what a GREAT post jo. thanks so much. that really helps me with my "where am i gonna put all these tubs" situation we are just about to start aquiring.

and i love that you can still see and interact with your rats. our breeders are also our pets... so we want to hold them and hand feed them and play with them... the only thing i don't like about your design... if the lack of hammocks. we are a 'havetohavehammocks' colony... even the mamas love to retire to their hammock when they don't need to sit on their pups... so i think... a mesh on the top with large enough squares that we can clip a closepin onto it (to hold up each of the four corners of our hammocks) would make this absolute perfection for our colony!!!