MidWest Critter Nation Double Unit review

Yes, with one caveat. The MidWest Critter Nation Double Unit (model 162) is 36 x 24 x 63 inches, which is 864 square inches — six square feet — of usable floor on each of two levels, behind half-inch horizontal bar spacing, in 44 pounds of powder-coated steel on a castered stand. The half-inch spacing is the whole reason to buy this cage rather than its cheaper twin: it holds a ferret kit and a young rat that one-inch spacing does not. The caveat is that it is a very large object. If you keep adult ferrets whose head width you have measured, or two adult rats rather than four, the Single Unit (161) does the same job in half the height for considerably less money, and the Ferret Nation 182 climbs better for adults who do not need the narrow gap.

This cage is the top pick on our best ferret cages, best rat cages and best chinchilla cages roundups, which is an unusual amount of agreement for one product and a good reason to assess it on its own rather than only in comparison. What follows is the specification, what the specification buys, and the three things about it that are worse than its reputation implies.

The specification, from the manufacturer's own listing

What the half-inch spacing actually buys

A ferret assesses a gap by putting its head into it, and the skull is the widest incompressible part of the animal. If the head passes, the ferret passes. A kit's skull is small enough to pass a one-inch gap, which is why the escapes owners report are overwhelmingly young animals out of wide-barred cages. Half an inch does not pass a kit. That single difference is the entire argument for this cage over the Ferret Nation, which is otherwise the same steel in the same frame — the full comparison is here.

The same gap does a second job for a different species. Young rats escape through wider spacing for the same reason, and the MSPCA's rat housing guidance treats a secure cage with narrow spacing as a basic requirement rather than a feature. That is why this cage leads our rat roundup as well — rat cage bar spacing sets out the figures by age.

Six square feet per level, against what

VCA Animal Hospitals suggests a minimum ferret cage of 24 x 24 x 18 inches, which is about four square feet. Six square feet per level clears that by half again, and 12 square feet across two levels clears it by a factor of three. That sounds decisive and it is worth being honest about why it is not: the VCA suggestion is smaller than essentially every mainstream ferret cage sold, so clearing it separates nothing. We use it as a floor, not as a target.

The more useful comparison is to the alternatives. The Savic Royal Suite 95 gives a longer single level; the Critter Nation gives two six-square-foot levels in a three-foot footprint, which is the most usable floor per square foot of room this category offers. For rats the MSPCA suggests a 24 x 24 x 24 inch multi-level wire cage with half-inch bars for one or two animals, which this cage clears on every dimension, and a Double Unit comfortably houses four — the arithmetic is on rat cage size.

What six square feet per level does not do is substitute for time out of the cage. VCA asks for at least two to three hours a day out of the cage and says the more the better, and no cage on the market changes that; the floor area determines whether the animal is adequately housed between those hours, not whether it needs them.

The full-width doors are the underrated part

Each level opens across its entire front on dual-locking doors. That reads as a convenience feature on a listing and turns out to be the specification you notice most, because it is the one you interact with every week for years. With a full-width door you can reach the back corners, lift out a hammock without dismantling anything, and clean the pan without working around a frame. With a conventional cage door you cannot, and the corner you cannot reach is the corner that gets dirty.

The deep removable pans matter for the same unglamorous reason. Litter and bedding stay inside them rather than scattering through the bars onto the floor, and pulling a pan out is a one-handed job. What fits inside a Critter Nation covers the hammock, litter pan and bowl sizing that the box does not include.

