Breeding nutria at home is a fairly profitable area in the livestock business. In the process of organizing comfortable living conditions for animals, farmers are faced with the need to build cages for them. What types of cells exist, and how to make them yourself with your own hands - more in the article.

What cells are suitable for nutrias: basic requirements

By their behavior in captivity, nutria are very similar to rabbits, with the only difference being that in summer weather, the first to organize a pool or conduct regular water procedures.

When arranging dwellings for animals, two important factors must be taken into account:

• Nutria lifestyle
• climate conditions in the animal breeding region.

• In addition, the future design must meet several requirements:
• the construction should be made of durable materials, for example, metal, since rodents can easily ruin the structure with teeth;
• cell walls are recommended to be made of steel mesh. This will provide free access of oxygen to the animals and allow the farmer to freely observe the pets;
• housing should provide for the possibility of warming for the winter. In addition, it is desirable to make a collapsible structure, which can be disassembled and moved to another place;
• the pool should be located in the structure, which is required for carrying out water procedures;
• in the house there must be a place for feeding and a nesting compartment;
• drinkers and feeders should be firmly fixed.

When organizing a dwelling for animals, one must remember that nutria can be kept family-friendly, up to five individuals, with one male and four females. It is not recommended to place more than one male in one cage, as males do not get along well with each other.

Summing up, it should be noted that the nutria houses should be warm, spacious, durable, with a walk and a pool.

Types and Features

Choosing the type of housing for nutria, farmers primarily focus on the weather conditions in the region. In warmer climates, animal enclosures can be placed outside. But in a colder climate, it is advisable to build portable structures, which are exposed outside in the summer and transferred to a warm room in the winter.

For summer keeping

A feature of the cells for the summer habitat of animals is that they do not need to be insulated. For the construction of structures, you can use brick, metal, steel grate. In hot weather, animals should have constant access to water - for this purpose, the houses will be equipped with an artificial pool or pond.

1 - pool; 2 - descent; 3 - walking; 4 - a house.

If it is not possible to establish water containers inside the cage, they are located on the territory of the range. An excellent alternative to the pool is a shower, which farmers can arrange for animals on their own, up to 3 times a week.

Important! In the northern regions, nights are quite cold, so experts recommend keeping nutria in a utility room throughout the year.

Summer cages

Aviaries are considered the most convenient and comfortable housing option for nutria in the summer, which provide animals with a large territory for walking and walking. In order to separate animals, for example, young animals or pregnant females, it is necessary to equip several enclosures at the same time.

As a rule, concrete is used as the material for the construction of the foundation of the structure, providing high strength and durability of the structure. The walls are made of steel mesh, sheets of plywood or slate. For convenience and insulation of the home, the floor is covered with bedding material.

On the square of the aviary there are houses in which pets can hide in the heat or rain.

Permanent cells

In regions with warm climatic conditions, land-based stationary houses made of brick or natural stone are used to organize housing. The area for walks is fenced with a steel mesh firmly installed in a concrete base or ground.

Permanent cells are equipped with houses, which must necessarily have an opening roof. This design will allow unhindered cleaning inside the house, monitor rodents, and also, if necessary, move them from one compartment to another.

Did you know? Nutria are very clean. They do not have a characteristic specific odor, which is characteristic of other representatives of rodents.

Possible options

Before proceeding with the independent construction of aviaries for nutria, you should familiarize yourself with a description of the most common and popular housing options.

Ground building

The most optimal housing solution for the nutria family is considered to be a ground building, which includes a house (nesting place), area for walking, swimming pool. For the construction of such an aviary, you can use brick, concrete, stone, blocks.

1 - walking; 2 - a door; 3 - a house.

The back wall, which serves to limit the pond, can be made of metal mesh. For the arrangement of the roof, it is allowed to use wood, but from the inside it should be closed with a steel mesh or grill.

Check out

Farm for nutria: do-it-yourself construction, drawings, arrangement rules

The stationary dimensions for ground buildings, provided that 5 adult individuals or 6-8 young nutria live in it, are considered:

• length - not less than 1 m;
• width - about 0.8 m;
• facade height - 0.7 m;
• back wall height - up to 0.5 m.

To save heat in winter, the ground building is divided into two chambers: nest and aft. If the weather becomes cool, the walkway is closed, thus retaining heat inside the structure.

