Rosie Before and After

This is what I looked like before in my wheel, no space.  This is a 6.5 inch Silent Spinner.

Now I have a 12" Giant Silent Spinner and I have space!

And all is right in my happy little hammie world!

Barrels have arrived!

I didn't know that the USPS shipped items with plastic wrap.  These are food grade 15 gallon drums.  I use these to store their grain in.  These fit on the bottom shelves of the rat room.  4 drums holds about 300 pounds of flaked grain (think oatmeal).

If you are looking to purchase barrels such as this, you can try locally.  I have found this ebay store carries them http://stores.ebay.com/estanciadeals and is the one I ordered from.  It's best to order 2  barrels at a time, because that makes it about $25 a barrel which is a decent price.   Make sure you contact the seller BEFORE paying as they have to combine shipping and send you the invoice.

Please note: If you are in the Portland/Vancouver metro area, I suggest Concentrates NW (http://www.concentratesnw.com/) for the 55-gallon food grade barrels.  They occasionally get these smaller barrels, or even other sizes in so it's always worth a call.  Please remember to support your local businesses!  This company does not ship.

Mimzi Still Kickin' It

This is Mimzi's current set-up.  He lives in a Quality Cage RT-1824C.  The balcony has been removed and two SuperPet Look-outs have been added.  One below the wheel and one to the right with the ramp.  A refrigerator soda box stuffed with shredded paper provides him with the ability to make his burrow.  His wheel was upgraded from a 6.5" SuperPet Silent Spinner to a 12" Silent Spinner.  The first day he got it he was jumping up on the inside to the farthest possible point on the wheel and just flying!  An 8" wheel would be adequate but the Silent Spinner does not come in an 8" version.  The Comfort Wheel is too loud.

He popped out of his burrow to see who flashed the camera inside of it.  Of course that picture didn't come out.

He came over to say hello.  He is 3 years and 4 months old.  These pictures were taken 7/6/2012.

Map of Vermin Village Set-up!

Pictures to come soon, but here is the map of Vermin Village!  Click on the image to enlarge.  All shelves are wheeled.  The BC-7 shelves are 42" wide.  The swing shelf and the shelf in the computer room are 48" wide and the mouse, storage and hallway shelves are 36" wide.  All of the shelves except the hallway shelf are at least 76" tall, the hallway shelf is 54" tall.

Special Mouse Cages

These are the cages I use for my mice.  (Please note they aren't fully furnished yet, I wanted to be able to show you the pictures of the cage without all of the stuff in the way.)  Martins Cages made them for me.  If you wish to order this cage, you can contact Martins Cages and request this:  CC-2414 – Modified – 24" w x 14"t x 14"d, 1/2” x 1/2”, flip-top lid with 2 spring hooks, front door with 2 latches, collapsible carrier.   

Unlike other Martins cages, this one comes assembled (except for the spring hooks).

Anyway, it holds 5 mice according to the mouse calculator.  They LOVE it.  It, along with using Good Mews (similar to Yesterdays News) keeps the odor down.   They are really easy to decorate and keep clean. 

I recommend this type of caging for adult mice.  I have rescued mice, not show mice (show mice are typically larger) and the rescued mice do NOT slip through the wires.  I have had them slip through the BARS on the Critter Trail products originally used.  It also keeps the smell down quite a bit and they like climbing on the bars.  The pan is deep enough I never have anything fall onto the floor.  It has what I call a moat, a space around the side of the cage and the pan so that even if they are on the side of the cage and go to the bathroom, it will not go outside of the pan.

Update:  I also have CC-3018 cages - Modified 30" w x 16" t x 18" d , 1/2" x 1/2", flip-top lid with 2 spring hooks, front door with 2 latches, collapsible carrier.