I love that this playpen can be easily folded away for storage, and it can be extended with the three panel extension, or you can even buy another 8 panel playpen or even the 11 panel playpen to add to this one. In fact, you can make the playpen as large as you like! I have two 11 panel playpens attached together for the main ferret playpen, and then a smaller, 8 panel playpen, for them to play outside in.
The good thing about this playpen is that it can be folded away, expanded with additional panels, and it is also very sturdy. It is heavy enough to stop pets from being able to get underneath it (at least, my ferrets havent been able to get out that way!)
The bad is that it can be a bit fiddly to open and close - especially if you have ferrets trying to get out whilst youre trying to close them in. Getting inside this playpen in a hurry(and securing it behind you) isnt easy. One of my ferrets got herself stuck and I had to hurry in to the playpen to help her - the other 3 came running as soon as I opened the playpen, and it was near impossible to get in, secure the pen behind me without taking a long time.
Another bad is that unless you stick with the eight or eleven panel pen, the playpen mat wont fit. This can very easily be resolved, and shouldnt discourage buyers - although it does add a bit more cost to things. I purchased a very large tent floor tarp for the playpen floor, and it works wonderfully. On top of that, I put down an old RV mat, although blankets or towels would also work.
The final negative thing I have to say about this playpen is in regards to its height. Certainly, my ferrets cannot climb out of this playpen, nor can they jump out of it. Unless they have help. Here, unfortunately, is the main problem with the playpen. I had a cardboard box in the middle of the playpen which was about 3 inches high, and two of my ferrets were quickly able to figure out that if they stood on it, they could jump to the side and grab the top of the bars. Then they just pulled themselves over and out of the playpen.
This is obviously quite a major problem, however, I have researched the alternatives and none offer the expandability of this one(and those that do are no higher or more secure than this one is). Although I wish this pen was completely escape proof, its more important to me that my ferrets have a large play area, so I am willing to deal with having to keep the door closed when they are out in their playpen, and also being careful about what I put in the playpen so that they cant use it to escape.
a good product but has some flaws.
I love that this playpen can be easily folded away for storage, and it can be extended with the three panel extension, or you can even buy another 8 panel playpen or even the 11 panel playpen to add to this one. In fact, you can make the playpen as large as you like! I have two 11 panel playpens attached together for the main ferret playpen, and then a smaller, 8 panel playpen, for them to play outside in. The good thing about this playpen is that it can be folded away, expanded with additional panels, and it is also very sturdy. It is heavy enough to stop pets from being able to get underneath it (at least, my ferrets havent been able to get out that way!) The bad is that it can be a bit fiddly to open and close - especially if you have ferrets trying to get out whilst youre trying to close them in. Getting inside this playpen in a hurry(and securing it behind you) isnt easy. One of my ferrets got herself stuck and I had to hurry in to the playpen to help her - the other 3 came running as soon as I opened the playpen, and it was near impossible to get in, secure the pen behind me without taking a long time. Another bad is that unless you stick with the eight or eleven panel pen, the playpen mat wont fit. This can very easily be resolved, and shouldnt discourage buyers - although it does add a bit more cost to things. I purchased a very large tent floor tarp for the playpen floor, and it works wonderfully. On top of that, I put down an old RV mat, although blankets or towels would also work. The final negative thing I have to say about this playpen is in regards to its height. Certainly, my ferrets cannot climb out of this playpen, nor can they jump out of it. Unless they have help. Here, unfortunately, is the main problem with the playpen. I had a cardboard box in the middle of the playpen which was about 3 inches high, and two of my ferrets were quickly able to figure out that if they stood on it, they could jump to the side and grab the top of the bars. Then they just pulled themselves over and out of the playpen. This is obviously quite a major problem, however, I have researched the alternatives and none offer the expandability of this one(and those that do are no higher or more secure than this one is). Although I wish this pen was completely escape proof, its more important to me that my ferrets have a large play area, so I am willing to deal with having to keep the door closed when they are out in their playpen, and also being careful about what I put in the playpen so that they cant use it to escape.