Zoozone 2 (Zoozone Large)

[Riven]

Height: 37cm
Width: 100cm
Depth: 51cm
Floorspace: 5,100 sqcm / 790sqin
Bar spacing: ~1.5 inch



Despite being marketed as a guinea pig cage, it isn't a suitable enclosure for them, however it is perfect for a dwarf hamster. I personally use it for roborovski hamsters as there isn't a way to easily escape this tank style cage when the lid has been meshed. It comes with a poorly designed hay rack, bottle holder and trough like bowl which are useless so I threw them away. I purchased the zoozone 2 from Jolleyes 2-3 years ago when it was £55, it is still available there and is now £79.99. I have seen quite a few being sold second hand for about £30.

Pros:
- Offers a lot of space for everything your hamster needs
- Pretty escape proof in regards to tiny robos.
- Can fit a 12 inch wheel although it is a bit snug.
- Can easily hold 8 inches of bedding.
- Nice large door which makes cleaning and interacting with your hamster easy.

Cons:
- Requires some DIY meshing the lid which can become difficult to open/close when done.
- As it is a tank style cage, it can trap heat so you need to be mindful where you place it eg not in direct sunlight. You also need to be wary that it doesn't trap heat on hot days.
- Ventilation isn't as good as a barred cage.
- Not suitable for a hamster that likes to chew as there are indents for the hay rack to sit in that a hamster could easily get their teeth into like my Mania did (see below). However, this can easily be fixed by filling them in with resin.

 

[Maz]

Is the bar spacing really 1.5"? That's a huge gap between the bars! Must be about 4cm then?. Did you find it easy enough to mesh so the mesh didn't affect opening and closing the door? It's a great idea for a robo as there aren't many 100cm cages with narrow bar spacing. Shame it's gone up in price so much.

Is it like the Maxi Duna multy in that there is a bottle hole that hamsters can get their teeth into to chew? I know some people use a nut and bolt or a screw in wood carrot chew to block the hole off in the Maxi duna.

With the mention of fixing holes with resin - that would be a good topic to show how it's done - if anyone has done it before.

 

[Riven]

Yes it really is that big of a space. Most guinea pig/rabbit cages have 1-2 inch bar spacing.

Meshing was a bit of a nightmare for me and I needed to take several breaks while doing it. I forgot to mention I used 13mm² galvanized mesh on the inside of the lid and zip tied it.

It depends on where you put the zip ties, sometimes you will catch parts where the lid sits and can be a bit tricky to open/close it initially. It's a bit difficult to explain so I'll get a photo in the morning showing what I mean.

I think it's one of the cheapest tanks of its size, even now despite these price going up. I've seen a lot going second hand too, especially on Facebook marketplace so that's always a good place to look to keep costs down. I *nearly* got myself a second one because I like them that much.

Oh one other con I've just thought of is the ventilation isn't as good as a wire cage. Could you add that in the original post please @Maz

 

[Maz]

Added that. I would think the ventilation is ok though with that huge barred lid - that's an important point about keeping it away from sunlight though.

 

[Member ID2]

I have meshed several for other people.
I always mesh from the outside because i prefer to keep any edges away from hamsters even though i file them down. I do the same with bin cages.
It is possible to mesh it securely without it affecting the opening and closing of the lid but it took me a couple of attempts the first time.

 

[Riven]

Only reason why I did the mesh on the inside was because I was worried that a hamster would try and squish between the mesh and the existing bars. It's all been filed down so not sharp at all.

I do have a question regarding the bin cages when you mesh the fronts and sides. How do you stop a hamster from chewing the plastic edge?

 

[Member ID2]

You can't stop a hamster from chewing the plastic edge but the same applies to any cage with a plastic base.
None of the hamsters i've kept in a bin cage chewed the edges. I think they would be more likely to have a go at the cable ties first.
I suppose the only suitable enclosure for a serious chewer would be a glass tank.

 

[Maz]

I've also heard that meshing from the inside ensures the hamster can't get trapped between the bars and the mesh. It must be a very tricky thing to do. I don't know how likely it is they would get between the bars and the mesh, but it has happened.

I have never meshed a cage - I admire anyone who has!

 

[Member ID2]

I can only see this happening if people don't use enough cable ties so there's some 'give' between bars and mesh.

 

[Maz]

Ah good point. So you use a lot of cable ties in the centre part of the mesh then? I think traditionally the cable ties have only been round the edges. When people mesh a whole cage, it was always recommended to mesh the inside.

 

[Member ID2]

Yes, i use a lot of cable ties, all over the lid because i want the mesh to be completely flash against the bars, without any areas that could lift up.

 

[Maz]

Good idea! Whether meshed on the outside or the inside it still sounds like quite a fiddly thing to do! But makes the Zoozone a much cheaper option than a Maxi Duna multi (and they are a slightly different shape).

 

[Member ID2]

I've never meshed a whole cage and have never read a manual on meshing either. Maybe i should have. Then i would have considered meshing from the inside. It never ocurred to me to do that because i thought meshing from the outside was safer.

That's typical me though. I assemble furniture without reading the instructions first but read them when i get stuck. Of course, it has happened that i had to take everything apart to start again.

 

[Maz]

I don't think there is a manual - people just picked up ideas from other people along the way . In Canada they find it hard to get hamster cages sometimes and I remember one Canadian owner who always got guinea pig cages and meshed them - I think it was her tips that were for meshing on the inside. I think with the Zoozone it's just the lid so it would be fine with lots of cable ties. I suppose the hamster could chew through all the cable ties but that would take some time and so you'd see if it was happening. I know I wouldn't be very good at it! I would do a lid but not a whole cage unless there was no other option!