Simple Rack DYI...lots of pics

I meant DIY... duh O.o

So I made a great rack for rat breeding out of one of those premade storage drawer things you can get at Walmart. I got mine at Bed Bath and Beyond for 19 dollars. You'll also need 1/2" (or 1/4" if you want to put mice in it) hardware cloth /wire mesh, and some small wire ties.
You'll also want to have wire cutters for cutting the mesh. and a pair of needle nose pliers comes in very handy.

I started by taking out all the drawers and turning the entire unit upside down. In this pic you can see that I also melted holes and inserted wire ties to tie down the mesh. I found out later that it's easier to insert the wire ties after the mesh is fitted.
http://i407.photobucket.com/albums/p...s/DSCF3721.jpg

Measure a piece of mesh to fit around the legs.
http://i407.photobucket.com/albums/p...s/DSCF3724.jpg

Be sure to leave enough overlap on the edges to fold over.
http://i407.photobucket.com/albums/p...s/DSCF3726.jpg

Fold down the edges of the mesh and wire tie them tightly in place.
http://i407.photobucket.com/albums/p...s/DSCF3727.jpg

Repeat on second layer. This is what it looks like right side up. The unit I bought had a hard top which fit snugly so I didn't need to mesh the top drawer. If yours has a plastic top you'll probably need to mesh it to keep them from chewing out.
http://i407.photobucket.com/albums/p...s/DSCF3734.jpg

Here I inserted one drawer to show what it looks like. You can put food on top of the mesh between drawers because of the units design, if this is something you want to be able to do then make sure you get one with enough space.
http://i407.photobucket.com/albums/p...s/DSCF3738.jpg

This the inside of the top drawer. It important the drawers fit snugly enough that your rodents can't chew on the sides of the drawers. Also be sure to melt/drill enough holes for ventilation, you don't want humidity to build up inside. Also note that you can see the mesh of the next drawer down in the background, if it wasn't meshed the rats would be sneaking out the back now that you've got a drawer open.
http://i407.photobucket.com/albums/p...s/DSCF3745.jpg

And the finished product. I decided to mount the water bottles on the side, they act as stoppers to keep the drawers from coming out all the way.
http://i407.photobucket.com/albums/p...s/DSCF3749.jpg

This units drawers measure about 15"Wx21"Lx7"H about the same as a large tub but without all the extra height and is good for one female rat and a large litter. You could keep more in each drawer but once the babies start growing it gets crowded fast.
http://i407.photobucket.com/albums/p...s/DSCF3743.jpg

Heres a pic of a 60qt tub for comparison.
http://i407.photobucket.com/albums/p...t/DSCF3324.jpg

This is a great way to turn drawers into a breeder rack. It keeps the rats from sneaking out the back when you open a upper drawer, and keeps them from chewing on the sides of the drawers. Additionally, the mesh makes the drawers very snug and there is no worry of them pushing them open from the inside.

Hope you like! cheers!!


Mistake!! at first I had the bottles mounted on front but as you can see they blocked opening the upper drawers. Side mounting works much better.
http://i407.photobucket.com/albums/p...s/DSCF3739.jpg

2 issues I see here, not enough airflow and those holes on the sides will allow your rats to start chewing their way out sooner or later.

I don't think it has enough ventilation. I would imagine there is no more than an inch between the bottom of the top tub to the food/hardware cloth of the one underneath it. Also, melting ventilation holes may add air flow, but it gives them a chew-point to plan their escape.

All in all, decent idea, but I think sticking with "traditional" racks is better.

It is too late now, but I think if you replaced maybe a ~3" strip of the tub across at least 2 opposing sides for ventilation, it would provide as much, if not better air flow compared to the holes, and it would not encourage chewing.

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Originally Posted by Deborah

2 issues I see here, not enough airflow and those holes on the sides will allow your rats to start chewing their way out sooner or later.

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I built this over a year ago and just now got to posting pics.
I raised 4 litters in this with no problems, only stopped cause my freezer is overflowing but will be using it again when I need to breed more. So it had rats in it for about 5 months.

No chewing cause the mesh fits tight to the tops of the drawers.

Never had an issue with humidity either, I use a mix of wood pellets (Dry Den) and shavings. I cleaned once a week to prevent urine build up cause that's bad no matter what kind of container you use.
Anyways, you can't see it from the pics I have but I've melted 5 rows of holes and inch apart all the way around the drawers. And like I said never had an issue.

