Squirrels are wild animals born with freedom and show aggressive behavior under several conditions, which causes people to keep them in a cage or box.
Can You Keep a Squirrel in a Cage? You can keep a squirrel in a cage if you want to keep it as a pet, to avoid damage to the property, to keep the house clean, and after trapping it. It is better to consider the shape, size, material, facilities, and cage price before selecting it. The long and portable cages are best for squirrels, as they offer more space and are easy to move.
They get stressed or frustrated when you lock them in a cage because they do not like to stay in one place and love to roam and play in the wild or your backyard. It becomes challenging to deal with aggressive rodents, as they can attack or bite you, which can be contagious.
Why would you keep a squirrel in a cage?
Many people use a cage for their pet squirrels. Usually, these animals do not like to live in a closed environment.
Keep as a pet
As we know, these animals are wild, offensive, and territorial animals and do not like to be in captivity. Having squirrels as a pet is not a good idea, as it is prohibited in many states of America because they carry many diseases and bite humans and other pets in the house.
However, people put them in a cage and train them about certain things if they want to keep these rodents as pets. The rodents take time to adjust and train to stay in an enclosed place, but it becomes easy to handle them once they become used to living in a cage.
Some states allow them to keep as pets because they can behave decently once trained and become habitual of the closed environment.
It is better to pick a random squirrel from the wild and keep it as a pet but buy it from a squirrel breeder because they have domesticated the wild animals enough to avoid problems.
You can let them free for one to two hours a day to play in the garden and lock them again because they can eat the food of other pets, such as dogs or cats, which is not safe for them.
Avoid damage to the property
It is better to keep them in a cage if you decide to keep these rodents as pets because they can damage many things on the property.
For example, they can chew telephone wires, plastic pipes, electric wires, sofa covers, water pipes or insulated ducts in your attics, and other structural damages to the house.
The water leakage through the pipes in the attic can cause the wooden board to warp and other problems. It takes more time to train these rodents and keep them as pets because of this wild behavior.
Moreover, the telephone and electric wires gnawing causes connection issues, and you have to call professional electricians to repair or replace the damaged wires.
Therefore, people place squirrels in a cage, especially in the starting period, to prevent damage to the property until they are trained enough to behave nicely.
Keep the house clean
Keeping these rodents in the enclosures will keep your house clean, as they can urinate or defecate anywhere in the house if you let them roam free.
They can make your luxury furniture items dirty by urinating on the velvet sofa if they are not trained to use the litter placed inside their cage.
They can develop the habit of urinating and defecating inside the litter placed there if you keep them inside the enclosure and train them to use it.
You do not need to clean different places in the house after they poop or urinate without you knowing about it. Other pets can eat their waste, which causes several health problems; therefore, it is better to keep them in enclosures.
After trapping them
People set traps inside the cages or large boxes for the squirrels to catch when damaging the property, or they do not want to keep these wild rodents as pets.
They place their favorite food inside the cage, which attracts the squirrels, and they lock the rodents inside the enclosure when they enter it to get the food.
They keep the squirrels inside it until they call the wildlife center to come and pick them or they take them to the wild to release them.
However, wild squirrels cannot survive long inside it because they get stressed or scared and can die from sudden fright or heart attack.
Things to consider when selecting a cage for squirrels
There are different factors to consider when choosing the enclosure for the pet squirrels, and some important factors are highlighted here.
Size of the cage
Different cage sizes are available for these rodents, and you can select any of them depending on the number of squirrels you want to keep there.
It is better to select a cage approximately 2-3 feet wide and 3-4 feet deep to accommodate one to two squirrels because it will allow enough space for the squirrel to roam around the area.
They feel stressed when enclosed in a closed place because they are habitual to living in an open environment. However, the baby squirrel does not require a large cage, as there are chances of small rodents falling.
People often place a rough T-shirt or towels inside it to avoid fall damage. A large enclosure can accommodate many rodents.
Shape
You can select different shapes cages for keeping the pet squirrels, such as rectangular, square, and elongated. The cage shape you choose also depends on the space available in the house.
Square cages can accommodate a single squirrel, but make sure that the size is large enough. It is better to consider the shape when selecting the litter or other amenities for rodents inside it.
Ensure that it is easy to place inside the house and does not interfere with other things or block the way to pass.
Material
Various material options are available for squirrel cages, such as wooden, high-quality plastic, and strong metal wires.
Check that the material is strong enough to prevent from sharp teeth of rodents as they gnaw the plastic and PVC wires to sharpen their teeth.
The best material for their cages is metal mesh wire with small holes, as the rodent cannot damage it with their sharp teeth. Moreover, it is more durable, easy to clean, and last many years.
Facilities
Different facilities inside the cage, such as a ladder, bridge, plastic toys, and climbing posts, can help the rodents climb, exercise, jump, and play inside their new house without feeling locked.
Playing with toys will help them to grow and sharpen their teeth, and the ladder offers them to climb it as they do it wild and gardens.
It can keep the rodents entertained and relaxed, as they feel more comfortable living in such an environment and do not bother you much to set them free.
Price of squirrel cage
It is better to consider the price of the cage before selecting it for pet squirrels, as they can be costly. Its price depends on the size, shape, and material you choose, as a large cage can range from $60-$80, and medium size can range from $30-$40.
Moreover, metal cages are more expensive than high-quality plastic because they are more durable and need more labor costs in manufacturing. Its price can also vary with the brand.
What kind of cage is good for a squirrel?
Elongated cages are best for pet squirrels, as they can accommodate more than one rodent and offer more space to play and climb the brides or ladder built inside it.
The portable cages are helpful because you can conveniently change their position and clean the floor. It is more hygienic than the fixed enclosures, as they cannot move when installed, and you cannot clean the floor.
Any cage large enough to make the rodent feel stress-free and relaxed is better for the rodent. The enclosures manufactured using metal alloys are lightweight.
It is better to select a high-quality and durable cage, as the pet and the cage will remain with you for the rest of your life.
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