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Old 03-11-2016, 03:04 AM  
Pebbles82
Hamster Antics
 
Join Date: Sep 2014
Posts: 23,533
Default Re: Little Friends Mamble Rat Cage

You can actually buy the 100cm Mamble on US Amazon - it's just called something else! But last time I looked the price had gone sky high.

(ie $167.99) It seems there is an 80cm one and a 100cm one. I wouldn't go with an 80cm tall cage - you have the disadvantages of less floor space and too much height. Whereas with the 100cm (39") one you get the floor space they need and just the height to deal with by putting an extra level in, or overlapping shelves.

Amazon.com : A and E Cage Co. Ferret Kit with Tubes : Toys And Games : Pet Supplies

There are some 80cm cages available on Amazon.com but again expensive and 100cm might be better if she's used to having been in a tank. Unless the tank was smaller then it would be an upgrade

One that's available is the Savic Mickey 2XL which I had until recently. I prefer it to the Hamster Heaven - it's basically exactly the same cage but has narrow bar spacing (so also suitable for dwarf hamsters and fairly futureproof that way) and doesn't have the tube holes and penthouse - which is a good thing as many people end up having to block those off when hamsters blocked the tubes up with bedding or keep peeing in the tubes.

I had that cage for our large Syrian and never found it quite big enough so have upgraded him to the 100cm Barney cage.

To be honest, it might be cheaper to buy the Barney cage in the Uk and have your family ship it to you - than to buy the Ferret kit cage (Mamble). The risk there being is if it gets damaged in transit you don't have any come back whereas if you buy a cage direct and it arrives damaged you can get it replaced or your money back.

This is the Savic Mickey 2XL - it comes with a wire grid shelf that needs taking out (only suitable for mice) - very bad for hamsters feet. It does come with a good sputnik though, and a food bowl and water bottle (although I found the water bottle a bit rubbish and have never used the food bowl either). And it also comes with some floor tubes as toys but these are way too small for a Syrian hamster - they're mouse sized tubes and one in particular is quite 'flat' - our Syrian got wedged in it which was a very stressful moment for all involved - luckily we were there when it happened to break him out. So those need to come out too!

But it's a really good basic cage. You'd be limited on wheels so the wheel didn't take up too much of the cage. A 27cm wodent wheel is fine in there, and you'd still have a fair bit of floor space then - especially if you hung the wodent wheel from the top of the cage as then there'd be substrate under it as well - but something like a California Storm wheel would take up too much space. I used a flat top house instead of a shelf and just set it up from scratch. It's a lovely cage, but we have a very large Syrian and his huge Wobust wheel just half filled it! One of the best things about it is the access - it has a very large front opening door which makes it easy to access inside the cage and access your hamster (I had the house front right so it was near the door), and because it has a large front opening door, the roof is flat and can be used for roof toys easily. I'll add some photos of my various set ups in it below. I have a photo of the 27cm wheel standing in it (I got one for our Syrian but he was too big for it!). It's not a bad price at the moment at about $143 (it has been as high as $179).

Amazon.com : Lixit Animal Care Savic Mickey 2 Mice and Swarf Hamster Cage, X-Large : Birdcages : Pet Supplies

An even better cage for a Syrian available in the US is the Marchioro Goran rat cage. It has 1cm bar spacing so that's fine for a Syrian and it is slightly bigger than the Savic Mickey 2XL - only a couple of centimetres extra length and a few centimetres extra height but it really makes a difference to how much floorspace you can achieve in it - and floorspace is the big thing with hamsters. Virtual Keith on here has it and he has a great set up in it - without using the shelf it comes with but putting a different shelf along the back and a couple of smaller shelves.

You don't have the height problem in this cage - although it still needs plenty of substrate in the base to reduce the height a bit.

The best place to get it used to be Dr Foster and Smith where they were selling it for $99 but they don't seem to sell it any more and haven't had it in stock for some time. Amazon.com are selling it for $169.99 which is expensive, but I'd say it's the best cage you can get for a Syrian in the US - although it's not a 100cm cage it's still a good size and has an even bigger front opening door than the Savic Mickey 2XL! Much better value than the Ferret Kit cage and better quality cage as well. The rat tube it comes with is a good toy for a Syrian. I'll add Keith's thread below so you can see his set up.

Amazon.com : Marchioro Goran 82 Cage for Small Animals, 32.25 inches, Beige/Green : Pet Cages : Pet Supplies

If you want to go for the most floor space and get the 100cm Ferret Kit cage and are up for a bit of diy (I think a full level is best if you can make one - overlapping shelves are ok but it can work out expensive buying all the shelves and fiddly to set up, working out access and preventing fall risks) then the Ferret Kit cage/mamble will give the most floor space and the cage has a good deep base for substrate as well. Access isn't quite so good as on the other cages, but it does have two reasonable sized front doors.

I think if it was me, I'd go for the Goran, despite the ridiculous price (I guess it has become popular), depending on what size tank your hammy is in now. If your hammy is in a 3ft tank I'd go for the Goran - if she is in a 4 ft tank and used to more floor space, then the Ferret Kit cage and make a level out of a piece of plywood that has been painted and sealed with pet safe waterproofing paint.

Anyway here are some photos of the Savic Mickey 2XL set ups I've had

This was the basic set up he had in it for most of his time in the cage



This is before I added the roof tube (it gave him a roof run between the shelf/house roof and the sputnik)



This is when I first got the cage. I bought a Hamster Heaven shelf for it but it didn't work out too well - he nested in the pod house on the shelf which was too small, the shelf has a hump on it and the potty kept sliding down the shelf! (He chose the shelf corner as his wee spot so wee kept running down the shelf too) and then the ladder broke - so the shelf went and I got the larger flat top house instead of a shelf, which worked well as he liked the dark inside of it. The hanging ladder also had to go as it was a safety risk.



This is with the smaller 27cm wodent wheel in



This is Virtual Keith's thread with his Goran set up

(four photos near bottom of page if you scroll down)

Mr. Carlisle's Thread

The other option maybe, if she is used to being in a tank - is the exo terra terrarium 90cm by 45cm by 45cm. It's a bit bigger than an 80cm cage, almost as big as a 100 cm cage and has big front opening doors for easier access for her and you. The downside is they aren't cheap. I've seen some lovely hamster set ups in them and was tempted with one myself. Not sure if you can find one cheaper than Amazon elsewhere but it seems expensive on Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/Exo-Terra-Glas...terrarium+90cm

Here are some set ups in one

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=Ha...vgAK0Q_AUIBygC
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