Top 7 Reasons to Use a Hutch Snuggle Insulated Rabbit Hutch Cover
The Hutch Snuggle Rabbit hutch Cover From Scratch and Newton is truly a revolutionary product. Made quite literaly from space age materials, NASA developed the materials for use in their space shuttle and now you can use them to keep your pet rabbits and guinea pigs healthy and happy.
The Hutch Snuggle was designed to be used with Scratch and Newtons Waterproof Hutch Hugger, the Green Hutch Hugger will fit over the top of the insulated cover. You can use the hutch snuggle on its own but we do recomend that use both covers in winter.
But Why Should i Buy This Cover?
- These insulated covers are designed to keep your rabbit hutch warm during the winter
- This cover will also keep your rabbit hutch cool in the summer and help to reduce the chances of heatstroke.
- The cover will protect your rabbit hutch from the elements and keep it in top condition longer
- The built in (removable) fly screen helps to combat fly strike in the summer months. Flystrike is still one of the main causes of death in pet rabbits
- When used with a Waterproof Hutch Hugger your rabbits will always have a place to go that is warm (or cool) and totally dry
- The cover and the micro climate it creates is ideal for nursing or poorly pets
- This cover will create the ideal Climate for raising baby rabbits.
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The Importance of Rabbit Hutch Security
Door fastenings are a concern when purchasing or constructing a rabbit hutch. Indeed, with all domestic animals, safety begins with successful containment. Rabbits go missing regularly from gardens. More often than not, the culprit is an urban fox, but cats, dogs and birds of prey are also guilty. The rabbit may well discover itself that it has a loose, rusted or otherwise easily undo-able clasp on its hutch and thus get out all by himself. Overhaul hutch security the moment it becomes necessary to do so. Better still, add a hasp and padlock. Sadly, there are pet thieves about, and while they are unlikely to make off with an entire hutch, it is a matter of a few seconds’ work to swipe the unprotected occupant.
Any run or exercise pen that you construct needs to be roofed. Rabbits can jump high, and predators can leap or scramble in. Then again, it is delightful to watch as Bunny wanders freely around your garden, but even supervised, a rabbit whose keeper takes their eye off the pet for a moment will escape through the tiniest of gaps. Making a garden fully escape-proof is hard to do and takes diligence. Wire mesh used in external fencing has to be lodged under the soil surface. Make sure, too, that your rabbit cannot access poisonous plants. There is a long list, and it includes many garden favourites. Here are just a few: poinsettias, cyclamen, garlic, foxglove, mistletoe, peony, rhododendron, periwinkle, boxwood, the china berry tree and even buttercups.
Quite apart from the risk of being poisoned, outdoor rabbits should be given a regular health-check. You can learn how precisely to carry this out yourself if you order the “Bunny MOT” leaflet from the Rabbit Welfare Association. Most owners know about the two most distressing diseases to affect rabbits – myxomatosis and VHD. These are both fatal, so there is no solution other than to maintain a regular vaccination programme. There is further unpleasant information that is nevertheless worth knowing about. Fly strike, a parasite attack which usually occurs in summer, takes place when a fly lays its eggs on your pet and the maggots, when they hatch, burrow into Bunny’s flesh. Also known as ‘myiasis’, it has been known to ‘strike’ even rabbits kept permanently indoors. Dirt, rotting food, faeces, decaying teeth and open wounds are can attract a fly which then chooses its spot for egg-laying. Both the blow-fly and the bot fly carry out this gruesome practice and it is therefore really worthwhile to check your rabbit regularly all over for fly eggs and for the tiny holes made by bot fly larvae. Lumps under the skin are another sign. You can remove flies’ eggs, but don’t leave it to chance. Take your rabbit to a vet, promptly. For prevention, the importance of keeping both your pet and his rabbit hutch clean cannot be overstated.
Once the three big issues for your pet of shelter, physical safety and disease prevention have been catered for, it is time for the most important aspect of rabbit ownership: building an ever-evolving relationship with your bunny – whether it lives indoors or out. Some websites that might be of interest include: www.rabbitwelfare.co.uk and www.rabbitwelfarefund.co.uk .
How to choose a Rabbit Cage
We all cherish our homes, thinking of them as a refuge, a snug hideaway, a place to relax and to sleep off the stresses and tiredness which day brings. Human health, physical and mental, depends on having a secure, warm habitat. Pets are not so different from ourselves, if perhaps less consciously aware of the reasons they need for a designated ‘me’ space. In fact, if anything, our four -legged friends are even more territorial than we are, and can be quite compulsive in their behaviour towards their own spot.
In the case of rabbits, this is in fact one of the reasons for having one’s pet neutered. Female bunnies, in particular, can develop a rather aggressive habit of lunging at their handler when the door of the rabbit cage is opened. (Of course, if you have rabbits of both sexes you need to have them neutered. Additionally, non-neutered females invariably contract uterine cancer.) That aside, the importance of establishing a comfortable home for your pet cannot be overstated.
