CHAPTER VIII

HOUSES FOR ANIMALS

The sizes and shapes of these houses and cages will depend upon the animals for which they are built and the places you have to put them. Frequently they can be built to advantage against the side of a building, or a fence, or in a corner, and boxes can be utilised in various ways.

Make the houses, cages, and runways as large as you can afford, for there is much more danger of the pets being cramped and crowded than of their having too much room.

Wire netting or wire cloth (held in place by staples) should be freely used, as ventilation is very important for the health and comfort of the animals. Special openings should always be made for cleaning the houses or cages in case all parts cannot be conveniently reached from the doors, for cleanliness is of the utmost importance in all such structures. The floors of the larger houses should always slant or have holes provided for drainage. Covering the floors with sheets of zinc will promote cleanliness. In the smaller cages removable pans or trays can often be used (Fig. 190). Houses and cages with wooden floors should always be raised from the ground on posts, blocks, or stones, to avoid dampness. Clean sand scattered over the floor and frequently renewed will contribute much to the cleanliness of the cages. The bedding should also be changed frequently.

In the case of those animals which use their teeth for gnawing, the corners and angles can be protected by tacking on strips of wire cloth, tin, or zinc, but there is no need to do this over the flat surfaces. In the case of cages or houses (and the runways) which have the ground for the floor and are to be inhabited by animals that will burrow or dig their way out, the wire netting should be continued underground to a considerable depth, or it can be carried down a little way and then bent to lie horizontally, forming a sort of wire floor, over which the dirt can be replaced, and the animals will be unable to tunnel their way out; but in all such cases care must be taken to proportion the mesh of the netting and the size of the wire to the strength and escaping powers of the animals.

Houses for animals often look pretty when made in imitation of real houses, but when you do this choose simple types of good proportions, and do not try to copy all the little details of the large houses. Avoid "gingerbread" work, and do not cover your houses with meaningless jig-sawed scroll work and rows of towers and pinnacles, and do not use all the colours of the rainbow in painting them.

For houses, hutches, boxes, cages, etc., which are to be kept out of doors or in some outbuilding, ordinary machine-planed stock of fair quality is sufficiently good, and planing and smoothing by hand is usually a waste of labour; but if you wish to make a small cage or box to be kept in the house, and to be nicely finished or painted, good clear stock should be used, and the final smoothing done by hand.

In case you wish to make several cages or boxes of the same pattern, as, for example, like Fig. 178, it is much less work to go through the process with two or more at a time than to make each separately.

A house for pets should not be built, as is sometimes done, on a platform or base projecting beyond the base of the house, as this tends to collect and retain moisture and dampness, but should be clear of any platform, like an ordinary dwelling-house, so that the rain will be shed directly upon the ground.

When two or more boards are required for each side of the roof it is usually better to lay them up and down, as in Fig. 187, rather than horizontally or lengthways, because a roof laid in this way is better about shedding the water, which tends to collect in the cracks if the boards are laid horizontally. For the rougher structures the hinges can be screwed flat upon the outside (as shown in Fig. 179), but for nice work they should be fitted in the usual way. (See _Hinges_.)

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Before beginning work upon these cages and houses, read carefully _Marking_, _Rule_, _Square_, _Saw_, _Plane_, _Nailing_, and look up any other references.

Cheap and serviceable cages and houses can be built by simply driving posts or stakes into the ground and fastening wire cloth or netting to them, much as you would build a fence. This wire-fenced enclosure can be covered with a wooden roof if desired. A runway and playground can easily be made in this way.

A more portable arrangement can be made by putting together wooden frames covered with wire. Very simple forms are shown in Fig. 175. By putting together four or more of such frames a cage can readily be made which can be covered with a wooden roof or with wire (Fig. 176). If these frames are fastened with screws or screw-eyes and hooks, the whole can quickly be taken apart if desired.

