Can I use carpet for the bottom of the cage?

[Lizardian]

I do not have any rats but am wanting to get some soon in the near future. I already have a large metal cage set up for them, but I did have a question about what to use for the bottom of the cage. The bottom of the cage is a grate so I wanted to put something solid there so the rats don't get bumblefoot or something.

The type of cage I have is a Prevue Rat & Chinchilla Critter Cage. It looks like this:

My idea was to use carpet samples to lay on top of the grate so that they would have something comfortable to walk on. My plan was to get multiple carpet squares so I can rotate the the dirty carpets for the clean carpets. For cleaning, I would take the carpet out & scrub it & then let it dry for use for the next rotation. However, I've heard that rats can get their toes stuck on some carpets. So is this a good idea?

If their toes might get caught on the carpet, another idea I had was to lay down the carpets and then put a layer of fleece on top of the carpet. That way the carpet is still underneath to provide padding, but they will be walking on the fleece instead.

 

[SQ]

If there are loops, then they might get their toes caught - towels are not used because of this
you can use fleece over carpet, but rats will burrow under the fleece so they will be ion the carpet.
I think the carpet will become very smelly very fast

You might use a sheet of cloroplast-cut-to-fit to created a solid floor
The levels are small, so you will want to do something about that
and the door is small which will make cleaning more difficult

This is not a great cage for rats and I don't think you will be happy with it
but there are things you can do to fix it up a bit

 

[jorats]

I used to use heavy bathmats at the bottom of the cage. That worked excellent for several years.

 

[merytrer]

Definitely would not use carpet. Carpet has toxins and formaldehyde. Definitely a no no

 

[Luna&Ralph]

I would buy some tiles from the hardware store and put down a layer of those and then fleece over that. It would be super easy to clean and cooling in the heat. In the winter, more fleece can be added to keep it warmer. My biggest concern about carpet would be the smell because it can’t be cleaned as well with the tough backing on it.

 

[VampyLuna]

Your cage is fairly similar to mine because it has a pan under the grate I just took the grate out and made sure there were no large enough gaps to escape and put parts of cardboard boxes and loose fleece to play with.

 

[RatsDrawBlood]

My biggest concern about carpet would be the smell because it can’t be cleaned as well

Nope, all these "concerns" are no problem, as rodents were what was used to determine carpet is deadly even after 7 years. Although then, the rat itself will start to smell after a while. (Maybe if the carpet is 8 years old he can survive it.)

 

[RatsDrawBlood]

can’t be cleaned as well with the tough backing on it

If I can hardly get the smell out with a washing machine, not sure how a hose could do a thing.

but rats will burrow under the fleece so they will be on the carpet
I think the carpet will become very smelly very fast

They don't have to go underneath for that, urine goes through fleece, that's the point of fleece is to get it away from the rat.

to provide padding

The reason Uhaul pads are what I heard is supposed to be what you put under the fleece covers is because it absorbs the urine, the cause of new bumblefoot. (Though I can't afford it at the moment.) But pads are also padding.

The levels are small, so you will want to do something about that

Do what about what?

I used to use heavy bathmats at the bottom of the cage.

Oo would you describe them in detail? Because I'm using a type of bathmat that stinks in a day just like a towel, so wondered which of the many other types of bathmat there are would work or not.

parts of cardboard boxes

Hm, if only I could use cardboard I guess it'd be easier to throw it away each day than launder 7 sets of covers each week.

 

[selk]

Yeah, either take out the grate or use linoleum tiles or something similar that is easy to just wipe down. Honestly carpet sounds HORRENDOUS to clean, especially if it's plush/thick.

 

[jorats]

The bathmats I used had no backing, it was all material but a heavier mat. Hard to describe.

 

[RatsDrawBlood]

That's okay, because it sounds like one of several types I have around, so I think I know what you mean. Thanks!

 

[SQ]

Do what about what?
.

create larger levels and use al tlhe empty space by filling it with hammocks etc