Todays Topic: “Bins or Bar Cages and Why?”
FOREWORD: This is a GREY AREA topic. There is no right or wrong answer between the two and what you choose to use will come down entirely to personal preference. However with that in mind, I implore those who disagree to do so respectfully. You can house in either well or poorly, it depends on the individual and the way they utilize their enclosures. My goal is to offer information about why both options are ACCEPTABLE. I welcome respectful discussion in the comments on the topic, but everyone must remain polite.
There is a lot of information on the internet regarding what the ideal cage is, size minimums and space preferences. Unfortunately a great deal of what is available on the internet is not credible or backed by science. It's important to remember whenever searching online, anyone can make a website and write a paragraph. What I'm doing is a great example of just that. Dear reader, do not take my word as gospel either – check multiple sources, ask questions, and decide what makes sense for yourself, especially on grey area topics.
First things first. What does a good enclosure need to look like... It needs: • Ample floor space • Excellent ventilation • Opportunities for enrichment
FLOOR SPACE A common misconception amongst rat fanciers, primarily the pet community, is that rats love to have tall cages with lots of climbing opportunities. While rats will climb when housed in tall cages, it's not out of enjoyment of the activity as opposed to necessity due to shape of their environment. If you housed a rat in a partially aquatic environment, you'd see them swim occasionally where typically rats find unnecessary water exposure stressful, as an example of how environment affects behaviour. When put into an inappropriate environment, you will see behaviours that may trick you into thinking they enjoy their environment, but in reality they are making the most of what they have. The truth is that rats are FOSSORIAL:
“A fossorial (from Latin fossor, meaning "digger") animal is one adapted to digging which lives primarily, but not solely, underground. ... Species that live exclusively underground, on the other hand, are described as subterranean fauna.”
Therefore it can be surmised that height is not as important to a rat as floor space and deep substrate is (fleece doesn't allow for natural behaviours, but I'll post about that another time!) With that in mind, we can acknowledge that it is possible to achieve ample floor space through housing in a bar cage OR in a bin. The bins that breeders use for permanent enclosures are 110qt Sterilite latch top bins. The dimensions are 34 5/8” x 18 3/4” which is nearly 3' x 1.5'. Critter Nations dimensions are 36” x 24” which is 3' x 2' – not a whole lot larger overall as far as floor space goes. Vertically a CN is ~31” tall and the aforementioned bin is 12 5/8” tall, so the only difference is that the rats don't have any unnecessary height added. Height in bar cages actually needs addressed to make safe for Rattus norvegicus; there should be enough clutter in the form of ladders, levels, bridges, hammocks, sputniks and boxes that there are no fall opportunities – a simple fall can kill a healthy rat. With bins there are no risks of death by falling, as they are not tall enough... But they are more than tall enough for a 12” wheel and for a large adult rat to stand up stretched fully, which is the minimum height requirement as per scientific standards. Any levels added to the bin (risers, ledges) count toward floor space as well.
It's not a bad thing to go above the minimums. The only problem you will run into is needing to fill the empty space with clutter. Rats don't feel as comfortable in wide open spaces, so the larger the cage, the more accessories you'll need. Cardboard boxes, tubes and other recyclables make for excellent enrichment that's easily replaced when soiled.
The information I am sharing isn't advocating for housing at minimums, but it hopefully will enlighten some to the fact that bins aren't necessarily a bad thing, and it doesn't benefit anyone to demonize keepers who use bins. Interestingly I have noticed that bins tend to be approached with a hint of anthropomorphism; we think a bin is akin to Harry Potters closet. Just because something would make us feel a certain kind of way doesn't mean that another species will feel the same emotions in the same situation! It's important to remain objective and think about subjects realistically as opposed to with our hearts. Also, REMEMBER – a rat does not know what materials their enclosure is made from, or what arbitrary label we humans have applied to it; the only difference between a bin and some bar cages is that one is homemade from hardware store supplies and one is mass manufactured and sold in a box store, so they're named different things. Look at the important things mentioned above, FLOOR SPACE, VENTILATION and OPPORTUNITIES FOR ENRICHMENT rather than the label!
VENTILATION Ventilation is, by definition “the provision of fresh air to a room, building, etc.” The form it takes can vary as long as there is enough of it to provide fresh air to the enclosure. Ventilation should consist of at least two windows on the biggest faces of the enclosure, but of course more is better. Air needs to be able to flow through the enclosure entirely, so the mandatory two windows need to be across from each other.
Bar cages in most instances provide more than enough ventilation. It's difficult to find a bar cage of any kind that isn't a barred top with a solid base.
Bins can be made poorly or they can be made well. The 110qts referenced above provide ample airflow with the two long windows cut out. I've also enjoyed cutting two small windows in the lid and in one or both short ends, also. As long as there's enough lip at the bottom and sides so the frame of the bin is intact, and the windows have hardware cloth secured firmly to the inside, the integrity of the bin will not diminish.
OPPORTUNITIES FOR ENRICHMENT Bar cages are by-the-by top notch for opportunities for enrichment in the way that you can hang nearly anything from anywhere and you can quite simply secure accessories to the sides or top. However, bin cages are easy to modify to accept accessories as well. The short sides often have a small lip at the top, which is best to cover with a narrow strip of hardware cloth, and if the top has a window(s) too, you can easily fasten hammocks or sputniks. It's entirely possible to deck out a bin as effectively as a bar cage, offering multiple levels, hides, hammocks/sputniks, feeders, water bottle(s) and clutter.
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