A very simple cage can be easily made, on the principle of the common chicken coop, with a few boards or slats and a little wire netting (Fig. 177), but a house of this sort is not especially desirable except for economy of materials and labour. The construction is too simple to require description.

A much better form is that with upright sides, or with one slanting side. Figs. 178 and 179 show an excellent arrangement, easily made. It can be made any desired size or proportions and is suitable for quite a variety of animals. If small, 1/2" stock will be thick enough, but if large, 7/8" stock should be used. The construction is similar to that of a common box (see _Box-making_, page 219). One corner of each end should be sawed off slantingly (Fig. 178), and a rectangular piece cut from the opposite corner, as shown, before the box is nailed together. The bevelling of the edges of the top and front boards can be done after the box is put together (see _Bevelling_). For making the door, see _Doors_, in Part V. The hinged board at the bottom gives access for cleaning. If for indoors, and to be finished or painted, clear stock should be selected and the outside carefully smoothed. (See _Plane_, _Scraper_, _Sandpaper_, _Finishing_, and _Painting_.)

For something more like a house, the design shown in Fig. 180 is good and of simple construction. This can be made of any size from that of a small box to a small house. For the latter, see _Part III. (House-building for Beginners)_.

To make a little house of this pattern first get out the bottom of the required dimensions, and then the ends, which are alike and to be nailed to the ends of the bottom. Take pains to be accurate in getting out the pieces, or the house will be askew when put together. The construction of the sides is plain. The door can be made as in Fig. 180 (see _Doors_), or the sides can be entirely of wire and the door placed at the end (Fig. 181). The roof is simply nailed down in place, one side being got out as much wider than the other as the thickness of the stock, so that one will lap over the edge of the other at the ridge. If the angle formed at the top is not a right angle, however, the edge of the narrower roof-board must be bevelled according to the angle (see _Bevelling_).

A house of this sort can be made with one end closed, while the other remains open (Fig. 182). This is a good arrangement for many animals. First get out the floor, then the pieces for the closed end, cutting out the doorway and a window, if one is desired. These openings can be cut as shown on page 122. Next get out the framework for the open end and fasten it in position. A door can be fitted wherever desired and the roof put on, as just shown.

A house or cage, chiefly open-work, with two sleeping-boxes or nests (Fig. 183) is similar in general construction. This is suitable for indoors (as in an outbuilding). If to be left exposed to the weather, a solid roof can be added, or it can be covered with canvas or something of the sort when necessary. The construction is similar to that of those already described. This cage can be used for pigeons and other pets, and can be made of any size, according to circumstances. For the door, see _Doors_ and _Hinges_, in Part V. The box attachments can best be made at the same time, just alike (see _Box-making_, page 219), and fastened to the sides of the house, the doorways having been cut in the sides before the house was put together. If these boxes or nests cannot be readily reached for cleaning, they should be hinged to the main house, or have special openings with lids or doors, so that they can be kept clean. The ridge-pole is simply a strip of board placed horizontally between the upper ends of the rafters.

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=Rabbit Hutch.=--A simple rabbit-house, or hutch, can be made by putting together a good-sized box, partitioning off one end, to be closed by a door, and leaving the rest open, except for the necessary wire sides (Fig. 184).

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This is made just like a box (see _Box-making_, page 219), the other details being similar to those already shown. A sliding-door (Fig. 185) can be inserted, if desired, to cover the hole between the closed and open parts. The hutch should be raised from the ground to avoid dampness, and proper arrangements for cleanliness made, as referred to above.

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A more elaborate hutch (Fig. 186) can be constructed in a similar manner to the houses already shown. Access to the open part can be had by means of the doors or lids on top. For the doors, see _Doors_ and _Hinges_. The slides for the door at the end can be made by cutting a rabbet at the edge of a square stick, as shown, or the rabbet can be formed by using strips of different widths, letting the wider lap over the narrower so as to form the rabbet. Both doors can be made to swing in the usual way, of course, if preferred. Where the two sides of the roof meet at the top, the edges must be bevelled (see _Bevelling_).