Thanks for the concern though:)

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Originally Posted by ThyTempest

I don't think it has enough ventilation. I would imagine there is no more than an inch between the bottom of the top tub to the food/hardware cloth of the one underneath it. Also, melting ventilation holes may add air flow, but it gives them a chew-point to plan their escape.

All in all, decent idea, but I think sticking with "traditional" racks is better.

It is too late now, but I think if you replaced maybe a ~3" strip of the tub across at least 2 opposing sides for ventilation, it would provide as much, if not better air flow compared to the holes, and it would not encourage chewing..

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The point of the mesh isn't to provide ventalation. It's to prevent chewing and keep would be escapes in when I open the drawer above.

The holes are made with a 1/4inch soldering iron, no way for a rat to chew them, and I've never had a mouse chew 1/4inch holes either.

I thought about adding mesh to the sides of the drawers but rats tend to throw bedding out and make a big mess.

As I said 5 months with no illnesses/issues so I'm just gonna leave it the way it is.

I want to reassure you guys that I'm not being stubborn on this cause I'm lazy. IMO it's never to late to fix/add to a enclosure that I've built. And I always want my animals to be happy and healthy.

This rack was cheap and convient for me and has worked well.
The moment I see an issue like condensation/humidity or excessive chewing I'll add more mesh or whatever it takes to keep my rodents safe. The may just be feeder breeders but they're still important to me.

Just wanted to make that clear. :gj:

I understand it's worked for five months, and I applaud you innovation. If it is just a maternity rack, I think your hardware cloth can provide ample ventilation from ammonia from one rat and her litter, however, it does get pretty stinky when the litter reaches two weeks of age and the top level does not have that same ventilation.

I know my maternity rack is the stinkiest (besides my two adult racks) because its a lot of bodies in a small space, and the mothers seem to put out a lot of waste along with the pups.

And an honest question, when would you know it's uncomfortable for them to live with such little ventilation?

What I am about to say isn't out of nastiness, but purely testing to just know.

I urge you to stick your nose a half an inch from the bedding when it is clean, and once more in the middle of the week, then on cleaning day, put a towel over your head so it drapes over the whole tub and breath deep. The ammonia will burn your eyes and nostrils, you will be overwhelmed with the stench of feces and urine.

Can you say that this continued exposure will have no ill effects? Maybe not right away, but short of them dropping dead, when would you know they were ill or suffering?

I get overwhelmed by the smell just cleaning the tubs, rats sit with their noses in it all the time.

I think if you were to continue to use this rack as is, cleaning twice a week sounds necessary to ensure the ammonia does not build up to harmful levels. :gj:

LittleIndianGirl:
I understand what you're saying... but when I say clean once a week I mean that's the longest I'll go between cleaning.
I live in a very little one bedroom apartment w/ 4 snakes, 7 tubs full of mice, currently 2 rats more when I'm breeding, and a tarantula (which warrants housing stinky crickets occasionally)... the place doesn't have much air circulation and can get smelly fast. I clean mouse tubs every 2-3 days. My two male rats have a 120qt double tub setup and only needs cleaned once a week and probably could go longer.

I'm not currently breeding rats but yes this 'rack' is meant to house only one female and her litter per drawer. I did end up cleaning more often when the litter got older. Every 2-3 days like the mice when near weaning. Trust me, I know how smelly it can get and I figure if I can smell it then the animals are uncomfortable, I've stuck my nose in the drawers :oops: it's not pleasant if left to stew too long so I don't let it get that bad.

It's hard to prove over the internet but I'm a very attentive pet owner. Prevention is the best medicine IMO... vet bills are expensive and I really couldn't afford it so I take the best care of all my animals I can.

What you say is true, I don't know how comfortable they are... but I can give a good guess. I've owned rats for years as just pets before I got into snakes.. and now that I'm breeding them as food they still get treated like pets would, just a little different setup since there are so many of them... the rats I had in this rack seemed just as healthy, active, inquisitive, and happy as any rat kept in a tank or fancy wire cage. And when they didn't have new borns they often got let out to run around and play.

