Wooden framed tanks?

[mav]

I thought these are a bad idea, but others seem to think otherwise?

What is the consensus here please?

[Markpd]

Hmm, I think unmodified some at least are vulnerable to chewing and being peed on, and some cages are made with these issues in mind and so are ok (Laola cages come to mind, at least I think they are).
And with wooden framed cages you can cover the post corners with metal and coat any wooden floors with e.g plasticoat (like lilyandasiy did recently with her new topper).

So it depends on the cage and what/if anything needs to be done to it. So because of that, I can't vote .

[Pim]

safe if precautions are taken, most store bought wooden cages should be fine. If you have very heavy chewers I would advise against it but that is common sense. Also make sure there are not points that stick out where the gerbils can chew on it.

[betty]

Yes, I have put yes - as with the right precautions - it wouldn't be a no?

I have used wooden/part-wooden enclosures before - and although they weren't as easy to clean of as long lasting for me - that doesn't mean with the right mod cons they couldn't be.

I do tend to stick with glass myself now for ease of cleaning and to remove the need to regularly check every part for chewing (as they can eat out of it in less than the time it takes for their next clean out) - but my tanks are heavy and fragile - whereas the wooden-framed enclosures aren't either of those things?

So practically and overall sensible: glass/metal would be best long term (as this includes the safety too as there is nothing more dangerous than as escaped gerbil) - but some of the home-made wooden enclosures look so much more fun!!!

Swings and roundabouts really?

[LilyandDaisy]

It depends on the enclosure and its design. Something like a Pawhut cage, which is almost entirely wood, with lots of chewing points, is not a great idea for gerbils. Something like a Marrakesh terrarium, where the ends are wood but completely smooth, is ok. They can't chew smooth wood. The lid is chewable but most gerbils don't seem to chew it. It's just about looking for any chewing points, reinforcing them if possible, or if not possible keeping an eye on what the gerbils are doing.

[Pim]

Also when you have a gerbil that seems to be a big chewer like one of mine who is constantly destroying and chewing on the plastic rim near the top of the cage I would recommend that you take them out as soon as possible.