Three things that are worse than the reputation

1. 1.Horizontal half-inch bars give less climbing purchase. The trade is real: the gap that keeps a kit in also gives a ferret or rat less to hook a foot into than the wider vertical-friendly spacing on the Ferret Nation. For an animal that spends its waking hours climbing the walls, that is a genuine reduction in what the enclosure offers, and it is the main reason to prefer the Ferret Nation for measured adults.
2. 2.Assembly is a two-person job and the stand is the fiddly part. It is marketed as tool-free and broadly is, but 44 pounds of steel panels in a flat box, assembled on the floor and then lifted onto a stand, is not a solo afternoon. Budget an hour and a second pair of hands.
3. 3.The casters roll more freely than you want. They lock, and you should lock them. On a hard floor an unlocked cage of this height moves when an animal throws itself at a door, and the stand is tall enough that the movement is unsettling rather than trivial.

None of those are reasons not to buy it. They are the reasons the score below is not a ten, and the kind of thing a listing will not tell you.

Who should buy the Single Unit instead

The 161 is the same cage with one level and no upper box. It is shorter, lighter, cheaper and considerably easier to move, and for a pair of adult rats, a single ferret with generous out-of-cage time, or a room where a 63-inch tower does not fit, it is the sensible purchase rather than the compromise. Critter Nation 161 vs 162 works through the decision in full, including the upgrade path — the add-on unit means starting with the single does not lock you out of the double later.

For chinchillas the calculation shifts again: the levels and the climbing matter more than the floor, and the half-inch spacing is a straightforward safety win. Best chinchilla cages covers the species-specific caveats, including the wheel diameter no cage in this category ships with.

The assessment, and the three alternatives

Our pick · Ferrets of any age, and kits especially

MidWest Critter Nation Double Unit (162)

The half-inch bar spacing is the whole argument: it is the same cage as the Ferret Nation with a gap a ferret kit cannot get its head through.

✓ Clears our threshold6 sq ft per level and 1/2 in bars

Dimensions

36 x 24 x 63 in including the rolling stand

Continuous floor

36 x 24 = 864 sq in (6 sq ft) per level, two levels

Bar spacing

1/2 in horizontal

Material

Powder-coated steel with deep removable plastic pans

Levels and ramps

Two levels with a locking swing-up ramp and full-width doors

What it gets right

• +1/2 in bar spacing holds a kit that 1 in spacing does not
• +6 sq ft of usable floor per level, comfortably over our per-level bar
• +Full-width doors mean you can reach every corner, which matters weekly
• +Deep pans contain litter rather than spreading it

What it gets wrong

• −Horizontal half-inch bars give less climbing purchase than wider spacing
• −Heavy and awkward to assemble alone
• −The stand's casters roll on hard floors more than you want them to

Who should buy something else

Not necessary if your ferrets are adults and you have measured their head width against 1 in. The Ferret Nation costs less and climbs better; the half-inch is insurance you may not need.

Specifications read from MidWest product listing and retailer specifications on 27 September 2026. Floor-area arithmetic is ours and is shown above so you can redo it.

Illustrative

Our assessment9.5/10

• Bar spacing safety10
• Usable floor per level9
• Cleaning access10
• Build quality9
• Escape resistance10

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Number 2 · A single ferret, or a first half of a double

MidWest Critter Nation Single Unit (161)

The same 6 sq ft floor and the same half-inch bars in one level, which is the right buy only if you are certain you will add the second unit.

✓ Clears our threshold6 sq ft on one level, 1/2 in bars

Dimensions

36 x 24 x 25.625 in for the cage section

Continuous floor

36 x 24 = 864 sq in (6 sq ft), one level

Bar spacing

1/2 in horizontal

Material

Powder-coated steel with a deep removable plastic pan

Levels and ramps

One level, with a shelf; a second unit stacks on top later

What it gets right

• +Identical 1/2 in bar spacing safety
• +6 sq ft of usable floor
• +Cheaper entry point, and the 162 upper unit fits it later

What it gets wrong

• −One level gives a ferret much less vertical variety than two
• −Buying the single then upgrading costs more than buying the double outright

Who should buy something else

Wrong for two or more ferrets. One level of 6 sq ft is enough floor and nowhere near enough structure for a pair that will spend their waking hours in it.

Specifications read from MidWest product listing on 27 September 2026. Floor-area arithmetic is ours and is shown above so you can redo it.

