Prevue Pet Products 485 Feisty Ferret Home with Stand, Black Hammertone

This cage is ROOMY! While my weasel is used to roaming my apartment, I got a slap on the wrist when my landlord found out, so now I must keep him in a cage (...most of the time, at least ;) ). I was disheartened, because I feel like a ferret needs as much room as possible, and this cage seemed too small to me... I was proven wrong!! While he still gets playtime outside of his cage, it's a nice size for sleeping and stretching. I was skeptical over whether the bars would hold my little boy (he's almost fully grown, but not quite there yet), but it's been three days with no break-outs. Awesome! As for the state of the cage when I received it... Nothing was broken, and the packaging was very well sealed (lots of tape - make sure you have a box-cutter or other sharp blade handy). There is a garish "FIESTY FERRET HOME" with a huge image of a ferret on the box, so it's not discreet at all. So be warned about that, if it's relevant to you. The package is also about 50lbs heavy. It took me about 45 minutes to put together. Unlike some reviewers, I didn't have to use any other tools except for the little screwdriver bit that they send along. What a relief! I only had one main problem while putting it together. The instructions aren't very clear, so I wound up putting the four smaller side-panels in upside down. They have a lip on one end, which is supposed to be on the TOP of the panel (facing into the cage), not the BOTTOM. It's where the second-floor and the roof sits (you also secure them with screws, just fyi. It's a very sturdy cage). Just take a few minutes to look everything over, and you'll be fine. It'd definitely help to have somebody hold the pieces together while you're building it. It's tricky (but not impossible) if you're doing it all by yourself. P.S. The ramps might be too steep and/or slippery for your ferret to crawl up. I remedied this by getting some felt from my local craft store and tying it around the ramps. It gives him enough traction so that he doesn't have to jump-and-scramble from one level to the next. And another tip- if your fuzzy wears a collar, I encourage you to stay on the safe side and remove it whenever they're in the cage... JUST to be extra cautious. I don't see any real hazards in this cage, but I always err on the side of safety with my pets. When he's not wearing it, I clip his collar around the top door for extra security, JUST in case he opens it somehow (a fall from 30+ inches up doesn't sound very promising).

Absolutely love this this cage!! I was debating on buying a double story critter nation, but didn’t want to bite the bullet on the steep price. Opted to try this one out to as it’s about half the price! It was relatively easy to assemble, though I didn’t read the instructions and ended up putting a piece on backwards (user error) so I had to disassemble and put it back together (the correct way). It’s super sturdy and very chew proof. I’m using it for two adult male rats! The only downside is the middle shelf is wire (which isn’t good for rat toes) so I took some extra laminate wood flooring I had and cut it with a saw to the shape of the shelf, which worked great and now they have hardwood floors (very fancy boys). But you could easily just place some plastic sheeting or even fleece covers on the wire to fix the problem. It’s super easy to clean with the large doors, and haven’t had any problems with the second door not opening. I did zip tie the Ramps to the bottom hooks on the shelves, as they just balance on them and my boys kept knocking them off, but not a big deal to add a few zip ties to hook on. Ive changed up the layout a few times and switch hammocks and toys often and it’s super easy to do, no issues with durability of the cage or bars on either shelf. It’s great that it’s on wheels, makes for easy moving!! I also took out the wire shelf on the bottom and left it so it was just the plastic bin, which I filled with bedding and litter, the space around it is definitely not big enough for any animal to squeeze out and escape, which I was worried about, and haven’t had any problems with the boys wanting to chew their way out. They love their new mansion! Highly recommend this cage 10/10, if you’re looking for something for rats, that’s not as pricey as a critter nation, this is an amazing deal and an amazing cage!!

After my ferret kept protesting and showing his obvious distaste for the playpen I was keeping him in, I decided to stop putting off buying a real cage. Good ferret cages are soooooo expensive, but I was determined to find something "reasonable" without compromising size. I found the Prevue Hendryx 485 and bought it off Amazon without a second thought. A lot of reviews were saying how awful these cages are, the conditions they were in upon opening it for the first time, how bad the instructions are... In fact I tried to cancel my shipment because of these reviews and decided to just buy some $300 cage at Petco. I am so happy I was too late in canceling my order because I would have missed out on such a wonderful cage at a VERY reasonable price for its quality and size. It came in mint condition and packaging did a great job of protecting it; no broken trays, rust, broken bars from poor welding job, and snapped-off platform tabs like everyone was complaining about. Everything was wrapped up perfectly. The instructions were self explanatory. I really don't understand what the confusion was about. A lot of the bad reviews were saying how the manual did nothing for them, but I found myself having an easy time going through the steps. In fact, the pieces are so obvious, I'm pretty sure anyone could figure it out without the manual! As for confusion with the screws, all of them are exactly the same, except four that are shorter (which are used to hold platforms and top part in place). It's not that hard to mistaken them. I guess I got lucky with the cage. I'm extremely happy with what I got. Quality, design, and size (holy crap is it huge) are perfect for what I paid. My ferret willingly goes into this cage when I let him free roam because it's such a big space to explore! As for the complaints about the wire floor that neglects a ferret's anatomy, that is easily amendable with a couple of old t-shirts, towels, or tiles. I love that the whole cage is made of metal, because it is easy to clean and does not absorb smells. Annnnd shipping was really fast. I got it within the next day. And for the door opening on one side only... It's not that serious. The opening is so big you can take the platforms out without disassembling the whole cage, or just unscrew the top and lift them out. My only gripe is that I tend to take my ferret EVERYWHERE I go (like camping), and if I wanted to take the cage along, it isn't exactly the easiest to just break down and go. It takes 20 minutes to a half hour both breaking down and assembling. But it's ok, his playpen will do for his travel cage :)