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=Kennel.=--There are many kinds of dog-houses, and the style and size must, of course, depend upon the dog and the situation.

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A good kennel (Fig. 187) for a small dog can be made very much as you would make a box (see _Box-making_, page 219). If for a very small dog the ends, sides, floor, and sides of the roof can each be made of one piece, but ordinarily these parts will each be made of two or more pieces. Matched boards are suitable. First get out the bottom, then the sides and ends. If you use boards with square edges you must of course use pieces of different widths, so that the cracks between them will not meet at the corners, or put posts at the corners. This is the best way to do with matched boards, if the house is at all large. Nail these parts together. It will be easiest to cut the slant at the top of each end--the gable--so that the sides of the roof will meet in a right angle. This looks well and saves the need of bevelling the edges of the roof-boards. An opening for the doorway should be cut in one of the ends before the roof is nailed on. If you do not use matched boards, a strip should be nailed on the inside at each side of the doorway, to keep the boards together. The roof-boards for one side should be as much longer than those for the other as the thickness of the stock. The same applies to the width of the saddle-boards which cover the extreme top. If the roof is not made of matched boards, battens should be nailed over the cracks as shown in Part III.

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For a large dog a kennel should be built more like a real +house+ and not so much like a box. A structure with a frame (Fig. 188) can be built of any size suitable for a kennel, and will be more durable than the preceding form.

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For the frame, small joists, or strips of plank of any size from 1-1/2" × 2" to 2" × 3" can be used. First get out the sills or bottom pieces of the framework, nailing them together at the corners to form a rectangular frame, as shown in Fig. 189.

Then get out the corner posts and fasten them in place, and on top of them fasten the plates (a second horizontal frame like that at the bottom); and see that all this framework is rectangular and free from winding. The sills and plates can be halved at the corners (see _Halving_), but this is not really necessary in so small a house, as the boarding adds strength to the joints. The frame can be temporarily held in place until the boarding is put on by nailing on as many diagonal strips (Fig. 189) as may be required. Two rafters at each end should next be put in place, their ends having been cut at an angle of 45° (see _Mitreing_) and the upper ends being nailed to a strip of board which serves for a ridge-pole. An intermediate rafter on each side will add stiffness to the roof. The floor should next be laid, as it will be inconvenient in so small a house to do this after the sides are put on. The sides and ends should be boarded with sheathing or matched boards laid vertically, cutting out the doorway and a small window in the back gable for ventilation. The roof can next be laid with the boards running horizontally, or lengthwise, as this house is to be shingled. The shingles can be dipped in creosote stain or paint to good advantage before laying. After the roof has been shingled the saddle-boards can be put on and the house will be ready for painting (see _Painting_). Another form of doorway is shown in Fig. 189_a_. For the various details of a framed structure of this sort, see _Part III. (House-building for Beginners)_.

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The author of _House and Pet Dogs_ gives the following suggestion:

"The best device is an ordinary single kennel forty-eight inches by thirty-three inches, with an A roof, but with a detached bottom of the same size as the outside ground measurement of the kennel. This bottom is hinged by two stout strap-iron hinges to the side of the kennel, and is provided with two wooden axles, to which are fitted four wooden wheels, say four inches in diameter. When closed it looks like any other kennel on wheels. It can be easily moved by one person from damp spots, etc.; and by turning the kennel back upon its hinges the bedding can be daily sunned and aired and the kennel washed and purified without trouble. The wheels also serve to keep the bottom clear of the ground, and allow of a free circulation of air beneath."

=Squirrel House.=--The small squirrel house, or cage, shown in Fig. 190, is made like a box (see _Box-making_, page 219), with the exception of the roof. The construction is similar to that of the houses already described.

