the cost of doing so would be high as it takes atleast 0.5kg of shavings just to cover the bottom. Instead I'm going to order him a digging tower, so he can fulfil al his digging needs! It is worth noting that if, like me, you only put a small layer of substrate on, the 55cm suspension bridges or even the solid wooden bridges you get with the cage are not long enough to allow for a shallow enough gradient for hamsters to climb to the 2nd floor. To resolve this I bought him a large house that had a 'balcony' area which I used to launch the bridge off and up to the 2nd level. The balcony was about 12cm high, the total height from ground to 2nd level is 37cm. This meant the 55cm suspension bridge only had to climb a height of 25cm, allowing for a suitable gradient.
One issue that you may find is that when your hamster is still exploring, he may fall of the 2nd or even worse, 3rd floor. I did unfortunately see my hamster fall of the 3rd floor but thankfully because of the generous layer of shavings at the bottom he seemed fine. He also seems to have learnt his lesson, having not done it again! I may one day get round to building him a couple of nice little barriers.
The shelves have sections cut out to allow the bridges you get with the cage to be attached. I decided to use another wooden suspension bridge, however as Gus used them I noticed they moved whilst he did so. Obviously I didn't want the collapsing when he was on them, so I set about fixing them down.
As they need to be removed when doing maintenance I couldn't simply screw them down, that would have been far too easy! ;) I found the best way was to put two screws in to the 2nd floor then drill a hole big enough for the screws underneath one end of each bridge. Then the bridges simply 'sit on' the screws meaning they cant move. It's difficult to explain in text :( but I can take some photos if you want.
Quality:
Top-notch, is the only word I can use.
In the instructions it said to wipe the cage part with a damp cloth to get off any remaining black coating that hadn't properly adhered. After having done so the cloth was clean! The glass part is similar to an aquarium with nice siliconed clean joints with the ventilation strip nicely incorporated.
The shelves had holes pre-drilled to allow for the metal plugs that hold the shelves in place. It was all assembled in about 40 minutes.
Price:
I'm sure we can all agree that at £169 it is rather expensive. My excuse for buying it was that I only had one hamster and I don't plan on getting any others. So I thought I may as well spoil this one rotten :D I'm sure it will also last a long, long time and should for whatever reason I no longer need it, I think it should hold it's value quite well.
Cleaning:
Cleaning is fairly easy, I can only see someone struggling if they are very weak! In order to access the cage properly you need to remove the top 'cage' section. It isn't light but it comes off fairly easily. Once you've removed any toys/buildings off the floor you can simply scoop up the substrate. Sometimes his pee can stick to the glass floor but if you have something like a stanley knife blade you can easily scrape it off, one advantage of glass!;)
Stand:
I decided it needed a stand. It is rather heavy and I keep it in my bedroom so the only other place it could have gone was atop a chest of drawers!
I managed to find a black stand exactly 100x50cm! I couldn't believe my luck, it was perfect. :rolleyes: I think it cost about £75 from Argos.
Summary:
Excellent cage, would definitely recommend to a friend. And should I get another hamster I may well have to buy another!:D
http://s8.postimg.org/h78jnhqh1/gus2.jpg
I've had the cage now for probably about 6 months or so, and I don't think Gus has ever been happier! I'll break the review down into sections for simplicity.
Size:
I got the bigger 100x50x75cm cage and it is absolutely huge! I believe it got delivered from Germany and it came in a massive cardboard box The cage was within the glass section and all the little bits you get with it were inside the cage. Compared to his old cage I bet the floor space is about 5 or 6 times what it was.
Functionality:
The picture on Zooplus' website shows the wood shavings filled up to the ventilation strip, but obviously if you don't want to, you can just put a bottom layer of shavings in. Although I would have liked him to dig about in a thick layer of shavings, the cost of doing so would be high as it takes atleast 0.5kg of shavings just to cover the bottom. Instead I'm going to order him a digging tower, so he can fulfil al his digging needs! It is worth noting that if, like me, you only put a small layer of substrate on, the 55cm suspension bridges or even the solid wooden bridges you get with the cage are not long enough to allow for a shallow enough gradient for hamsters to climb to the 2nd floor. To resolve this I bought him a large house that had a 'balcony' area which I used to launch the bridge off and up to the 2nd level. The balcony was about 12cm high, the total height from ground to 2nd level is 37cm. This meant the 55cm suspension bridge only had to climb a height of 25cm, allowing for a suitable gradient.
One issue that you may find is that when your hamster is still exploring, he may fall of the 2nd or even worse, 3rd floor. I did unfortunately see my hamster fall of the 3rd floor but thankfully because of the generous layer of shavings at the bottom he seemed fine. He also seems to have learnt his lesson, having not done it again! I may one day get round to building him a couple of nice little barriers.
The shelves have sections cut out to allow the bridges you get with the cage to be attached. I decided to use another wooden suspension bridge, however as Gus used them I noticed they moved whilst he did so. Obviously I didn't want the collapsing when he was on them, so I set about fixing them down.
As they need to be removed when doing maintenance I couldn't simply screw them down, that would have been far too easy! ;) I found the best way was to put two screws in to the 2nd floor then drill a hole big enough for the screws underneath one end of each bridge. Then the bridges simply 'sit on' the screws meaning they cant move. It's difficult to explain in text :( but I can take some photos if you want.
Quality:
Top-notch, is the only word I can use.
In the instructions it said to wipe the cage part with a damp cloth to get off any remaining black coating that hadn't properly adhered. After having done so the cloth was clean! The glass part is similar to an aquarium with nice siliconed clean joints with the ventilation strip nicely incorporated.
The shelves had holes pre-drilled to allow for the metal plugs that hold the shelves in place. It was all assembled in about 40 minutes.
Price:
I'm sure we can all agree that at £169 it is rather expensive. My excuse for buying it was that I only had one hamster and I don't plan on getting any others. So I thought I may as well spoil this one rotten :D I'm sure it will also last a long, long time and should for whatever reason I no longer need it, I think it should hold it's value quite well.
Cleaning:
Cleaning is fairly easy, I can only see someone struggling if they are very weak! In order to access the cage properly you need to remove the top 'cage' section. It isn't light but it comes off fairly easily. Once you've removed any toys/buildings off the floor you can simply scoop up the substrate. Sometimes his pee can stick to the glass floor but if you have something like a stanley knife blade you can easily scrape it off, one advantage of glass!;)
Stand:
I decided it needed a stand. It is rather heavy and I keep it in my bedroom so the only other place it could have gone was atop a chest of drawers!
I managed to find a black stand exactly 100x50cm! I couldn't believe my luck, it was perfect. :rolleyes: I think it cost about £75 from Argos.
Summary:
Excellent cage, would definitely recommend to a friend. And should I get another hamster I may well have to buy another!:D
http://s8.postimg.org/h78jnhqh1/gus2.jpg