Questions and answers
The questions we get most
Short answers with the figure and the body that published it. Each one links to the page that shows the working.
If a question here has a number in the answer, that number came from somewhere and the link tells you where. Nothing on this page is a figure of ours dressed up as a standard — where we do recommend something stricter than a published minimum, the answer says so.
How much space each species needs
What size cage does a hamster need?
At least 775 square inches (5,000 cm2) of continuous floor — the figure PDSA publishes as 100 x 50cm, and the same figure published independently by Blue Cross, Wood Green and Germany's veterinary animal-welfare association. Measure the inside of the base and add nothing for shelves, upper levels or tubes. Full method in hamster cage size.
How much space does a rabbit need?
At least 3m x 2m x 1m high — about 64.5 square feet — published independently by both the Rabbit Welfare Association and Fund and the RSPCA for two medium rabbits. RWAF adds that the footprint must be a single unbroken block, and that platforms, tunnels and upper floors do not count towards it. A single rabbit needs the same space. See rabbit hutch size.
What size cage do two guinea pigs need?
Humane World for Animals publishes 7.5 square feet as the bare minimum for two and at least 10.5 square feet (30 x 50 inches) as preferred. We recommend the preferred figure, because guinea pigs are obligately social so a pair is the normal case rather than the exception. See guinea pig cage size.
What size cage does a ferret need?
VCA Animal Hospitals suggests a minimum of 24 x 24 x 18 inches, which is smaller than every mainstream ferret cage sold and therefore not a useful filter. Our own threshold, labeled as ours, is at least six square feet of usable floor per level on a multi-level cage, with half-inch bar spacing. See ferret cage size.
Do shelves and upper levels count towards cage size?
No. Every published figure measures continuous floor. A shelf is somewhere to sit rather than somewhere to burrow, and RWAF states explicitly that upper floors, platforms, tunnels and connectors do not count towards a rabbit's footprint, because the area exists so the animal can run.
Are pet-store cages big enough?
Generally no, and that is the finding this site exists to report. Of ten hamster enclosures we measured, three clear the published minimum and none of those three is sold in a pet shop; cages designed for pet-shop shelves cluster between 230 and 620 square inches against a 775 minimum. No rabbit hutch on sale provides the published 64.5 square foot enclosure at all.
Bedding, materials and safety
Is pine or cedar bedding safe?
We would not use it. Softwoods release phenols, and a veterinary-authored account published by the House Rabbit Society documents raised liver enzymes and reduced drug effectiveness — including for anaesthetics — in rodents exposed to phenol-containing litters. Humane World for Animals separately states that cedar and pine are not recommended. Aspen is a hardwood with no phenol issue at a similar price. See is pine bedding safe for hamsters.
Does pine bedding cause cancer?
The evidence for that specific claim is described by the same source that documents the phenol mechanism as at best only suggestive, with causation unclear. We report it that way rather than inflating it. The solid part of the case against softwood is the liver enzyme and drug-metabolism finding, which is sufficient on its own.
Is powder coated steel toxic?
No. Powder coating is a dry process with no solvents that cures into an inert thermoset film, which is why it is the safest common cage material. The thing to watch is a breached coating, because the exposed steel then rusts and creates a chewable edge. See cage materials safety.
What bedding depth does a hamster need?
PDSA publishes at least 25cm — ten inches. The San Diego Humane Society publishes at least six inches with eight to twelve best. Both figures are about the same thing: a burrow that holds its shape rather than collapsing. That works out at roughly 127 liters of substrate over a 775 square inch floor. See deep bedding.
What size wheel does a hamster need?
At least 30cm (12 inches) for a Syrian and 20cm (8 inches) for a dwarf, per PDSA, with a solid running surface rather than slats or bars. Almost every wheel bundled with a cage fails on diameter, surface or both, which makes replacing it the cheapest worthwhile upgrade most owners can make. See the safest hamster wheels.
Are wire floors acceptable?
No. Humane World for Animals states that cages with wire floors are unacceptable for small pets, and standing on wire causes sore hocks — pressure ulcers on the underside of the foot, where these animals have fur over bone rather than a protective pad. If a hutch ships with one, cover most of its area before the animal uses it.
What bedding should I avoid entirely?