Wooden portable house

Portable houses for living nutria are made of high-strength, reliable wood. The housing has two compartments, the first of which is intended for feeding animals, the second - for their habitat. The enclosure is made of steel mesh, which is deepened into the soil by 30 cm, to prevent the escape of rodents. In warm weather, houses are located on the street, in cool weather - they are transferred to a more insulated place.

1 - shelving rack; 2 - nesting compartment of the house with mesh floor and upper removable hatch; 3 - aft compartment with a solid floor; 4 - the pipe of the house.

Combined with barn design

In the absence of a large territory for the inhabitation of nutria, it is advisable to use a structure combined with a barn or any other household equipment as their housing. In this case, a hole is made in one of the walls of the barn, allowing the animals to go out for a walk.

At the same time, the area for walks is fenced with a mesh of steel, setting a tank with bathing water there. In winter, the hole leading to the street is tightly closed.

Read also how to care for a pregnant woman and only for a nourishing nutria.

Tiered

Multi-tier cells, which are mainly used for keeping young individuals, can significantly save space. Such structures are equipped with feeders and drinking bowls, which are installed in the walking areas, located two on each of the tiers.

For the construction of cages, a wooden frame and a fence made of steel mesh are made. Most often, the economy practices two-tier structures that are easy to clean and clean.

1 - walking; 2 - feeding trough; 3 - car drinker; 4 - rack.

Corral for young animals

Quite often, young nutria is kept in special pens - enclosures with a canopy. In this case, the base of the dwelling is poured with concrete and covered with a small layer of sand on top. Such a design consists of two separated compartments: for housing and for water procedures.

Other budget options

To build a cage for nutrias is quite simple, and this can be done using ordinary improvised materials. In the role of housing for animals, cages for foxes or foxes are often used, which can be purchased on any livestock farms.

The simplest construction of steel mesh, which is divided into two communicating compartments, is considered the most budget option. Such houses are convenient to use, practical, and can easily be transported to the street or to the barn. The cellular content of rodents is considered the simplest and most cost-effective.

When choosing or self-manufacturing a cage, you need to pay attention to the weather conditions of the region, the number of individuals planned for placement, and the strength of the structure.

Video: mesh cage

DIY step-by-step instructions

As noted above, it is not difficult to make a cage with your own hands, however, before starting work, you should make drawings or a diagram of the future design, prepare the required materials and tools.

Drawings and Dimensions

Before proceeding with the construction of the cage, it is recommended to determine the size of the structure and make preliminary drawings. Detailed housing schemes can be found on the Internet. One of the simplest is the design, which is performed according to the following drawings:

1 - house; 2 - floor net; 3 - wooden frame; 4 - floor of the aft compartment; 5 - pool (trough); 6 - rear removable grill; 7 - roof above the paddock and pool; 8 - door; 9 - a lattice; 10 - removable cover; 11 - side grille.

Tools and materials

In the process of making housing for nutria, you need to prepare the following materials:

• steel pipes of small diameter - 5 m;
• concrete pipes - 4 pieces;
• metal mesh, 5-6 mm thick;
• slate or durable boards for the roof;
• cement - 1 bag;
• sand - 1 bag;
• plywood sheets - 1 piece;
• galvanized metal sheet - 1 piece.

Did you know? When they first arrived in South America and discovered nutria there, the Spaniards mistook them for ordinary otters. Translated from Spanish, the word "nutria" and means "otter".

From the tools you will need:

• hammer;
• Bulgarian;
• nails for fixing elements;
• screwdriver, drill;
• welding machine with electrodes.

Video: what materials to make a cage for nutria

Frame preparation

The cell construction process begins with the preparation of the framework.

To do this, you need:

1. Prepare a drawing of the frame, taking into account all the smallest details.
2. From boards installed in the vertical and horizontal direction, make a frame. You should take 16 boards, 2 boards on each side.
3. In the soil, make recesses with a depth of 1 m, place concrete pipes in them, pour cement-sand mortar. Wait for the solution to solidify.

Mesh mounting

After the frame is built, the mesh is installed:

1. Weld metal pipes to the supports, lay a mesh on them and fix by welding. To make the design more stable, weld several diagonals.
2. Fasten the frame to the metal structure using screws.
3. Set the mesh inside the cage, secure with wire cutters and a welding machine. Make and fasten the doors.

