# Tegu and Misc. Enclosure Ideas?



## HeatherN (May 17, 2013)

Soon, i will be moving into a pet friendly townhouse with my animal-loving friends. It will have an actual backyard!!  Though it will be pretty small and i want to leave as much room as possible for the two medium dogs. This expansion of living space and new backyard provide new housing possibilities for me just in time, in my opinion. Tarot is starting to fit a little snuggly for my taste into his 4x2x2'. 
​I plan to house my small rabbit and numerous breeding pairs of button quail outside in a type of hybrid coop/hutch. i'm also toying with the idea of making a rodent rack to keep outside as well. While i'm taking on building projects, i figured i'd start on Tarot's adult (and hopefully final) cage. I was hoping to draw on other people's experiences in building these types of enclosures to help me.  i have pretty decent carpentry experience, but i'm no master. I'd appreciate any form of advice or input on anything.

Tegu Enclosure: 
Since i live in an apartment, i like to preserve space whenever humanly possible. i was hoping to build an enclosure that is reasonable to transport but is still multifunctional. Tarot's current cage serves as a kind of table and sits flat on the ground. It's pretty much a box with plexiglass doors.​​Now, the extreme giant argentine is getting bigger (and stronger) so i'll probably need framed doors.. i would also prefer to keep it without any form of "legs" just to make it a tad easier to transport. Preferably, it could serve as a surface to place other cages on top of. i have some questions i'd really appreciate input on!​​-Should i stick with a wire top? lately he's been jumping at the ligh and scratching himself up. Or perhaps mount a light on the inside with vents in the sides, but how would i keep him from jumping into the un-covered bulb?​​-Two feet high should be fine for an adult tegu, right?​​-If i wanted to make a sort of shelf under the main enclosure, do you think the weight from above would be fine?​​​Outdoor Enclosure:
What i intend to house in this kind of combo multi-cage thingy include a single rabbit (non-dwarf), four-or-so pairs of button quail (separately), and perhaps 3 groups of breeder mice. For those not familiar with button quail, they dont need more space than maybe a 7 gal aquarium and are terrestrial. Full grown, they are around the size of a small fist.​​Ideally, the whole construction would minimize floor space taken up to take up as little backyard space as possible. I was thinking about housing the rabbit in a long cage at the bottom and have all those small enclosures up above that. The quail would probably be best housed the same way they house caged chicken. The mice would probably go in some kind of rack system. I'm still in the brainstorming phase. Questions! ^.^​​-I would like the thing to be covered to protect it from the (mild) elements, should i just extend the top piece to make a kind of awning? Or just throw a tarp over that bad boy?​​-Would mice be ok in the typical Mouse rack with bins and wire tops outside? i was planning to just build the style where the tubs slide into shelves topped with wire. I did a horrible job explaining that. Any alternate designs that would serve me better or links to good how-to guides on building racks?​​-Being outside, this should probably be on legs, yes? how high?​​​ 
Sorry for the huge post, and thank you for taking the time to click and read! I'd love hearing about anyones experiences building any sort of related project. Criticism welcome.  Have a good day


----------



## Tannaros (May 17, 2013)

​​


HeatherN said:


> ​Now, the extreme giant argentine is getting bigger (and stronger) so i'll probably need framed doors...​


​​I don't see how exactly framed doors are supposed to be stronger. Glass sliding that run along your entire length would more than likely offer plenty of strength. Unless your tegu is psychotic and tail whips class.​​​


HeatherN said:


> Preferably, it could serve as a surface to place other cages on top of.​


​​Your best bet here is to just make a 3/4" plywood cube. The rigidity of 3/4" plywood both horizontally and vertically is fairly impressive. As long as you toss some 300 pound object in the exact center you'd be fine stacking basically whatever you want. If you'd like to stack multiple large cages you can always reinforce the base cage with dimensional lumber.​​You can also do a box joint or a splined miter joint instead of doing a normal butt joint for increased strength.​​​​


HeatherN said:


> -Should i stick with a wire top? lately he's been jumping at the ligh and scratching himself up. Or perhaps mount a light on the inside with vents in the sides, but how would i keep him from jumping into the un-covered bulb?​


​​That depends...If you want to stack cages one on top of the other having your lights outside the cage could make it difficult..Unless you just build either a railing system or legs onto the second cage. You could also simply recess a portion for legs to interlock with the top of the base cage.​​I've never personally had a problem with jumping. Though you can always just make the enclosure tall enough that he can't reach the lights. That, or position them so it's difficult/impossible for him to reach them. ex. angle your fixtures to supply a basking spot from the front and into the cage just above the doors. That way he'd have to essentially do a flying leap toward glass in order to get them.​​​


HeatherN said:


> ​-Two feet high should be fine for an adult tegu, right?​


​​In my opinion no.​​8"-12" of substrate, 7"-8" for lighting (if inside), and I know Poly stands about 5" tall when she's waltzing around - that doesn't leave much room for them to scoot around. Not to mention your limitation on increasing floor plan surface area.​​​


HeatherN said:


> ​-If i wanted to make a sort of shelf under the main enclosure, do you think the weight from above would be fine?​


​​What kind of shelf would you want? I'm not understanding. If you don't build any legs into the cage, you wouldn't have anywhere to attach a shelf to. Now, if you're talking about building a separate structure in order to hold up the cage and provide some storage or what not under it I can see that. I'd need more specifics on what exactly you're wanting to do to give any real advice.​​​


HeatherN said:


