Looks great!

Thanks, Sherry! I'm glad that you like it. I'm glad that the most time-consuming part of it is done now. I'll have to paint it or put urethane on it because I want it to last more than just a year or two. I don't think I want to make one of these very often...it takes more than just an hour or two to make. I sure hope the cats will like it too. :)

Cathy, I absoutely love it. I could use one of those to cover my blueberry bush to keep the birs from eating all the berries.

Did you make it that large so you could put potted host plants in there?

I've been using a couple of small criter habitats and several large vases covered with screening.

This year I should build something large for my Cecropias. Last year I had a pair in a med sized aquarium but they wouldn't mate until I put them in a larger enclosure where the air could move freely. Apparently she emmited so many pheromones in the aquarium that he became overwhelmed and confused.

As soon as I moved them to a larger, airier setup, they mated.

Nice construction job.

Marann

Hee hee, Maryann. That calls to mind the story John H. told about setting his screened container of a female cecropia next to the patio screen. Apparently, the male was able to mate with the female thru the screen. Where there's a will, there's a way.

Cathy - I love your handiwork! Now, if you can just figure out how to market your design, you might have a mother load there!

Susan

Cater...WOW! That is a big one!!! I think I need to do something like that for the last instar cats - that way once they go into the chrysalis stage they will have plenty of room to spread their wings if I'm at work when they emerge. Hope to see photos when it completed and full of cats :o)

Emma...I envy you! Cecropias are awesome looking. Have never seen one this far south but according to our NABA site they've been seen and there are some rare occurances.

~ Cat

Your compliments are all so nice! I'm so glad that people besides me like it. :)
Maryann, I suppose that would work well to keep the birds off of your blueberry bush. You'll probably think, "Awck!" when I tell you that we have 16 blueberry bushes and I let the birds eat all the berries. lol You see, another passion of mine is feeding birds and providing housing for them here at my place. I just love nature. Yes, I made the frame that large to put potted host plants in there. I know that swamp milkweed gets up to four feet tall, so I wanted to make sure there was some space above that yet. I guess carpentry runs in my family...my grandfather was a carpenter. I'm not really a carpenter but like to do small projects here at the house. My next project coming up is building a bat house or two as soon as I can find the wood that I want. Maybe you want to try something like my frame this year. That would give your Cecropias plenty of room.

Susan, It's not hard to make the frame, just takes some time. I hot glued the pieces before I screwed them together; it makes it a lot easier and you don't have pieces of wood sliding all over the place while you're drilling. I figured out what lengths I needed before I went to Lowe's and I had them cut the wood to the lengths that I needed. That saved me a lot of work! Besides, I wouldn't want to be outside in the cold weather cutting wood. Maybe others on here will also build a frame. The trick of it is to find straight 2 x 2's at the store. That was a task in itself. Now that I realize how big this frame is, I'm not sure I'll need the bird cage this year. I would still like to do it though sometime. As it is, I'll have the cats in this frame, in a big storage container with a screen on top, in that laundry cart that I showed, and on potted plants sitting on the back porch, so I think I already have plenty of room for them.

Cat, Yes, it is big, huh. It seems REALLY big sitting in our living room. I want to make the two panels yet for on the top before I take the whole thing apart for storage until this summer. I bet you could easily build this. You can probably tell how to make it just by looking at the picture. I think I will like it too for the reason that you mentioned, and I think this frame will be so much better and easier than putting the cats in individual jars and taking care of them that way. They'll be able to chomp away and I won't have to be feeding them fresh leaves several times a day because they'll already have them right there. I'll just have to keep the plants watered. Also, I won't have to worry about being there as soon as they emerge as butterflies. With the jars I was always worried that they would fall and not be able to get back up; they found their way back to the stick though. Maybe this frame was overkill for just my second year, but I plan on raising cats and releasing the butterflies for years to come, so now I have something that will hopefully last awhile and work well for protecting the cats/butterflies/pupas. If you decide to make one and have questions, just ask.
Thanks again everyone for all the nice comments!

Cathy, if you're planning on making another one, it would be helpful if you could take photos of each step. We can post them in our FAQs where there is a model for another type of cage, too. Yours is larger, and I think we should probably add it so that people can see different options for building a cage.

Susan

Well, now you tell me! lol No, I don't think I'll be making another one anytime soon. I just really didn't think to take pictures of it because it's simple to make. And no, I'm not taking this one apart to take pictures. lol I guess I never really looked at the one in FAQ. So that one has step-by-step instructions and pictures? I'm just glad I have this one done, but I think it will be big enough for awhile that I won't have to make another one. Besides, I don't know where I'd sit it.

...and I thought you were the venturesome gal! Hee Hee!

Seriously, though, if you do ever decide to do it again, photos of the process would be much appreciated.

Susan

Wow! That looks fabulous! You can raise a lot of caterpillars in such a big cage!
MissSherry

Susan, Ya know what, you're right, I am pretty much venturesome, and I think I can work something out here. I have some extra pieces of wood I got and can do a mock construction just as if I'd be making one all over again, only of course I wouldn't be. I could provide enough pictures and instructions that would go into detail so others here would be able to make their own cage if they choose. I just hope it doesn't end up getting too long. I don't know what would be appropriate really. How does it get posted in FAQ?? I suppose Larry would move it there, right? Just give me another week or so and I'll come up with the directions with pictures. I'd hate to disappoint you and make you think that I'm not venturesome. ;-)

MissSherry, Thanks very much! Yeah, I thought too that I can really put a lot in here and then I wouldn't have to worry about coming up with a couple hundred jars and driving myself bonkers trying to take care of so many that way. lol I am anticipating having more cats here this summer since I'll have much more milkweed planted outside.

Personally, I LOVED it, and if I can find someone to help me construct it, I will do so. I know I usually get lumber at HD rather than Lowe's - it's closer to me. I did make a raised bed at one time.

I've almost decided that's what I may do for my front yard, too.

...and you know, don't cha, that one enclosure will never be enough once you really get going! LOL!

Susan

Susan, Gosh, you must really like it a lot if you'd consider making one. The closest Home Depot to us is about 50 miles away, so that's why I get things for my projects at Lowe's, which is only a little more than 10 miles from here. Btw, I think raised beds look nice! I just know you'd be able to make this big cage. I'll work hard on the instructions so you and others will be able to do that. This cage/frame idea started out just being a supplement to my other types of methods of raising cats (how to contain them), but somewhere along the line it grew in size from holding a few plants to holding probably 3 dozen. I actually don't even think I'll need the bird cage now this year, but I would still really would like to get one sometime, if not this year then next year. RE: that last sentence of yours...Uh, I'd better not let my husband know that or he's liable to strangle me if he thinks I'll be making another one. He's been tripping over the pieces of wood in our living room for a week and grumbling about it. Ha! I just tell him if he wouldn't be such a klutz that wouldn't happen. :-D