Plywood layer

Cell lining is carried out using plywood sheets:

1. Saw the plywood into three parts according to the size of the walls of the structure - two side parts and one back wall. The sheets are tightly fixed to the walls.
2. From above, sheathe sheets of plywood with foam, then with a sheet of galvanized metal. Such events will allow to insulate housing and provide animals with comfortable living conditions in the winter season.

Important! Instead of galvanized steel, you can make the upper lining with another layer of plywood.

Ceiling

The next step in the manufacture of dwellings for nutrias is the installation of the ceiling:

1. The roof is made of steel mesh and fixed with a welding machine.
2. Cover the ceiling with sheets of slate, plywood, fix with screws.

To simplify the process of caring for the cell, you can make an opening roof.

Nest

The future design of the house is without fail equipped with a nest.

The berth is as follows:

1. To make a nesting place on three sides from a board or plywood.
2. Close the fourth side, which leads to the adjacent compartment, with a metal mesh.
3. In the grid, make a hole, 20 × 20 cm in size.

It should be noted that the sleeping compartment for animals should not have windows.

Important! In order for rodents to be able to freely move around the cage, it is necessary to install doors and manholes for them.

Drinking bowl and feeder

Housing for nutrias is equipped with feeders and drinking bowls, which should be as strong and reliable as possible. It is advisable to use metal gutters as “kitchen” accessories. To save space, they are installed along one of the walls.

Extendable pallet

Under the mesh cage, a pull-out tray is sure to be used, which serves for quick and convenient collection of feces. For the manufacture of the pallet, durable material is used that does not deform, does not "break apart" and does not crack under the influence of the nutrients vital products.

Left: a - a manger; b - capacity, tightened by a grid; in - a drinking bowl-feeding trough; g - clay feeder; d - a sliding feeder. On the right there is a nodding drinker: 1 - a steel tube, 2 - a rubber hose, 3 - a guiding bracket (a, b - manufacturing sequence), 4 - a washer, 5 - a tongue, 6 - a pipe.

How to choose a cage when buying

When choosing a ready-made cell for nutria, one should carefully evaluate all its pros and cons.

In addition, you need to take into account:

• climate conditions under which the structure will be operated;
• the number of rodents to be kept.

The cage should not be cramped, otherwise fights will arise between animals that have a detrimental effect on the productivity of nutria, their state of health, the quality of meat and skins. Portable models are an excellent option, which not only make it possible to rearrange houses from the street to the room or vice versa, but also allow transporting structures over long distances.

Did you know? In terms of wear and quality, nutria fur is not inferior to fox and mink fur. The nutrient skin has the highest quality in the cold season.

The rules for the maintenance of nutria in the cell

Nutria belong to the category of thermophilic animals, so keeping them in cages on the street in cold weather is simply fatal.

The best option for a rodent housing is a structure that has several parts:

• compartments for rest and for feeding;
• office for walking.

Video: how to properly place a nutria family

Animals love to splash around in the water, so the main addition to the house should be a pool or water tank. Designs are placed so that their floor is an extension of the walking distance. To exclude the escape of animals, tanks are completely blocked by a grid. When arranging artificial reservoirs, drinking bowls in the cells are not allowed to be installed.

In the summer, there are no nutritional problems with nutria. They are happy to eat greens, grass, vegetable tops, vine, young tree branches. At the same time, animals are fed with special concentrated feeds, as well as mash makers made from steamed grain, potatoes and vegetable cooking waste.

If the rodent dwellings are not equipped with permanent reservoirs, then drinking bowls should be placed inside the cage. In stationary type houses, nipple drinkers are used, in portable structures - do-it-yourself containers.

Check out

Use of nutria meat: in dietetics, cosmetology, eating for diseases, expert opinion. In the cold season, animals are kept exclusively indoors, at temperatures not lower than 0 ... + 2 ° С.

During the cold season, animals are passive, burrow into the litter, so in the sleeping compartment there should always be dry litter material, for example, hay or straw.

In winter, animals do not need bathing, as well as a large amount of drinking water. Animals are periodically watered using warm water.

The maintenance of nutria in household conditions is accompanied, first of all, by the arrangement of a comfortable home for them.

The houses made according to all requirements allow you to grow healthy, strong individuals and, thus, get valuable dietary meat and high-quality fur.