> ​​Outdoor Enclosure:
> What i intend to house in this kind of combo multi-cage thingy include a single rabbit (non-dwarf), four-or-so pairs of button quail (separately), and perhaps 3 groups of breeder mice. For those not familiar with button quail, they dont need more space than maybe a 7 gal aquarium and are terrestrial. Full grown, they are around the size of a small fist.​


​​I think a 6x2x4 would probably suffice. This being divided into, 6x2x2, (3) 2x2x2. I don't know what kind of rabbit you plan on housing, but I believe a 6' hutch should be pretty manageable for nearly any species. I've only ever known one individual that kept button quail, and she told me 1ft of floor space per bird, so 2x2x2 should work. I also remember they have a tendancy to jump straight up when startled - she had crocheted these...blanket-type tarp things that gave space between the ceiling of the cage and the birds' heads when they sprang up.​​​


HeatherN said:


> ​Ideally, the whole construction would minimize floor space taken up to take up as little backyard space as possible. I was thinking about housing the rabbit in a long cage at the bottom and have all those small enclosures up above that. The quail would probably be best housed the same way they house caged chicken.​


​​I don't know that it would be so easy to determine the set up. First, the quail do excrete a strong smell of ammonia in their droppings - so cleaning them frequently would probably be a necessity. I'd imagine the easiest way to do this would be to take the residents out, sweep out their enclosure and spray it down. This presents a problem as that process could very well irritate the rabbit.​​On a similar note, you can get a play area for the rabbit should you feel so inclined and let it wander in/out of its cage. If the positions were switched this wouldn't be realistic.​​​


HeatherN said:


> The mice would probably go in some kind of rack system.​


​​I wouldn't bother housing so few pairs in a rack system personally - especially outside.​​​


HeatherN said:


> ​-I would like the thing to be covered to protect it from the (mild) elements, should i just extend the top piece to make a kind of awning? Or just throw a tarp over that bad boy?​


​​Just miter cut a piece of scrap and attach it using traingle blocks to the top. Seal it, and you can throw a tarp over that. Just covering it could lead to water either pooling somewhere, splashing through, or dripping down. The angled roof would make it much less likely to pool.​​​


HeatherN said:


> ​-Being outside, this should probably be on legs, yes? how high?​


​​How big are the dogs?​​How tall can you reach?​​How big of a ladder/step stool/block are you willing to stand on to access the animals?​​You could have it sitting on 6" blocks simply to keep it off bare ground. This would also allow you to easily open the rabbit hutch and let it go out and play. However, this could lead to relentless bagering from dogs if they're let free roam the yard. Putting it on 2' legs is better, though still very easily badgered if the dogs are bigger. This would also put the entire construction at 6' high. 3' legs gives good clearance and the option for a storage shelf below. Anything taller than that and you could run into issues with windy days or structure integrity.​​Giving everyone 2' of headroom might be unnecessary, though you could potentially shave off 1' from the Qubes™.​


----------



## HeatherN (May 18, 2013)

thanks for the thorough input! 

I hadnt really thought to use sliding glass doors... Dont know why that didnt occur to me, it sounds like the best option. My current setup is pretty much just panels of plexiglass on hinges swinging upwards. they're secured by latches - weak ones. I'll probably opt to keep the light fixture inside to keep things simpler, and just try and build the enclosure tall enough so he cant jump to it. And i believe i used the wrong word when asking about a "shelf", but i've sort of abandoned the idea anyway.


As for the hutch-thing, i do plan to keep the rabbit in his play pen most of the time. My rabbit is also rather stoic (my dog once tried to pick him up when i wasnt looking, he didnt bat an eye), so i'm not really worried about startling him. When i glean my quail cages, i use a shop wac to vacuum out the bedding, then wipe down the cage with dilute simple green.
The only reason i would keep the breeding groups outside is because they stink with 6 mice to an enclosure, and the central california coast weather is always very mild. rack-type systems have always been easier to clean for me.

When it comes to the dogs bothering the animals, a simple "leave it" usually suffices, but we thought we may but a puppy gate around it just to discourage them. The dogs wouldnt have free-access to the back yard anyways. A puppy gate obviously wouldnt stop them if they were determined enough, but a wired enclosure should keep them out long enough for us to stop them.

It's a good thing i have months to think about this!


----------



## Logie_Bear (May 18, 2013)

Did tarot hibernate this winter? Ezzy still seems so small! I also live in an apartment, and I'm designing her adult cage to be my living room coffee table. Double functionality!


----------



## HeatherN (May 19, 2013)

Tarot did a kind of pseudo-hibernation. He still seems pretty small to me too, but it's hell to try and measure him lol. I live in an apartment too, so all my cages have to either be small, or serve as furniture!


----------



## Tannaros (May 19, 2013)

HeatherN said:


> Tarot did a kind of pseudo-hibernation. He still seems pretty small to me too, but it's hell to try and measure him lol. I live in an apartment too, so all my cages have to either be small, or serve as furniture!


 
You can always create a small cove in one side, and pins on another. You could use the indented side (install a pole) and hang clothes (jackets, whatever) from that. You could use the other side as a hat/key/sunglasses rack. Build a 2 step shelf under the cage itself and you could store shoes or something there.

Bam, living armoire. Okay - not quite but still.


----------



## HeatherN (May 22, 2013)

ill stick with the whole "make it a box so i can set stuff on it" kinda deal, i think.


----------



## Tannaros (May 22, 2013)

HeatherN said:


> ill stick with the whole "make it a box so i can set stuff on it" kinda deal, i think.


 
Which is neither mutually exclusive or at all efficient, but okay


----------



## HeatherN (May 22, 2013)

it's simple, thats my reasoning behind it! ^.^


----------

