Buying Cages or Building your own.

[TwoAcreDream]

Okay, so here I am playing with rabbits again after 2o years of no rabbits.
I was gifted with 3 mini rex the end of June this year.
The 2 females were pregnant and I ended up with 5 babies per litter each.

I have sold 3 babies so far. Have 4 more to sell this week coming.
Plan is to keep 3 young does for next year breeding.

Budget is tight and will be tighter next year when hubby retires.
So I have to make some cages I am thinking for this winter.
I have 3 wood & wire ones for outside use right now.
I found them used on craigslist and they are working out good.

I used to build my own cages when I had rabbits previous.
I bought wire by the rolls. I had a sheet metal brake and used
to make my own pans, etc. Made the hayracks and whatever else I
needed. I don't want to go that route again though.
I think I can do the wire cages myself, and buy the metal pans.

So any thoughts or ideas on how to keep the cage costs down ?
Plan is to put the rabbits inside this winter in the addition on the garage.
I am thinking hanging cages.

I just bought a young mini lop male a few days ago. Not sure why
but I liked the looks of him. I have a lady who wanted a lop.
If she doesn't want him, then I need to have a cage ready to go
for him also this winter.

So total bunnies this winter will be 3 adult mini rex. 3 young does.
And probably one lop male. At some point in time, a female lop but
I will be waiting for the right animal at the right price. All
the rabbits I have here currently are either black or white or
white w/black (brokens). Even the new lop. So a female lop will
be either black or broken white/black. I think it will be my
signature color

 

[fuzzy9]

My husband made all our own cages, and it worked out well. It was cheaper too. Good luck with your project!

 

[Fire-Man]

The best way to save is to build them right the first time where they will last for years and years. Use heavy gauge wire, price around for your wire, try to find some place that has it in a short driving distance to cut out the shipping. By the wire the size you need or figure out after cutting it where there is very little waste. Tractor Supply in my opinion does not have the "better" wire to build a cage with. My Feed and Garden carries heavier gauges.

Keep in mind that its not about it costing you a little more to do it right, its about how long it will last. I spent $1000 to build my meals on wheels rabbitery, but I feel it will be here when I am gone. If it only last 20 years---thats $50 per year to house a 20 hole rabbitery--not bad!

 

[akane]

Some of my worst scars are roll wire. I plan to slowly buy my cages in stacks of 3 at a time unless my husband comes up with a hanging system for the stalls and then I'll buy those kwik-build cages off bass. http://www.bassequipment.com/Cages/Kwik ... fault.aspx

 

[Desert Rose Rabbits]

I think it really depends on what you consider your 'costs' to be. My husband just built me a double-sided Quonset grow out cage. They're 47"x24". A great size and materials-wise a great price. For around $45 or so we essentially got two 4 foot by 2 foot cages, but it took him around 7 hours across two days to build it. Granted, my husband isn't the handiest person, but taking into account the amount of time it took him, and the other things he could have been doing... well... for us, it just isn't worth the cost in the quantity that we can afford the wire.

 

[Marinea]

As you can see from the responses, there are two schools of thought. In the end, it's going to be what suits your life better.

For me, it's about saving money and building the size and type of cages that best fit our rabitry. Plus, my hubby and I really enjoy DIY projects. If we weren't both handy, and if we didn't have access to a lot of cheap/free materials, I am not sure we would build our own anything.

Be sure to post pics of your setup once it's in place.

 

[trinityoaks]

We made our own cages in the beginning. We didn't know as much about wire quality as we do now, but it has worked out ok. Fortunately for us, we were in a very dry climate at the time, so we had no issues whatsoever with rust, etc. Now that we're in a relatively humid climate, we are going to have to replace some cages soon (we've already replaced several floors).

It just so happens that there is a man here who builds high-quality cages with good wire, and he has the equipment to do it right (flattening the wire first, removing all of the sharp edges, etc.). I can buy his cages for less than it would cost me to buy the wire and have it shipped here, so it's pretty much a no-brainer for me.

