Heres my rat shed, it is 8x12 (might be adding on this summer)

http://i1102.photobucket.com/albums/g456/prestigepythons/DSC01560.jpg

http://i1102.photobucket.com/albums/g456/prestigepythons/DSC01562.jpg

http://i1102.photobucket.com/albums/g456/prestigepythons/DSC01564.jpg

Thanks for looking:yes:

Awesome! That's the real deal right there.............nice setup. :cheers:

Great set up!

I'm jealous... of both the rats and the racks! :D

Nice setup :rockon:

That's awesome! How do you heat it?

I wsa considering 8 x 12... that gives me a good idea of what would fit.

Now that is what I call a setup. Very nice.

Dan

Nice setup

Are those ARS racks Bob?

Thanks everyone. They are all ARS racks except 2, my last homemade rack and one I bought used but is compatible with ARS tubs I dont remember who made. I started with all homemade racks but have moved up to these, they are much more space efficient.

I ran gas, water, and electric to it and use a small pilot furnace to heat it.


Not ARS
http://i1102.photobucket.com/albums/g456/prestigepythons/DSC01570.jpg

Homemade
http://i1102.photobucket.com/albums/g456/prestigepythons/DSC01571.jpg

I'd love to have some ARS rodent racks myself, but one thing that's always bugged me about them is it looks like you have to get behind there to put the food in. How does that work exactly?

Yeah you do, I thought the same thing when I was getting them but they roll so easy and hold a lot of food its really not a big deal. If you fill them up you can get almost two weeks out of it before you have to fill it again.

what's the smell like in your room?

i.e....a faint smell in between bedding changes, or something serious?

Pitoon

Now that is a rat shed. Wow real nice setup.

what's the smell like in your room?

i.e....a faint smell in between bedding changes, or something serious?

Pitoon

Its not too bad, I have an exhaust fan that runs 24 hours a day in the summer and once it hits 70 in the winter.

http://i1102.photobucket.com/albums/g456/prestigepythons/DSC01564.jpg

Have you had any problems with rats chewing out of these tubs on the top three levels? I've had several chew through the ridges in the bottom.

I have a couple small holes but no chew throughs yet, I used to use the black mortar mixing tubs and they chewed through those a lot. I would prefer smooth bottoms, when I do ever have to replace tubs I will get them.

I have a couple small holes but no chew throughs yet, I used to use the black mortar mixing tubs and they chewed through those a lot. I would prefer smooth bottoms, when I do ever have to replace tubs I will get them.

I ordered one level of that rack from ARS to test it out, and I get holes chewed constantly. I now use that level just for "emergency overflow" rodents. As a replacement, I switched to their rat growout racks. The tubs are shallower, but they have a larger surface area. Also, the tubs are completely smooth, so no chewing problems.

I ordered one level of that rack from ARS to test it out, and I get holes chewed constantly. I now use that level just for "emergency overflow" rodents. As a replacement, I switched to their rat growout racks. The tubs are shallower, but they have a larger surface area. Also, the tubs are completely smooth, so no chewing problems.

here's a question for you and bob to field. it's something i rarely see discussed amongst rat dudes. on those ARS growout racks and the ARS-1050 racks, how do you guys deal with rats jumping out all over the place when the tubs are pulled open, and do you have issues with tails being scissored when you push the tubs back in?

(and don't tell me the rats will all run to the dark rear of the tub rather than jump out, because at some point that tub has to be pulled out to be cleaned!)

thanx in advance. :P

here's a question for you and bob to field. it's something i rarely see discussed amongst rat dudes. on those ARS growout racks and the ARS-1050 racks, how do you guys deal with rats jumping out all over the place when the tubs are pulled open, and do you have issues with tails being scissored when you push the tubs back in?

(and don't tell me the rats will all run to the dark rear of the tub rather than jump out, because at some point that tub has to be pulled out to be cleaned!)

thanx in advance. :P

I raise rats, mice, and ASF in ARS racks. The mice I breed basically never jump out. I don't know if I got lucky, and have a strain that isn't prone to jumping, but some mice--espcially hoppers--will shoot out all over the place.

My rats and ASF are all pretty calm and laid back. They do usually all run to the back when a tub is slid open. However, if I slide the tub open too quickly, I'll occasionally experience a "mad rush" of rats running to the front.

When you're pulling out the tub to clean it, the trick is to remove the rats first. I usually remove them one by one, placing them either in a deep holding bin on the floor of my building, or I'll move them into another tub in the same rack.

I raise rats, mice, and ASF in ARS racks. The mice I breed basically never jump out. I don't know if I got lucky, and have a strain that isn't prone to jumping, but some mice--espcially hoppers--will shoot out all over the place.

My rats and ASF are all pretty calm and laid back. They do usually all run to the back when a tub is slid open. However, if I slide the tub open too quickly, I'll occasionally experience a "mad rush" of rats running to the front.

When you're pulling out the tub to clean it, the trick is to remove the rats first. I usually remove them one by one, placing them either in a deep holding bin on the floor of my building, or I'll move them into another tub in the same rack.

thanks for your reply jake.

so no chewing problems in the growout racks?

how many rats can you grow out to large in each growout tub, and have you experienced any sagging issues with the tub when full of large rats?

thanks again, i appreciate you taking the time to answer my questions. :)

I use the CB30 tubs for my breeder rats and and smaller tubs for my females that are nursing. I have a hinged screen cover for the CB70 so I pull that box out slightly and put the cover over it and then slide the tub out to the hinged portion. After tht I flip the second 1/2 of the cover over so that it falls into place as I finish pulling out the box. With the smaller tubs I made a wood & screen cover that basically has a track along the sides of it that the box's lip can slide into. This way I pull the box out just enought to get it aligned with the cover and then slide the box all the way out into the cover while it is butted up against the frame of the rack. This way none of the weanling rats (which are very jumpy) don't have a chance to get out of the box.

hi panhead, thanks for your reply.

so how do you go about cleaning? the covers you've made have to come off the tubs at some point i imagine?

Nice looking set-up.

hi panhead, thanks for your reply.

so how do you go about cleaning? the covers you've made have to come off the tubs at some point i imagine?


The hinged cover is just lifted open to either place or remove the rodents without having the whole top open. Consider the sliding top like a rack box. You only have to slide it off enough to again place or remove the animals without exposing the whole opening.

Love the set up

The hinged cover is just lifted open to either place or remove the rodents without having the whole top open. Consider the sliding top like a rack box. You only have to slide it off enough to again place or remove the animals without exposing the whole opening.

i see.

so how about the clean tub that the rats are going into, how do you avoid them jumping out while managing the lid on the soiled tub?

I raise rats, mice, and ASF in ARS racks. The mice I breed basically never jump out. I don't know if I got lucky, and have a strain that isn't prone to jumping, but some mice--espcially hoppers--will shoot out all over the place.

My rats and ASF are all pretty calm and laid back. They do usually all run to the back when a tub is slid open. However, if I slide the tub open too quickly, I'll occasionally experience a "mad rush" of rats running to the front.

When you're pulling out the tub to clean it, the trick is to remove the rats first. I usually remove them one by one, placing them either in a deep holding bin on the floor of my building, or I'll move them into another tub in the same rack.

I pretty much have the same response, I pull the tub out slowly they go to the back, I move them to the next tub over when Im cleaning one by one it usually goes pretty smooth.