Ratty Corner

I've bought this to replace my Superpet cage. This may or may not be a huge mistake; the boys may or may not chew it into tiny pieces.

The cage comes in very bright colours - it's not one of those cages that will blend into your living room decor. The fantastic thing is that it's made in sections. You can choose which side panels you want and where to put them. The standard Rat Shak comes with seven solid wall panels, one wire wall panel, two solid doors and two wire gates. It all fixes together using poles which slot down through the sides of the panels and then screw together.

The roof is intended as a storage space, but I've cut through to let the boys into the attic. It remains to be seen whether leaving off the sealing strip at the top of the roof gives them enough ventilation. I may have to rethink.

14th May 2005

They haven't chewed it! Mind you, give them time. The attic space is working well, although the bedding needs to be changed regularly. The cage does seem quite smelly, possibly because they've been working to make it smell like home. I think it really needs more ventilation.

Because the cage is quite enclosed it's hard to see all of the rats in it. So when we lost Theo one morning we didn't realise until the evening when we found him on the hamster cages. Plan: buy more wire panels as and when I can afford them, and eventually add another storey to the cage.

16th May 2005

Well, I've cleaned it out, and I have to say it's one of the easiest cages I've ever cleaned. You can just wipe each shelf, sweeping any bits through the access holes in the floors, then slide the base out to empty and wipe.

24th May 2005

I've got a couple of extra panels; a wire door for the bottom level to get a bit more light in and let me see who's in there, and a wire panel for the second level so I can fix wooden shelves/steps to the back.

It looks like Ferplast corner shelves will fit into it. I've offered one up, I think the fixing holes will line up with the bars of a wire panel, but I'd need two wire panels around a corner to try it properly. It might be a good way to make the drop between levels smaller when I add another level. (Later Note: the ferplast panels do not fit.)

15th June 2005

Hmm, I've done it again. The cage now has another storey. It's fantastic. I feel like a little girl with a dolls' house. Seven rats with four floors, including the attic. It looks empty. But I mustn't GMR.

28th November 2005

I'm still very pleased with the cage. I've taken it completely apart once to scrub it down, which took me 3 hours, but generally it's fine with a good wipe down once a week. The boys haven't attempted to chew it at all - they save that activity for their wooden wine rack.

21st April 2006

I've added a balcony, so the boys can lurk on there and get attention as we pass. Everyone except Toby, that is, because for some reason the others don't allow him off the ground floor.

I've been gradually taking out the additional between-floor shelves, as the ratties are chewing the nylon nuts that hold them in place. I'm sure Shakhouse would send me some new ones, but leaving them out gives more space for bigger toys and makes the cage look more airy. I'm also replacing solid walls with wire wall panels, because it gives me more places to hang hammocks and attach bits and pieces. I'll have enough bits for another floor soon! But I don't think the ceiling will allow. There are five boys in there at the moment and I think I'll keep it at that level.

10th May 2006

I've placed an order for another floor and some more wire panels. So I'll have a four storey cage soon.

26th May 2006

The order's here. The wire panels are great. Now I will be able to hang hammocks on all the levels. The floor is broken on the corner and the poles are missing, so I've emailed Shak.

29th May 2006

Couldn't wait for a reply to my email, so I've phoned Shak. No reply, but I've left a message.

5th June 2006

18th June 2006

No reply. I've left another phone message and sent another email. Very frustrating - I hoped to have the extra floor installed by now. Not impressed with the customer service.

30th June 2006

24th September 2006

Having finished arranging weddings and suchlike, I'm back on the case. I've written another paper letter and sent it and copies of everything else off on the 10th of September. Still no reply. I could scream! I really need that extra floor now I have all the extra ratties, but if I order another it might happen all over again.

I just tried the contact form on the website. I don't think I've tried that before. Maybe that will work.

8th October 2006

Wow! I'm excited now! A friend has offered me a single storey Shakhouse cage she doesn't want. If I can get my extra floor from Shakhouse I can make it into a two storey and link it onto my cage because I've already got the panels. I've been trying to work out how to attach the Shakhouse cage to a different cage to extend it, but it will be so much better if I have one that matches.

I've placed an order for another floor, but added a note rather than making payment. I've also written yet another letter that I'm going to send recorded, or whichever one will track the letter. Then I'll know if they get it. Then I'm going to try to leave a message on their phone at least once a day. I'm going to get my cage bits off them if I have to drive there myself!

The really annoying thing is that I've been sending people to their website. According to their links page I've sent them 1665 people, and they've sent 54 to me. Which is really clever because their link to me doesn't actually work.

9th October 2006

10th October 2006

11th October 2006

18th October 2006

It came! It actually came! I've got a replacement floor and the poles to go with it! I knew what it was as soon as I saw the parcel. I am a muppet, though; I sat on the floor and cried when I unwrapped it. Still no actual communication, but something got through to someone.

I've got it all planned out. There's just room for an Argos coffee table next to the current cage, so if I put the new cage on there it should be just the right height to go next to the arm of the settee. I'll have the other cage in a week and a half, so not long to wait. Expect photos!

29th October 2006

I now have an unreasonably large cage in my living room. Yes, it's all one big cage, connected horizontally with a tunnel. It is fantastic. Totally excessive, but fantastic.

6th November 2006

I got a nice email from the Shak webmaster last week explaining that there had been a problem with the email. I will probably use Shak again, but don't know if I'd trust them with a big order. At least I know next time to go straight to the registered snail mail, assuming that's what finally got through.

The cage is shaping up well. As there are six floors I wipe down the un-covered floors each evening, change the litter trays, and do a thorough clean of one floor, changing the hammocks etc. On the seventh day I clean out the dining room cage with my other group in. The RatShak doesn't get too messy at all, except possibly in the attic because there's no litter tray up there and they seem too lazy to come down a level to use one.

3rd October 2007

I'm breaking bits! The rods which slot down the side are prone to having the screw in part break off in the hole if you screw it in too hard, and some of the panels have cracked. I have fewer rats in the Shak cages at the moment, so only have two x 2 storey cages assembled.

18th January 2008

Sold. It was really hard to see it go, but it's not practical for the larger number of small groups I have now.

Dimensions (Rat Shak)

	Description	Measurement	Inches	Centimeters
a.	Panel with rod sections	Width	18.00	45.50
b.	Panel	Height	18.00	45.50
c.	Rod Sections	Width	1.25	3.30
d.	Panel between rods	Width	15.50	39.20
e.	Door opening	Width	12.50	32.00
f.	Door opening	Height	13.50	34.00
g.	Base	Height	4.00	10.00
h.	Base inc. pull out tray knob	Width	35.75	91.00
i.	Roof	Height	9.00	23.00
j.	Roof with overhang	Width	36.00	91.00
k.	Roof with overhang	Depth	22.00	56.00
l.	Full 2 storey cage with feet	Height	49.50	125.00
m.	Full 3 storey cage with feet	Height	68.00	171.00
m.	Full cage	Width	36.25	92.00
o.	Body of 2 storey cage	Height (2b + g)	40.00	101.00
p.	Body of 3 storey cage	Height (3b + g)	58.25	147.00
q.	Body of cage	Width (3c + 2d)	34.75	88.00
r.	Body of cage	Depth	18.00	45.50