That being said, I'm glad you're asking these questions of me cause I know there are people out there that need the help... you've got to give what advice you can to everyone. Animals deserve to be treated right. :) And how do you know if you don't ask?.:D

http://i407.photobucket.com/albums/p...DSCF3735-1.jpg

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Originally Posted by truthsdeceit

LittleIndianGirl:
I understand what you're saying... but when I say clean once a week I mean that's the longest I'll go between cleaning.
I live in a very little one bedroom apartment w/ 4 snakes, 7 tubs full of mice, currently 2 rats more when I'm breeding, and a tarantula (which warrants housing stinky crickets occasionally)... the place doesn't have much air circulation and can get smelly fast. I clean mouse tubs every 2-3 days. My two male rats have a 120qt double tub setup and only needs cleaned once a week and probably could go longer.

I'm not currently breeding rats but yes this 'rack' is meant to house only one female and her litter per drawer. I did end up cleaning more often when the litter got older. Every 2-3 days like the mice when near weaning. Trust me, I know how smelly it can get and I figure if I can smell it then the animals are uncomfortable, I've stuck my nose in the drawers :oops: it's not pleasant if left to stew too long so I don't let it get that bad.

It's hard to prove over the internet but I'm a very attentive pet owner. Prevention is the best medicine IMO... vet bills are expensive and I really couldn't afford it so I take the best care of all my animals I can.

What you say is true, I don't know how comfortable they are... but I can give a good guess. I've owned rats for years as just pets before I got into snakes.. and now that I'm breeding them as food they still get treated like pets would, just a little different setup since there are so many of them... the rats I had in this rack seemed just as healthy, active, inquisitive, and happy as any rat kept in a tank or fancy wire cage. And when they didn't have new borns they often got let out to run around and play.

That being said, I'm glad you're asking these questions of me cause I know there are people out there that need the help... you've got to give what advice you can to everyone. Animals deserve to be treated right. :) And how do you know if you don't ask?.:D

http://i407.photobucket.com/albums/p...DSCF3735-1.jpg

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Very well said, and cute rat :)

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Originally Posted by ThyTempest

Very well said, and cute rat :)

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Thanks, that's my girl Raven. I actually don't have her anymore but she (and the albino, Elsa) are living out retirement as pets with a friend of mine... 2 litters each and on to retirement, I'd say that's a good life. lol. :D

possibly stupid question but um.. dont the baby rats have a hard time reaching the food? do you toss some in the bottom once they are old enough to start nibbling on food? or is there enough of the pieces of food that falls from the top once the food gets chewed small enough?

ive never used any kind of hopper type feeder, just bowls so I dont know how often the smaller pieces fall out of the hopper. (that being said I do have some 1/2" hardware cloth that I bought to build some, i just gotta get around to doing it lol)

cool idea tho:gj:, ive often looked at those drawer things and wondered how it could work. If I ever decided to go this rout (basically if I find a good one cheap enough), I'd prolly do mesh on the sides and have a food dish or hoppers hanging down from the sides.

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Originally Posted by filly77

possibly stupid question but um.. dont the baby rats have a hard time reaching the food? do you toss some in the bottom once they are old enough to start nibbling on food? or is there enough of the pieces of food that falls from the top once the food gets chewed small enough?

ive never used any kind of hopper type feeder, just bowls so I dont know how often the smaller pieces fall out of the hopper. (that being said I do have some 1/2" hardware cloth that I bought to build some, i just gotta get around to doing it lol)

cool idea tho:gj:, ive often looked at those drawer things and wondered how it could work. If I ever decided to go this rout (basically if I find a good one cheap enough), I'd prolly do mesh on the sides and have a food dish or hoppers hanging down from the sides.

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These drawers aren't too much deeper than what most breeders use for rats. The litter with start out by nibbling on things they find on the floor, like the stuff that falls out, but by the time they are old enough to be weaned they will be big enough to reach the top of the drawer and the hopper.

That being said, I've never been a fan of the overhead food hopper, and the top drawer of this rack has no mesh on top, so I built hoppers that hang on the inside of a tub, they have a hinged lid that is pinched shut when you close the drawer. It's very effective and I've been using them for my rats and mice for the last year.
I've made a DIY thread on these here:
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?t=88042
I only show them in a mouse tub but they were made with this drawer rack in mind as well.

gotcha! makes a lot of sense now :) ty!

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Originally Posted by filly77

gotcha! makes a lot of sense now :) ty!

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Your welcome!