What are C&C cages and what makes them so popular? Let’s take a closer look at the C&C box:
As far as we know, the original C&C cage design was developed (and popularized) a few years ago by an innovative guinea pig rescue organization. This style of cage was developed as a matter of necessity so that the guinea pig shelter could efficiently house a large number of pigs profitably. For this reason, to this day, the C&C cage tends to have a very low cost per square inch of living space; In other words, C&C cages tend to offer a lot of cages for the money.
The mysterious name C&C comes from the two main materials used to build this category of small animal cages: Cubes and Coroplast.
The frame and wire net portion of the cage is constructed from wire racks that are typically used in assembling wire rack storage cubes. These square wire racks are typically 14 inches long on each edge. This type of shelving is often seen in stores or boutiques where clothing or other items are displayed in wire rack cube sets or cubicles. Therefore, the first C in C&C comes from the word cube.
The second C in C&C comes from the other fundamental material used in C&C cage construction: Coroplast. Coroplast is a trade name and is essentially a contraction of the product description: corrugated plastic. Coroplast is a corrugated PVC (polyvinyl chloride) plastic sheet and is used to form the litter tray or container at the bottom of the cage. This material is commonly used by sign makers in the manufacture of inexpensive, weather resistant signs.
Coroplast has some remarkable properties that make it very suitable for application in the pet cage arena.
First of all, it is constructed of PVC (yes, the same basic material that is used in PVC pipes). This material is chemically inert, which means that water, solvents, oils, and other chemicals generally have no effect on it. What this means for the owner of the pet in question is:
a) It is waterproof and (more importantly) urine proof.
b) Soaps, detergents, vinegar and other cleaning agents will not harm it.
c) it is not digestible, stomach acids do not affect it. This means that if your pig chews, the material will pass harmlessly through its digestive system.
d) Coroplast is non-toxic and certified safe for use in contact with food.
C&C cages have become very popular as a type of DIY project. However, in recent years, suitable metal wire grids have become increasingly difficult to obtain. National department store chains have been offering storage cube kits for several years. Until recently, most contained 14-inch square grilles with 9 openings on each side (9×9 matrix). These louvers had openings of approximately 1.5 inches square.
Recently, at least one major chain has drastically redesigned this product. It now contains two varieties of 14-inch grids: grids with a 5×5 matrix of spaces (about 2.8 inches of space) and grids with an 8×8 matrix (about 1.75 inches of space).
CAUTION: Guinea pig owners should strictly avoid these two grid configurations (5×5 and 8×8).
The 5×5 racks are too large and not effective for holding pigs of many sizes. The 8×8 grids are only slightly too large and present a potential choking hazard. We have received bulletins from various guinea pig rescue organizations warning us to avoid 8×8 grids. They cited several strangulation incidents involving grids with these larger openings and advised us to only use 9×9 grids in our guinea pig cage designs.
C&C cages are almost always built as DIY projects and tend to be much larger (and therefore healthier for your pig) than standard manufactured “pet store cages”. Generally, DIY C&C cage builders take one of three approaches. The DIY expert creates the cage from scratch, designing the cage and purchasing the materials themselves. The industrial yet thrifty do-it-yourself buys materials on his own, but only after purchasing cage drawings from a competent C&C cage designer. And the do-it-yourself crafty takes the easy, proven, hassle-free route by purchasing a packaged C&C cage kit, complete with materials and instructions, from a reputable and proven C&C cage vendor.
(C) 2009 Robert M. Matthews