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Old 02-19-2019, 11:37 AM   #1
alpacassei
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Default Cons of eco habitat?

I’m seriously considering getting the large Eco Habitat now its back in stock but its quite expensive so what are the biggest negatives of it? I dont want to spend a lot of money on something thats not good quality.

I did consider doing a DIY cage for cheaper but unless I do an Ikea hack, its not much cheaper and honestly my physical health isnt good enough to build a cage.
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Old 02-19-2019, 12:11 PM   #2
kristina_with_a_k
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Default Re: Cons of eco habitat?

I recently bought two of the medium size cages, and I love them. After reading online about the cons I briefly had my doubts about getting the eco habitat, but it turns out that I don't have a lot of cons myself.

1) it's made of wood, so you'll have to protect the bottom from pee etc. If you wan't the cage to last longer of course. I just use plastic that I change every 6-8 weeks with the bedding. But I also read that some people use plasti-kote. This is not really a con, but more of a thing you'll just have to deal with - like every other cage has something.

2) because of the wooden bottom and frame there's a chance the hamster will chew on it. But with enough chewtoys, wooden houses etc. that really shouldn't be a problem. You can also put large toys and houses in every corner, so the hamster will be unable to chew there.

3) some people say the hamster can chew on the holes on every side. I don't have that issue.. not yet at least.

4) the only really con I see with the cage is the spacing in the lid. A hamster will be able to get out of there. But the hamster will first have to get up there. If you intend to have some really high things in your cage, like a platform etc. you'll need mesh on the lid. But this is only a problem, and a con if there's something in the cage that the hamster can use to reach the top.

I hope you decide to buy the eco habitat. It's a great cage!
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Old 02-19-2019, 12:37 PM   #3
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Cons of eco habitat?

I'm not aware of any cons. I do think the lid should be meshed due to the 2cm bar spacing (have heard of hamsters getting a foothold in the vent holes on the side to get to the top.

I do think the internal corner wood struts should be plastikoted to make sure it doesn't get spoiled.

Best solution I've seen for the base are sheets of Coroplast/correx - wipe clean and easy to replace. It's just plasticised corrugated cardboard and can be cut to size and shape wanted.

I don't think this is a con - because it just means using it as intended - but I have seen a report of someone say that if the substrate is very deep the perspex sides can bow. Now that means "very deep" - more than 30cm - so providing it isn't wanted as a gerbilarium with 40cm deep substrate I think it's fine. Have never honestly heard of anyone on here saying sides bowed and to be honest 20cm substrate is probably as much as you'd want.

There are lots of pros! Apart from size - large top opening and wheels.
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Old 02-19-2019, 12:41 PM   #4
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Default Re: Cons of eco habitat?

Final thought - there is something similar - available by post from Germany. 100cm x 72cm deep. Like a cross between the Eco habitat and a Barney cage.

https://www.amazon.de/PETGARD-M%C3%A...san+marino+100
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Old 02-19-2019, 01:27 PM   #5
flowerfairy
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Default Re: Cons of eco habitat?

I have the medium eco and if you are worried about the base bowing just take off the castors, or dont pit them on in the first place. Mine stands on an ikea lack table for easy access.

Not treated any of the wood or had any problems with it being soiled.



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Old 02-19-2019, 01:40 PM   #6
EmmaAndChester
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Default Re: Cons of eco habitat?

I had two of them (one medium, one large) but now I just have the large one (you can see it over here). I've been housing a female Winter White in it since August 2017, and I have a couple of cons:

1) It was likely me who the previous poster saw mentioning the the plexi will bow when deep bedding, because I reported it on another hamster forum when I encountered the issue with both of my enclosures (and never saw anyone mention the problem before I bought it, so I thought it was important to let others know). I have 30cm of bedding in that enclosure and it's ready to give, but even with 20cm of compact substrate it will still very likely bow. It's not a major problem and screwing a little piece of wood in the middle of the plexi will stop it - but just something to keep in mind.

2) The lid is very heavy (particularly on the large size enclosure) and often a pain to deal with due to the size and weight of it. It's a horrible design.

3) You'll need to mesh the lid if you plan on offering your hamster a deep substrate depth (which you'll need to, as they are burrowing animals after all) combined with any decor like cork, grapevine, or even a shallow platform. With a dwarf hamster you *may* be able to get away with it if you're careful with object placement within the cage, but with a syrian hamster it absolutely must be meshed.

4) The ventilation holes in the side are very, very tempting for small mouths to latch their teeth into and are fully accessible to even a dwarf hamster if the animal is provided with an appropriate substrate depth. There have been reports of hamsters chewing out of them - and it's not a cheap cage to just sit back and wait for it to happen. Personally, my dwarf hamster hasn't really shown any interest (she's scraped around a couple of them, but not much) but a very determined syrian hamster will destroy them overnight with no problem.

5) there is also exposed wooden corners (where the plexi slots into) inside the cage, which can again be tempting for hamsters to chew. I wouldn't be too worried if you intend on using this with a dwarf (my winter white has shown absolutely no interest in chewing them at all) but with a syrian, I would cover them - just in case.

There's a thread over here, where a Syrian owner shows you what they've done to make the cage less tempting to even the most determined of chewers.
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Old 02-19-2019, 03:50 PM   #7
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Cons of eco habitat?

You can stick a strip of mesh over the vent holes with aquarium sealant - if it's a problem. When I was looking at getting one I had thought, rather than mesh the lid, just make a new lid with a wood frame the same depth and mesh.So it's lighter.
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Old 02-19-2019, 03:53 PM   #8
Pebbles82
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Default Re: Cons of eco habitat?

Emma your set ups are always amazing (Looked at the link to the Eco Habitat).
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Old 02-19-2019, 07:47 PM   #9
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Default Re: Cons of eco habitat?

Thank you everyone! I’m currently torn between the Eco Habitat and 120cm cage by Hamster-Homes. Theyre both around the same cost but I feel like the hamster-home is higher quality for the price.

Part of me is tempted to try building a larger version of the Linnmon cage though. Because of my health. I’d have to get a family member or friend to help though
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Old 02-20-2019, 06:25 AM   #10
mangoandmimi
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Default Re: Cons of eco habitat?

The 120cm cage does look very nice but I think it’s better for dwarfs too, it’s quite a low cage so difficult to get enough bedding in really. I’ve also seen multiple Syrians trying to chew out of it and you can’t exactly prevent them from doing so in that cage.
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