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It can be made of 7/8" or 3/4" stock. The dimensions of the bottom can be made to agree with those of any baking-pan you may have, as shown. The slide in the roof can be made of zinc or tin. That in the side can be of either zinc or wood. After the wire cloth has been nailed on a strip of wood can be nailed around the front edge as a moulding. The little sleeping-box in the upper corner can be readily reached from the slide in the roof and connects with the floor of the house by a little door and a flight of steps (Fig. 191). The latter can be made as shown in Fig. 173. The most difficult part of this house to make nicely is the joining of the roof-boards. These must be bevelled at the ridge and the tops of the ends must also be bevelled where they join the roof (see _Bevelling_). For other details, see the houses already described.

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A more +elaborate+ affair, shown below, can be made quite large and will give room for a whole family of squirrels. This house is, however, considerably more difficult to make than the others shown in this chapter, and if you have not already acquired some skill as a workman you had best be content with a simpler design.

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Four or five feet by about three feet will not be too large for the ground dimensions of the main part of the house. Regular sills can first be nailed together for the bottom of the main house and ell in the way shown in Fig. 189. These sills can be from 1-1/2" × 2" to 2" × 3". Perhaps an easier way is that shown in Fig. 192, in which three cross cleats or sills are laid and the floor nailed directly to these. When the lengthways boards shown in Fig. 192 are nailed to the floor boards and the sills the bottom will be sufficiently stiff for a squirrel house. The sides and ends of the ell can be made of boards nailed together like a box, the openings for the doors, windows, etc., being first cut out; but the main part of the house should have posts at the corners to which the boarding at the ends is to be nailed. Rafters should also be put in at each gable. Plain sheathing will look better for the outside of this house than that with beads. After the outside has been boarded and the upper floors put in, the roofs and the cupola can be added. If the cupola is too difficult it can be omitted, as it is a luxury to which the average squirrel is unaccustomed.

The stairs, the openings in the floors, the doorways, the sleeping-box, the revolving wire cage, the tree, and the swing in the cupola, are shown in Fig. 192. The stairs can be made as shown in Fig. 192; strips nailed vertically at the outside corners of the house, as in a real house, will give a more finished appearance. The window casings can be made by nailing strips on the outside. The glass can be held in place by strips, or small rabbets can be cut as in a window sash. For the shingling of the roof, see _Part III_. (_House-building for Beginners_). Each door can be made of a single piece of board, cleated (see _Doors_). For any other details, see the houses just described and also _Part III_. (_House-building for Beginners_), and _Painting_.

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Several cages of various sizes can readily be built together, as shown in Fig. 193, which is merely a suggestion, for, of course, the shape, size, arrangement, and number of compartments must depend on the number and kinds of animals and the situation. Various combinations will suggest themselves as occasion calls for them.

If you have such creatures as frogs, turtles, lizards, etc., a water-tank should be provided. This can easily be made by taking a tightly made flat box and caulking the cracks, or pouring hot tar or pitch into them and also tarring or painting the whole surface of the outside. A board can be fitted slantingly from the bottom to the edge, at one or both ends, to form an incline by which the users of this miniature pond can crawl in and out of the water. The box must, of course, be sunk in the ground inside of the cage.

For larger houses, as for hens, etc., see, also, the principles of construction of somewhat larger structures in Part III. (_House-building for Beginners_).

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=Travelling Cage.=--A small box (Fig. 194) in which to carry a kitten, a squirrel, a bird, or any small animal, when travelling, is often very useful and much better than the bags and baskets so often used for the purpose.

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All that is necessary is to make a small box of 1/2" stock (see _Box-making_, page 219), with one side open (to be covered with wire cloth or netting), and the opposite side made in two parts, the upper of which is hinged to serve as a door or lid. Strips of moulding can be nailed on with brads along the edges where the wire is fastened, the door can be fastened with hook and screw-eye or catch, and a handle fastened upon the top. It is a good plan to round the edges of a box which is to be carried around. If this box is neatly got out and put together and carefully smoothed and finished it will look well and serve for many years.