I broke Winkie's tank!!!

[moosmom]

I was cleaning Winkie's tank and gently tapped the bottom to get some of the poo off. The glass shattered. I had no idea what I was going to do with him. I won't have any money till tomorrow to buy him a new one. I wound up putting him in a cat carrier with his bedding, food and water bottle, and put him up high so the cats wouldn't get curious.

I feel like such an idiot.

[Freedom]

Ooh boy. Just be sure he can't squeeze through the door or air parts! Some of the carriers I have, he COULD do!

Don't worry, not your fault. These things aren't built to last.

[My Peanuts]

If you can get him a cage instead of a tank that would be best. My ratties have a Martin's cage, but those can be pricey and they have to be shipped. I got a super deal at petco for a cage that I keep at my fiance's house. I bring the boys there for over night trips sometimes. The cage isn't big, but would be big enough. It was $22 and I was ready to pay a lot more for it. They don't have it on the website, but look around, deals are everywhere

[Karen]

Ooh, and look on Freecycle for your area - people often give away tanks or cages!

[Christmas_Hamster]

Sorry about the tank but a wire cage would be way better for the little fellow! They are better in the long run for their health. I once broke one of my betta bowls and I didn't have a spare bowl she had to live in her little 'betta cup' until the next day when I was able to get her a nice new bowl.

*edit* Karen we must have posted at the same time lol, but I agree freecycle and similar places might have some great deals!

[Muddy4paws]

Dont worry a cat carrier will do for a night, Dudley stayed in his for a day while he recovered from his neautering.

[Freedom]

May also be able to find something on craigslist!

[moosmom]

I'm going to Wal-Mart tomorrow and get him a gerbil or hamster cage rather than a tank since they can be quite expensive. I'm going to check craigslist and freecycle tonight.

[Christmas_Hamster]

Hamster cages are too small for hamsters how ever will you get a big enough one for a rat?

[moosmom]

Found him a tank at Wal-Mart for $9! Same size as the other one. Got it home, opened the box and the glass was broken!!!! Fortunately I had it in my car when I opened the box. I was going to toss the box in the dumpster. Went back to WM and found the same thing. He's happy as a clam right now.

[Kfamr]

Glass tanks really aren't large enough or healthy for rats to live in. They should be in a large, well ventilated cage. Especially a rat Winkie's size.

It'll do for now, but I'd save up some money and get a large cage for him if possible. I'd post an ad on Craigslist asking if anyone has a ferret cage or large rodent cage for cheap.

I *think* you're in CT, but I found this ad on Craigslist. Pretty good deal for a Ferret cage!
http://newlondon.craigslist.org/pet/458424830.html

[Christmas_Hamster]

I agree with kfamr

[Hellow]

Dont feel like an idiot, people always make mistakes, none of us are perfect. And, i have used glass tanks to keep my gerbils in for 4 years and never had any problems.

[mousie]

Yup, definately try to get him something larger. Glass tanks work great for gerbils, hamsters, mice, fish, and reptiles but I wouldn't recommend one for a rat. Right now since you have him in the glass tank just try to get him some out of the cage time. Drs. Foster and Smith has a very nice and big blue and white cage for $59.99 and an adequate green and white cage kit that comes with bedding, a wheel, and some other stuff for $52.99. If you don't want anything too expensive, go on petco.com and they have a tank topper for a 10 gallon tanks and it's $39.99. I had it for awhile for my girls and it worked great. I also agree with the others, try craigslist and freecycle!

Those two websites are:
http://petco.com/Content/HomePage.aspx?PC=home&Nav=1&=
and
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/default.cfm

Hope you can get him something bigger, and if you can't, please give him some out of the cage time! Hope I helped!

[Muddy4paws]

Im sure Winkie has alot of time out of his cage, he wouldn't be cooped up all day inside his tank.

I would say get a cage topper when you can afford one. Another good idea for a tank is to use shredded paper on the bottom instead of sawdust because sawdust is very dusty and tends to make the rats chesty. Its also cheaper because its just newspaper or old bills.