Review of the Savic Mickey 2XL

Maz

Maz

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This cage doesn't seem to be available any more but I'm reviewing it anyway in case anyone ever sees a second hand one. It used to only be sold by Amazon (in the Uk and the US). I have had mine for about 7 years. It's a great cage. It is basically exactly the same cage as the Hamster Heaven - except - it doesn't have the tubes and penthouse (so no holes in the top either) and has 7mm bar spacing instead of 1cm bar spacing.

It's a great cage if you want narrow bar spacing - eg for a tiny robo. At one time dwarf hamsters were considered to need either narrow bar spacing or a tank style cage, to prevent them getting trapped in bars (or escaping!). These days most people find dwarf hamsters are ok with 1cm bar spacing.

The main reason I wanted the narrow bar spacing was - we lived in an old house at the time and occasionally got mice. It was to keep mice out! Mice can get through anything bigger than 7mm bar spacing (and the cage is intended to keep mice in).

It is 80cm x 50cm - the same as the hamster heaven and has the same big front opening door. I have used it for Syrians and a Robo before. If you ever see pictures of mine on here, the base is a different colour. My original blue base got broken in a house move so I bought a Ferplast base that fitted (which is grey).

The Pros are:

The 7 mm bar spacing (althogh there is one bar on the front door that is actually 1cm! I blocked that one off!).
The fact it is a solid and well made cage top and doesn't have cut outs for tubes or the penthouse - the top is solid bars
It has that large front opening door.
It is a good height at 38cm tall (36 cm internally) in that there are no fall risks - this is especially good for dwarf hamsters.
It comes with the smaller sized Sputnik which is always useful.

The Cons are:

It can be slightly on the low side for fitting a Syrian sized wheel in. A 29cm wheel fits. A 30cm wheel doesn't
It comes with a metal grid shelf for mice which is not suitable for hamsters so needs removing.
The other accessories are mouse sized - a few plastic tubes and too small for hamsters - they need removing - our Syrian got stuck in them.
It's not available any more! That I am aware of.

It's a solid, well made cage and could be suitable for a dwarf hamster.
 

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Exactly - the shelf went straight in the bin. Although maybe I should have kept it for some diy purpose. I'm not even sure a wire shelf is any good for mice actually. Other than that, for a dwarf hamster it came with a half decent sized wheel, a sputnik and some floor tubes (plus a food bowl and a useless water bottle). It has never been that widely available which is a shame as now Zooplus isn't doing Skyline cages, there are hardly any with narrow bar spacing any more.

I think Savic have compromised on that by having cages with 0.9mm bar spacing instead. Smaller than 1cm but still not as small as 6 or 7mm. There were a lot of German cages with 6 or 7 mm bar spacing but they're not available in the Uk any more. Very frustrating! I wonder what mouse owners are using now.
 
My friend has a rat cage for her mice. I am not sure which one it is.
 
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That sounds interesting because I know mice are supposed to need 6 or 7mm bar spacing and I can't think which rat cage has that. There might be one though. I read up on the mouse forum years ago because I wanted a cage that would keep a mouse out! And at the time they were saying mice escaped even from 7mm bar spacing sometimes and the only other alternative was a tank. I think it was difficult to find suitable mouse cages.
 
I will ask her which cage it is. It may be a hamster cage then. I think she originally looked at rat cages and then saw a bargain cage for second hand so got that instead.
 
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I always laugh so much when you say "Maureen the shredder"! 🤣 . But what a good idea putting a hemp mat over it. I did toy with the idea of putting cardboard over it at the time but decided it took up too much space in the cage.
 
I have a Mickey too and love it. It's an ideal cage for a dwarf hamster.

I think some very tiny mice could get through 7mm spacing. Someone I know has a mouse who is literally just a bit bigger than my thumb.
 
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I think you're right, some mice could get through it. There is space on the top of the cage door that is actually 1cm. I used to block that off with a 12" ruler and a book :) 6mm is supposed to be ideal for mice. There used to be a liberta cage with 6mm bar spacing. And quite a few in Germany as well which we can't get any more.

It's definitely my favourite cage - although I sometimes wish it was 100cm long but the same height. It has lasted well (apart from the plastic base which I had to replace). Mind you I haven't had a hamster heaven and some people prefer those, but it's virtually the same cage. I do like that it doesn't have any holes in the bars though.
 
Maz said:
That sounds interesting because I know mice are supposed to need 6 or 7mm bar spacing and I can't think which rat cage has that. There might be one though. I read up on the mouse forum years ago because I wanted a cage that would keep a mouse out! And at the time they were saying mice escaped even from 7mm bar spacing sometimes and the only other alternative was a tank. I think it was difficult to find suitable mouse cages.
Click to expand...
She said it is Ferplast Furat plus rat cage
 
Maybe she's meshed it? I think that is 1cm bar spacing which is narrow for a rat cage but I can't see it keeping mice in unless she's meshed it! It's a great cage though - too tall for hamsters but a great height for rats (and mice).
 
Some people have used this cage for mice. It has mouse bar spacing (just under 7mm). The complaints used to be that mouse pee makes the wood shelves smell, but I guess if they are well plastikoted ...................Others have just used a tank. I am honestly not sure of the cage sizes needed for mice except they can do better with more height.

This cage is frustrating as if it was twice the size it would be great for hamsters! But the floor area is far too small.

I think she must have meshed her Ferplast cage :)

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Maz said:
Maybe she's meshed it? I think that is 1cm bar spacing which is narrow for a rat cage but I can't see it keeping mice in unless she's meshed it! It's a great cage though - too tall for hamsters but a great height for rats (and mice).
Click to expand...
Her mice actual nose cannot even fit through the bars. They are big mice. Maybe you are thinking of tiny field mice? She did not need to mesh the cage.
 
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Ah ok!
 
I'm no expert on mice ha ha. I just knew mice bar spacing was 7mm or less usually but maybe it depends on the size of the mice :)
 
Maz said:
I'm no expert on mice ha ha. I just knew mice bar spacing was 7mm or less usually but maybe it depends on the size of the mice :)
Click to expand...
She has fancy mice and they are much bigger then house or field mice. :)
 
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Apologies to your friend then :)
 
Beryl said:
I used this wire shelf in an Alaska cage and put a large boredom breaker mat on it. The one that has the ties.
Then i put Maureen the shredder in it and she shredded the mat so that was the end of that shelf.
Click to expand...
"Maureen the Shredder" 🤣🤣
 
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