A cage is a mesh, bar, or wire enclosure that is used to confine, protect, or limit something or someone. A cage can be used to contain an animal or person, catch an animal or person, or showcase an animal at a zoo.

Because live beings are frequently housed in cages, at least some of the construction must allow for the passage of light and air. As a result, some cages may have bars that are too close together for the intended prisoner to move between them or windows that are partially obscured.

Animals are often confined in cages, some of which are custom-made for a specific species. Birds, rodents, reptiles, and even larger creatures of certain species are kept as pets in cages on rare occasions.

Animal cages have been a part of human civilization since the dawn of humanity. On an Ancient Greek vase from 490 B.C., for example, a boy carries a likely tamed rabbit on his lap, with a cage with an open entrance in the background. A tribe is compared to “cages full of birds” in the biblical Book of Jeremiah, while a lion is seized and “brought into a cage and handed before the king of Babylon” in the Book of Ezekiel.

The different rules governing the keeping of animals in captivity generally specified for the size of cages or minimum equipment depending on the species, whether for transportation or reproduction. For example, Swiss legislation establishes minimum absolute interior dimensions for pet cages. While these dimensions are legal, the Swiss Animal Protection Organization (PSA) believes that they are insufficient to fulfill the requirements of animals. In order to secure the well-being of the residents, it is necessary to provide a much larger critical area in practice.

Better cage transit conditions and battery cage bans, particularly for egg-laying hens, have long been supported by animal rights organizations. Consumer behavior influences breeding conditions, and European legislation is always changing.

Cages are used in a number of forms of entertainment to create an atmosphere of confinement by providing the idea that the performers are trapped within. “A scantily-clad female dancer, maybe wearing a miniskirt or hot pants, and (supposedly) imprisoned inside of a hanging birdcage,” for example, “refers to a scantily-clad female dancer, possibly wearing a miniskirt or hot trousers, and (allegedly) confined inside of a hanging birdcage.” According to Wikipedia, cage fighting involves two participants, usually from mixed martial arts, fighting inside a cage-like structure, and “conjures up the image of two warriors imprisoned in a cage, inflicting savage blows as the audience shouts for blood.” Australia lifted a ban on the use of “cage-like enclosures” for such activities in 2014. Steel cages are also one of the oldest forms of enclosings used in professional wrestling. The first “steel cage bout” of any kind was placed on June 25, 1937, in Atlanta, Georgia. The match was held in a ring surrounded by chicken wire to keep the combatants within and eliminate any potential interference.

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