I purchased this cage for my beloved chinchilla several months ago. It is super spacious and taller than I had expected. I searched all over the internet and pet stores for the perfect cage. There are some brands out there cost that over $300 for a comparable cage, yikes not worth it! I decided on this one because the price was reasonable. However, it was on back order and I had to wait two weeks for it be in stock again. When the package arrived, it looked quite banged up. I guess I'm not too surprised since it's heavy and I doubt the delivery man took much care in trasporting it. The plastic tray was broken in several places, much to my disappointment. Afterall, it's an important part of the cage! I called Amazon to complain, but they couldn't provide me with a replacement (non existed). I didn't want to wait another two weeks to get a whole new cage, so I accepted a small refund. I ended up gluing the broken pieces together and it works fairly well. Assembling the cage was relatively easy. There were times when the pieces didn't fit, so I really had to put a lot of force into it. At the end however, everything turned out great! The cage is sturdy, well made, and looks beautiful with all the accesories inside. One of my favorite things about it is that there are two sets of doors that open to the right. It's easy to reach inside to replace accessories, change her food bowl, etc. The wheels at the bottom work great when moving the cage around. I also appreciate the shelf at the bottom for stoage. CON#1: Since this cage is ideally made for ferrets, the floors are made from parallel metal grating about 1 cm apart. Standard chinchilla cages come with 1 cm squares so that it is easier on their little feet. I solved this problem by placing YARDGUARD (hardware cloth you can buy from home depot) over the floors. I also added blocks of kiln dried pine so that my chinchilla can rest on them instead of the wire floors. This is the reason I can't give it a 5-star. CON#2: The metal ramps that come with this cage have some jagged, sharp surfaces! It's a piece of rectangular metal with many rung like bumps. The bumps were not properly filed and smoothed down. I was really concerned that my chinchilla would cut her little paws on them so I replaced them with wooden ramps I made from kiln dried pine planks. Overall, I am very satisfied with this cage after the above modifications. My chinchilla has plenty of room to hop around. She loves it!

This turned out beautifully!! I had no issues with installing!!! Instructions were a bit annoying as parts had different names than what was in the instructions but we figured it out pretty quickly! I ordered the grill and platform covers separately but is definitely a plus for this cage! I do wish the company would offer them in different colors but currently fleece grey is the only color available!! All in all, this cage is good!! It’s a nice size!! Obviously Critter Nation and Ferret Nation will always be number one, but if you can’t afford those….this is definitely a good second choice that isnt crappy quality!!! I’m very pleased with it and so are my babies!!! They are enjoying their upgrade!!!

We are very pleased with this cage, which is solid and spacious. We are licensed wildlife rehabilitators, and bought this as a climbing cage to house orphaned juvenile Eastern Gray Squirrels. In squirrel rehabilitation, the squirrels move through stages: an incubator or infant stage (being fed every few hours), the "baby" stage when they have 3-4 formula feedings daily (they are in a small animal cage for this), the climbing cage stage (they learn to move, jump, climb in a safe environment, but are still on formula), then the pre-release habitat (a specially designed enclosure mimicking life in the wild before they are ready for release). We were looking for a very specific size to fit a space in the rehabilitation room - this one fit perfectly. The fact that it has two sections, so one can be closed off for cleaning while the other section keeps the squirrels in - is fantastic. It's height and structure are perfect to provide different levels for the squirrels to jump and climb. This was very easy for my husband to put together - the instructions were clear, the parts logical, and the screws were all one type. It's solid but not so heavy that the two of us couldn't lift it up to place on a high counter. We outfitted the cage with solid branches for climbing and a few hanging pouches. We also covered all of the grilles (the ground one with a thick washable pee pad, which provides a comfortable ground surface), and platforms with multiple soft blankets to provide soft surfaces and nesting material (I use soft fleece and cotton baby receiving blankets for this). Caution: the bars are just big enough to keep a good-sized juvenile Eastern Grey Squirrel from squeezing out. They wouldn't be tightly spaced enough for a smaller squirrel, and a very young one might be able to wedge his way out. If we were to put smaller animals in here, we would first surround the cage in 1/4 inch hardware cloth. Note that we only used one ramp since squirrels don't need them. Also note that the plastic platforms might get chewed - if that happens, we'll replace them with solid wood. Also note that the size is appropriate for 1-2 squirrels (we got it for a special needs singleton), and not for larger groups. We have larger, custom-made climbing cages for small groups.