Fibrous nesting fluff, which tangles around limbs and toes and can restrict circulation, and which does not break down if swallowed. It is sold as small-pet bedding and it is the one product on our list that causes injuries rather than irritation. Plain unscented toilet paper is a better nest and costs nothing. See safe and unsafe hamster bedding.
How this site works
Who writes this site?
Every page is written by Ryder M., the owner behind Magoo Media Group, which publishes the site. There is no editorial team and no rotating byline. No veterinary qualification, license, certification or professional membership is claimed anywhere, because none was established — and we state that rather than leaving it vague. See about.
Do you test the products you recommend?
No, and we will not imply otherwise. Our assessments are based on manufacturer specification sheets, published welfare standards and each product's currently listed dimensions, with the arithmetic printed on the page so you can redo it. There is no testing lab behind this site and no product library. The full method is in how we assess products.
Why are there no prices anywhere on this site?
Because a price we published last month is a price we cannot stand behind today. Prices on small-pet housing move constantly, and a page carrying a stale figure is misleading by the time anyone reads it, so every buy link goes to the live retailer listing instead. It reads less satisfyingly and it is more honest. One consequence: we cannot rank products by value for money, so if two enclosures both clear the threshold, price is your tiebreaker to apply.
How does this site make money?
Through the Amazon Associates program: we may earn a commission when you buy through a link here, at no extra cost to you. Some products we recommend are not sold on Amazon and earn us nothing, and those buttons say so. The full terms are in our affiliate disclosure.
Does commission change which products you recommend?
No, and the structure is what protects that rather than our word. The first filter applied to any product is arithmetic against a floor-area figure someone else published; both the figure and the arithmetic are printed on the page next to the product. A product moved up a list for commercial reasons would be visible in the numbers. It is also why the cheapest hamster housing we recommend is a storage tub you convert yourself, which earns us almost nothing.
Why are there no star ratings or reader ratings on this site?
Because we hold no first-party rating data, so publishing a rating or a review count would mean inventing one. The visible score on a product is our own assessment of its published specifications, and it deliberately never appears in the page's structured data. There are no testimonials on this site for the same reason.
Where do your figures come from?
Each one is published by a named body and linked at the point we use it: PDSA and the San Diego Humane Society for hamsters, RWAF and the RSPCA for rabbits, Humane World for Animals for guinea pigs, VCA Animal Hospitals for ferrets, and the House Rabbit Society for the softwood bedding evidence. Where our own threshold is stricter than a published minimum, the page labels it as ours and gives the reasoning.
What happens when two sources disagree?
We show both figures, name both issuers, adopt the stricter one as our own threshold, and say that is what we have done. We do not average two figures into a number nobody published. Hamster wheel diameter is the clearest example: PDSA says 30cm for a Syrian and the San Diego Humane Society says 10-12 inches, so an 11-inch wheel sits in the gap and we score it as a partial pass.
Does the RSPCA publish a hamster cage size?
No, and this matters because a great many pages attribute a square-inch figure to it. We read the RSPCA's hamster environment guidance directly and it is qualitative throughout, with no floor-area, bar-spacing or wheel-diameter number anywhere on it. See hamster welfare minimums.
What is the 450 square inch figure people quote for hamsters?
A number in wide circulation without an issuing body behind it. We looked for one among veterinary and welfare organizations and did not find it; where it is attributed at all, it is attributed to enthusiast communities. It is much better than a pet-store habitat and short of most published minimums, so treat it as a meaningful improvement rather than a standard you have met.
How do I report a mistake on this site?
Email contact@hayandhutch.com with the page and the figure — it is the most useful message we receive. Where you are right we correct the page and update its date, rather than quietly editing it to look as though the error was never there. The full standard is in our editorial policy.
Can you give advice about my sick animal?
No. Nobody writing for this site is a veterinarian and no page here has been reviewed by one, so a question about an unwell animal needs a vet rather than a website. Our scope is enclosures: floor area, bar spacing, materials, bedding depth and placement. If an animal is unwell, please do not wait for an email reply from a website.
Not answered here?
The four size guides are the fullest answers on the site: hamster cage size, rabbit hutch size, guinea pig cage size and ferret cage size. If a question is genuinely unanswered anywhere on the site, that is worth knowing about — tell us.