 

[DonnerSurvivor]

I just finished my latest wire cage which is 30" wide and 8' long total cost was 50$ using new materials (though admittedly cheaper wire) It took me approximately 2 hours to build. It is divided into 4 sections with each section being 30"x24" so 12.50 per cage. I used 14 gauge 1"x2" wire for the top and sides and 16 gauge 1/2"x1" for the floor. Everything was purchased from Mills fleet farm.

 

[Fire-Man]

If you did not see it in a post some time back, I will post a link to some electric shears that make cutting the cage wire a breeze. If you got alot to build the $45 is a good investment. I use mine often around the farm for alot of other things like cutting sheet metal for feeders, cutting metal barrels in half, cutting chicken wire, etc, etc, etc! Would Hate to be without them, so I got 2 pairs.

 

[TwoAcreDream]

If you did not see it in a post some time back, I will post a link to some electric shears that make cutting the cage wire a breeze. If you got alot to build the $45 is a good investment. I use mine often around the farm for alot of other things like cutting sheet metal for feeders, cutting metal barrels in half, cutting chicken wire, etc, etc, etc! Would Hate to be without them, so I got 2 pairs.

I would appreciate the link to that post. THANK YOU

I appreciate all the responses to my thread. THANKS !

I had a light bulb moment yesterday. I drove by a old friend's house and
I knew they had gone into rabbits big. I had no idea if they still had
the bunnies or not. But I hoped they might have some cages left over.
I hit the mother lode for old rusty hanging cages. I should be able to salvage most
of the feed dishes and metal nest boxes. Hopefully I can save some of the better cages.
The so so ones, I need to cut down to make smaller
units. A LOT of work to be sure, but the price was right
Plan is to sell off the extras. Good thing I own a truck.

This is going to be a slow process. I do not want to tie up a
lot of money in cages until I can see my way clear with what
I want to do for housing arrangements. When and if, I want better
units, then I can sell off these used units. Plan would be to make
my own units to fit the area where I want to keep the bunnies.
I probably will stay small. I am also looking into the possiblity
of doing some meat rabbits. I used to do that years ago. We would
not be eating them but would sell them. I am not sure the price of
grain would be feasible for a small set up. I have a lot of pencil
pushing to do.

 

[grumpy]

Old Rusty Cages??

You may well have hit pay-dirt!
'Rusty' is a relative word. Just how much rust is there??
The bottoms should probably be replaced.
But.....I've seen rusty cages with fairly decent bottoms.

A wire brush on a drill motor can clean them up pretty good.
Non-toxic metal spray paint can seal the metal and enhance the appearance.
If you've plenty of time and little monies, this may well be your best option.
I've done it many times in the past and the cages were very serviceable.
It's called frugality...LOL. or...Turning a sow's ear into a silk-purse.

Best of luck.

grumpy

 

[Fire-Man]

I would appreciate the link to that post. THANK YOU

http://www.harborfreight.com/14-gauge-s ... 68199.html These things are great for cage building, and any other thinner cutting metal jobs around the Farm/place.

Note----I have never used these from Harbor Freight. I bought the first pair from Northern Tools for close twice this price. My second pair I bought at a Auction for $5.

Here is a link to Northern Tools. http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/ ... _200442137

 

[TwoAcreDream]

Rusty means rusty. Last used 2008 as near as I can figure.
I have two loads of cages home now. They were stored outside.
They are the worst ones I am going to have to deal with.
Some can be used as is, after some cleaning.
Some will need patching. The worst one, I already have apart
and am using it's parts to mend other cages.

I guess you can call this frugal. Or I can call it "what the
heck was I thinking ? " Or the hubby probably calls it, another
one of her moments of insanity. Whatever.....it is definitly
work and I will be making some money and not spending much.
So far, I have bought some new cage latches online. I picked
up 2 pounds of j clips locally today and can start the repairs.