Here are the cages which I have made for my piggers using the
fantastic design at
www.cavycages.com.  The two main ingredients are the cube grids - I got mine from Littlewoods (who have since stopped selling this line), and correx/ corroplast which is a sheet of corrugated plastic, the kind used for making 'for sale' signs. Look for 'sign makers' or 'plastics' in your free ads directory to find local suppliers. You can normally get the supplier to cut it to size for you. You can make massive cages for very little money and I can't say how easy it is! But more importantly, guinea pigs really do thrive with extra space - mine free range for most of the day so I was expecting little change, but they are crazy about them! Go to the site for more information and details on how to build various designs. Many thanks to Teresa for this fabulous idea - I'm sure it's made many very happy piggies around the world!! I would also like to say a huge thank you to my lovely friend Lisa (Auntie Lisa to the pigs!) who designed the little doors for me, and even supplied the materials, so my herd can still free range with ease! Here are some other home made cages I like that might give you some more ideas on how to give your piggers the space they deserve! Shops and websites in the UK that have stocked cubes include Homebase, Wickes, Screfix Direct, Eden Shop Equipment, Costco, Kleneze and Robert May. If you need any help tracking materials down, visit the Cavy Cages website and select 'Find Materials' from the left menu, visit the UK section Guinea Pig Cages section, or if you come to the Wheekers Forum we can try to help you! As an alternative to cubes, some stores sell flat cooling racks which are similar in size to the cube grids. You can make the outer pen from these, secured with cable ties. Apparently Matalan sell suitably sized ones at a very reasonable price (thanks Cath!). You may also be able to find wire shelving at DIY stores that will do the job. Another alternative to consider is looking for a good sized puppy pen and making the correx box to fit inside this. |
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| The cubes. Using the connectors included in the pack, make the grids up to the size you want the cages to be. I chose 2 x 4 which is a good size for getting some laps in! | The correx. Measure the inside of the pen (allow space for the connectors) and add a 6" border to make the sides. Cut the correx to this size. Then score the correx 6" in on each side (taking the lines right from end to end) to make an inner rectangle the size of the inside of the pen. | Make one cut through on each corner of the border to make a corner. | Make in to a box! |
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| Use clear packing tape (or a good quality sellotape) to secure the correx box. | Place inside the cubes - hey presto - a cage!! | Place bedding and pigs in cage! | Repeat to make another if you have many pigs! |
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| Now for the door. I removed two sets of connectors and fixed the 'hinged' side with cable ties (a good substitute if you run out of connectors). The other side is fixed with a foldback clip (one used for paper). This can easily be opened and securely closed whenever you want. | Make two cuts down, wider than the width of a your fattest pig on the side of the correx box, where the hinged door is. | The correx is held in the 'closed' position by a folder spine which slides across so there are are no edges flapping around inviting nibbling! | The door in action! Superb!!! The flap can simply be pulled down and left when your piggies are free ranging (I put a towel over it to collect stray pieces of bedding). |