Absolutely LOVE this cage, could not be more pleased with this purchase! We’ve had such a hard time finding a cage that our ferrets didn’t hate! They would claw/chew on other cages or fight so hard that they’d escape, that’s not the case with this one. Surprisingly, they got used to it right away & will sleep for hours content in their cage. I like the “flip latches“ on the doors because it’s impossible for them to open no matter how much they claw at it, while the “spring latches” are easy for them to open with enough fighting. So, the fight to keep them content & in their cages was a big one. I love how spacious this cage is, I was worried it wouldn’t be big enough for 3 ferrets but it’s pretty perfect & they can have two large hammocks! Another feature I liked about this cage is that it’s big but, in height rather than width which makes it easy to place. It comes with a stand with a shelf so you can store a couple of small bins with food & litter underneath - absolutely love that! It also comes with wheels which is so convenient because it is a fairly big cage & this makes it easy to move around if needed. We don’t pad our cage with liners on the shelves & ladders like some others do because our ferrets weren’t big fans of it so it took them a little time to get used to using the ladders but have adjusted. Very easy to assemble & extremely easy to clean as it has a tray at the bottom that pulls out - super simple. Great product for an even better price - good condition & super fast shipping! If you found my review helpful, I would appreciate you clicking yes - thanks!!!

I purchased this cage for my three ferrets- Apollyon, Shiva, and Mangey. They're worth every penny and deserve a nice roomy cage. This one looked ideal and was in my price range- so I snapped it up and shipped it to my house. The cage was packaged really well in its original box. In rural Alaska our mail is notorious for literally dropping boxes out of planes. So needless to say our products rarely come as we expect. With that being said- this cage came in great shape. Upon assembly, the problems started. My cage was a total dud. I have no idea what the manufacturer was doing- but I did NOT receive the right parts. None of my pieces had screw holes drilled into them- so I couldn't connect them properly. I live in rural Alaska and the shipping back would have been ridiculous. So I just started building the cage with zip-ties. I literally zip-tied all the pieces together and didn't assemble the bottom shelf or wheels. I simply left the cage without it's stand. This actually turned out okay- because now I can just leave the door open 24/7 and my ferret children can get back into their home conveniently- as it is floor level. So, once my cage was semi-assembled, it's actually fairly sturdy. Granted it's held together with nearly 100 small zip-ties, but it seems to be working okay. There are two large doors. One on the top right. One on the bottom right. They are great for cleaning the cage- I can literally fit my entire self through the doors. It makes clean-up very convenient. There are two full-floor levels, and two 'ledges'- the small levels you see on the right side of the picture. In the picture these 'ledges' have holes in them for the animals to jump through. Mine don't have holes- which I like better. I feel they're safer for my ferrets without holes. With that being said, one of my ledges came broken- so once again I had to recreate the cage. I just used some hot-glue and it's held up well. There are three ramps. In the picture you see that the second story has a ramp that leads up on the back side. My 'ramp hole' was in the middle of the floor for the second story. I don't really like it's placement there, because my ferrets really can't comfortably move around the second floor without having to climb over the hole in the middle. I'd rather it be on the side. The bottoms of this cage are metal grated. I do not approve of this at all. No animal should spend it's time on metal wire flooring. Unfortunately 99% of cage manufacturers seem to think this is an appropriate type of flooring and use it. I simply cut out carpet pieces to fit the cage and lined all of the ledges and floors with the carpet. The plastic ramps, for most animals, will also need carpet lining them. They're much too slick for many animals to climb without some sort of carpet grip on them. But then there's the most important part- aside from all of MY complaints- what do the ferrets think? I can honestly say my ferrets don't spend any time playing in this cage. They're free-range, so they play around the house. But they do love eating and sleeping in the cage. It's very comfortable for them. Roomy enough for their litter box, food and water dishes, and a nice big sleeping area piled with blankets. I feel safe keeping them secured in the cage while I am gone. The latches work well and they cannot break free. It's not an appropriate full-time home for any animal (no poor pet should be in a cage a majority of the time).But it's definitely a great little safe space to keep my lovable little ferret kids. There are a lot things I don't like about the cage- but the bottom line is that my ferrets enjoy it and I feel safe keeping them in it (even with all the alterations I had to make). Would I recommend it? I don't know- because I honestly think I got a messed up cage. With that being said, I like it's appearance. It's appropriately sized for ferrets. And it's decently made. I'm sure if I would have gotten an appropriately built cage, I would have rated it higher. My specific cage though is only worth about 2 1/2 stars. I rounded it up to three.