Hamster Cage Out of Wood

WeezyBee · 02-17-2018, 11:35 AM

Hello! I've been trying to find a suitable cage before getting a hamster but decided to make one either from Ikea shelves or from scratch. A good dimension that would fit my room is 30 x 20 (which would be around 600 sq inches). However I'm not sure which material is safe for hamsters because I know some hamsters chew on paint, get injured by the sharp edges, and/or the certain wood/paint is not good for their health. I've seen people add contact paper on the bottom of the cage but some further insight on how to make sure my cage would be safe for my hamster would be great!

SKB_Hamsters · 02-21-2018, 09:14 AM

I have just seen your thread - You must be very excited to build your cage.

Wood that is often used to build DIY hamster cage is IKEA furniture/shelves and melamine wood. Both these woods are water-proof so won’t need to be painted. Another option for wood is also untreated pine wood (although this would need to be painted with a water proof paint)

I would not recommend using contact paper in a hamster cage as it is very difficult to apply smoothly and can easily be chewed up by a hamster. And as one side is sticky it could become stuck inside their pouches if they chew pieces up and pouch it.

Paint - I have little knowledge of pet safe paints available in the US - soy-based paints would be the safest. In the UK we use water-based Plastikote paint but I don’t know if it available to you in the states.

When building your cage the sharp edges won’t be accessible to your hamster once the cage is assembled. To seal edges use fish safe aquarium silicone sealant (which is 100% silicone) - this will stop pee seeping into the wood. Although some hamster do try to chew on the aquarium sealant so try smooth it down when applying (this will make it difficult for a hamster to try to chew on.
If any sharp edges will be in reach of your hamster sand the edges down and round corners of slightly to be entirely smooth.

Whether a hamster chews on their cage will depend upon the individuals - I was slightly worried about when I moved my girl into her DIY cage as she was a very bad bar chewer so thought she might try to chew on the side - which fortunatently she hasn’t. But once you get your hamster I would monitor them to make sure they aren’t chewing on the sides as you may need to make modification to ensure the cage remains safe and escape proof.

I would love to see your cage when it completed and if you have any other questions regarding building your hamster cage I will be more than happy to offer advice with building a DIY cage.

~Bell~ · 02-21-2018, 09:39 AM

Hiya! I recommend you take a look at ErinsAnimals on YouTube, she’s done quite a few DIY Wooden cages and recently did an amazing Ikea cage

and definitely keep us updated!

Pebbles82 · 02-21-2018, 09:39 AM

Ikea have a Lack table that some people have used to make cages with - it's melamine. They do a 90cm one (about 30 inches). If you get two you can use the two table tops as the top and bottom and the legs as the corner struts. Basically it's a table on top of another table so it's a cage on legs

I assume the sides would be mesh or plexi. Or you could just use one table upside down and make a top lid out of wood and mesh and perspex the sides.

As with anything, check for chewing, but I think they'd find it hard to chew through melamine.

You don't need the middle shelf, but could use it as a solid back maybe. It's a fairly cheap option but plexi can make it more expensive I think. Because the pieces are the right size and the edges finished in melamine you haven't got the chewing risk of just having melamine cut to size and raw edges.

LACK Coffee table White 90x55 cm - IKEA

Pebbles82 · 02-21-2018, 09:45 AM

This is the effect with one table on top of another. I think this one has sliding front doors. (Scroll down to bottom picture - it has another cage on top).

Living With Hamsters: Hamster Cages

There is also this Stuva Bench - exactly the size you want 90 x 50 and 50 cm tall. Has sides already. Upside down you would just need a front, back and a lid.

STUVA Bench White 90x50x50 cm - IKEA

SKB_Hamsters · 02-21-2018, 01:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Serendipity7000

... a 90cm one (about 30 inches) ...

30 inches is 76.2cm

Pebbles82 · 02-21-2018, 02:33 PM

Dur! So 2'6" not three foot. Could you squeeze an extra 6" WeezyBee?!

WeezyBee · 02-21-2018, 11:33 PM

Actually I was able to find space and now my dimensions are 108 cm x 60.5 cm. The height is 50 cm! With this I'm able create this cage using Linnmon table tops:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ocdcl-82ybE

Thank you for all the tips! I never thought about using IKEA as a place to make hamster cages before! For the lid I'll be sure to find melamine wood. I hope this cage has enough ventilation and is safe enough.

Pebbles82 · 02-22-2018, 07:10 AM

That is a great option - although I seem to remember someone recently saying the Hemnes glass top was no longer available - but you could get perspex cut to size maybe.