Cages/Tanks/Zoozones/Vivs

Just to make it clear about the best kind of APH homes, is it possible for anybody to give the positives and negatives of keeping your hedgehogs in either Cages, Tanks, Zoozones, or Vivs - or anywhere else people are likely to keep hedgehogs?

xoxox

I like vivs with mesh doors best I just find them easier

I have both and use both .. for practical reasons i have a all in one 4 stack and 3 stack upstairs .. and a single viv and a zoozone , i perfer vivs they look nicer .

I have Ernie in his zoozone which is perfect for him.

However, Puddin' came in a large cage type home which is a fabulous size but having just been up to get her out I've found her on top of her log cabin which concerns me as she appears to be a bit of a climber. Is she likely to get her feet caught in the bars? I know she has only hopped up onto the roof of the log cabin, but might she try and climb the bars. I also put a blanket over one end of it during the day whist I'm out just for extra precaution as I worry about the cold and temperatures dropping r for any draughts.

I think I'd feel safer/better with her in a zoozone actually.

xoxox

I use the c&c cage which is cubes and correx (in america its called coroplast) and it is a very big cage and my hedgehog loves it!

You should post some pictures .. Jake i no which ones you mean thou ...

i use vivs...they keep the warmth in....and i just air them out in the day by keeping the doors open slightly...just put rubber wedges so they cant open it more.

i was looking at them c&c cages...they look neat...

They are great! If you ever want a change of cage I would recommend them to anyone there perfect, there's loads of room for everything and you can make it how you want it :-)

Would love a picture of them

I have viv stacks - use the VX48 and pop the vents out of the back and leave the doors slightly ajar, also have the mesh fronted cages - my dad made a brilliant three stack for me but the others I purchased from somebody else are crap and all will be replaced shortly.

this is one pic that made me like them:

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thats how i want to do mine when i get my next hog, ill post pictures when i have set it up again i had to buy new correx and im waiting for it to come because mine broke when i was cleaning it out, i was a bit too heavy handed with it, my hog is in a different cage at the moment

is it expensive??

They can cost around £60-£70 but it's excellent value for money because a cage ready made at that price can be tiny and the c&c cage can be massive, it's worth every penny !!

Easy to break then ... at least with vivs you really don't have that problem .x

No it wasn't easy to break but as o took the cortex out to clean it, one of the sides snapped because I pulled it out wrong and it cought on one of the bars on the cage, but it takse a very clumsy person to do it ...me lol

how do you stop hedgie climbing up the sides? perspex? xxx

You can use Perspex like you said or correx which is a corrugated plastic both are fine it depends on your personal taste

I think they look ok but as i have mine in my home .. I like vivs but of course everyone's personal choice .. get some pictures when you can Jake .x

I will do, I'm just waiting for new correx

Thought I'd add my twopence worth. ....
I used to have Ody in an indoor rabbit cage, but I always worried about the bars and about not being able to know is was safely heated. I used electric radiators in the room, but worried about him still. When I finally got the viviarium it was such a relief, and with both hogs I now know both are constantly kept at a controlled temperature day and night. Only problems I have are that Ody's viv is glass fronted, and was made quite large. he was used to a second level in the rabbit cage, and loved going up there, but I cocked up the dimensions a bit, so the only place I could put the wheel obscures the ramp up to the second floor. (though to be fair, Ody has finally deciphered that climbing around this will enable him to get to the area I put his excess food, to stop him overeating in the day). I do worry, with this problem that he can get too hot under the heatlamp, as it is more to the left side, over the wheel. The mesh on Emo's viv is great, but I worry about cleaning it, as it always seems to pick up bits of the kitchen roll if I try to wipe it, and I don't like risking not giving it some sort of clean. (I admit I worry over most things anyhow). Beyond all that though, I no longer feel like I have to sit up half the night making sure the temperaure is ok, as I can rest easy that the gauge and CHE are doing their job.

well i have inca in a viv, it looks really nice and smart, keeps it warm for her with enough ventilation, and when i get my next hoglet i can just stack the vivs and it will still look nice. did contemplate getting a zoozone2 but vivs look a bit more sophisticated. plus, can you imagine having zoozones all over the place, there'd be no room for me! xxx

I remember when Tayer was looking into these and I just thought that although they seemed really convenient for being able toiled them to your own spec, I would worry in the colder months about the temp and keeping it up. Also, I think hoggies similar to Puddin' would have a field day trying to climb...

You're right about the zoozones Josie, I have the 3 in one room and so can't wait for my room to be done so I can have a stack built. Will keep my zoo zones then for emergencies.
xoxox

iv seen zoozones stacked neatly on metal shelving from ikea....but then its access into them when they are stacked....

vivs are better, like josie said they keep warmth in...easy to clean. this is why i went against the c&c they seemed very expensive for what it is!!

but each to their own!!