Illustrative

Our assessment8.3/10

• Bar spacing safety10
• Usable floor per level9
• Cleaning access10
• Build quality9
• Vertical space4

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Number 3 · Adult ferrets that climb

MidWest Ferret Nation Double Unit (182)

Slightly more floor per level than the Critter Nation and a one-inch bar gap, which is fine for a grown ferret and the reason kits escape.

≈ Clears part of itFloor passes; 1 in bars fail our half-inch filter for kits

Dimensions

36 x 25 x 62.5 in including the rolling stand

Continuous floor

36 x 25 = 900 sq in (6.25 sq ft) per level, two levels

Bar spacing

1 in

Material

Powder-coated steel with deep removable plastic pans

Levels and ramps

Two levels with locking swing-up ramps and ramp covers

What it gets right

• +6.25 sq ft per level, marginally more than the Critter Nation
• +1 in bars give much better climbing purchase
• +Same full-width doors, deep pans and locking ramps
• +Usually cheaper than the equivalent Critter Nation

What it gets wrong

• −1 in spacing is the single reason ferret kits get out of this cage
• −No way to retrofit narrower spacing; the fix is a different cage or wire panels

Who should buy something else

Never for kits, and not for a small jill who can flatten her head through a one-inch gap. Measure the animal, not the marketing, and buy the Critter Nation if there is any doubt.

Specifications read from MidWest product listing on 27 September 2026. Floor-area arithmetic is ours and is shown above so you can redo it.

Illustrative

Our assessment8.6/10

• Bar spacing safety6
• Usable floor per level10
• Cleaning access10
• Build quality9
• Climbing10

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Number 4 · Two ferrets that sometimes need separating

Savic Royal Suite 95 Rat and Ferret Cage

The most floor per level of the three big ferret cages and the only one that splits into two separate cages, at 13mm spacing that is functionally the Critter Nation's half-inch.

✓ Clears our threshold6.4 sq ft per level and 13mm bars

Dimensions

95 x 63 x 159 cm (37.4 x 24.8 x 62.6 in)

Continuous floor

95 x 63 cm = 5,985 cm2, about 928 sq in (6.4 sq ft) per level

Bar spacing

13mm (about 1/2 in)

Material

Powder-coated steel with horizontal and vertical mesh, made in Belgium

Levels and configuration

Two levels that can be split into two separate cages

What it gets right

• +928 sq in per level, more than either MidWest cage
• +13mm spacing is effectively the half-inch standard
• +Splits into two independent cages, which solves introductions and illness
• +Horizontal bars give climbing purchase that half-inch horizontal mesh usually loses

What it gets wrong

• −Harder to buy in the US than the MidWest cages, and spares are harder still
• −159cm tall, so the top level is above eye level for many owners
• −Costs more than the Critter Nation

Who should buy something else

Not the sensible pick if you want next-day spares and a replacement pan from a local retailer. That is where the MidWest cages win regardless of specification.

Specifications read from Savic specifications via retailer listing on 27 September 2026. Floor-area arithmetic is ours and is shown above so you can redo it.

Illustrative

Our assessment9.2/10

• Bar spacing safety10
• Usable floor per level10
• Cleaning access9
• Build quality10
• Configurability10

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Verdict

Buy the Critter Nation Double Unit if you are buying for a kit, for a growing animal, for an animal you have not met yet, or for four rats. The half-inch spacing removes the one failure mode in this category that costs people their animal, the six square feet per level is the most floor per square foot of room on offer, and the full-width doors make the weekly clean a job rather than a chore. It is heavy, it is tall, and the bars climb less well than its own cheaper sibling's.

Buy the Single Unit if the height or the price is the binding constraint, and the Ferret Nation if your ferrets are adults, you have measured them, and you would rather have the climbing surface. Those are three good outcomes from one range, which is the real reason this cage keeps winning our roundups.