Options when it comes to purchasing a rabbit cage are surprisingly wide. In shape, size and construction materials, there is considerable variety. You can house your rabbit out of doors, but don’t forget that these are creatures which in their natural habitat would get to huddle together for warmth within the warren. Therefore, in bad weather it is best to cover the open mesh front. Equally, take precautions against excess heat and avoid a spot that is in direct sunlight.
All hutches need a nesting area with a solid front. This is for cosiness, privacy and darkness. The living area needs a chink-free mesh front with no ragged wire which could damage the occupant. Over time it is necessary to check for stray ends of wire or possible corrosion.
Not every owner chooses to go down the hutch route, but instead some keep their rabbits as house pets. This works fine once Bunny has been trained to use a litter tray. Of vital importance, though, is to have a secure cage for use when no owner is present. Equally, an indoor rabbit must have a sleeping area, the safest option being within the cage.
Inside the rabbit cage, the bedding material options are hay, straw and wood shavings (avoiding aromatic evergreens). Be aware that hay will need to be replenished, as Bunny munches his way through it. Among the really quite engaging accessories is the ‘Super Sleeper Critter Cuddl-E-Cup’. This is a diminutive pet bed lined with imitation lambs wool that has the benefit of being machine washable.
Life can be boring for our long-eared friends. However, they do spend a surprising amount of time eating. This is the way nature keeps their teeth from getting too long. To facilitate this natural eating pattern, hay is essential. Ways to prolong feeding time and reduce boredom including packing a helping of hay into a used water bottle or other narrow-necked container, or stringing up vegetables such as carrots so that they dangle from the cage roof.
Where possible, fresh grass (plucked no more than thirty minutes previously) should be provided. Best of all, give your rabbit access to grazing in the warmer weather. It is, besides, the best food for rabbits, and a great fibre provider. Keep dry food mixes to a minimum.
The domestic bunny when out of its rabbit cage and running around the house will tend to transfer its love of chewing to household objects, given half a chance. If you can’t instantly spot him, this may well be what he is up to. Some suggested solutions include smearing eucalyptus oil or lemon juice on items such as furniture that you know your rabbit tends to target. Whether in or out of the rabbit cage, a well-cared for bunny will give, and hopefully receive, many hundreds of hours of enjoyment in its (relatively) long life.
“The Live in Rabbit” Should I Keep my Rabbit Inside?
Increasingly, the approach being taken towards pet rabbit ownership is to treat them very similarly to guinea pigs and hamsters, i.e. as house pets. That said, no matter how greatly loved, not everyone wants the presence of their rabbit and its odours and little noises 24/7. One solution that suits everybody concerned is to give the rabbit time both in its outdoor (or outbuilding) hutch and time indoors. If this is what you opt for, you will need to make a suitable choice from the range of rabbit cages available. These of course can be obtained from a large number of online stores, including therabbithutchshop.co.uk, as well as high street retailers. These cages, constructed from plastic and metal, are for indoor use only.
In rabbit cages, a solid floor is preferable. Chafing of the feet can result from the mesh of a wire floor. Gauging your rabbit’s size is important when judging whether the cage door is large enough. Sometimes a side door is the better option as it is easier for large rabbits to get in and out.
While, on the one hand, a large rabbit living in an outdoor hutch should really have a home no smaller than five feet x two feet, the indoor cage may be a little smaller, since Bunny will not be spending a great deal of his time in it. The idea is to give your rabbit as many opportunities to run around and enjoy human companionship as possible by allowing him to live indoors. Obviously a cage in which he can be contained is necessary, especially when being left alone. If yours is an outdoor rabbit do nevertheless consider letting Bunny spend his nights in your house (unless the alternative is a good, ventilated yet snug alternative, such as an outhouse, conservatory, garage or utility room).
Top on every rabbit-centred website’s list of warnings is not to let the rabbit be exposed to possible predator attack. This where rabbit hutches, or for that matter rabbit cages, cannot be expected to do the job. Predators, by their very presence, are a threat to a rabbit’s life. Awareness of a fox, even a swooping owl, is enough to stop a rabbit’s heart. The inability to run away is unimaginably stress-inducing. Hence, unless you have very good reason to believe that no such predators ever enter your neighbourhood, the kind way to keep rabbits is inside a secure building, if not on your house itself.
Inside the cage or hutch, you really ought to give the rabbit a place to hide. A rabbit’s need to be screened off in a secure, enclosed space can be traced to life in the burrow. To address this natural urge, give your rabbit a nest or hide. It can take one of a variety of forms; one idea is a basket made from untreated wicker or cane; alternatively you might use a cat litter tray as a nest, or a cardboard box. If using the latter, a good idea is to cut an entrance hole. You can of course buy wooden versions of these small rabbit homes or hides. For snuggling inside his hide, hay is the obvious material for your rabbit, but likely to get eaten. You could choose a fabric such as artificial fleece or purchase a sisal mat. To be avoided are the shavings of evergreen due to the harmful oils which they emit.
In the extensive catalogue of rabbit accoutrements are also transporters especially designed for rabbits, roofed outdoor enclosures of various shapes, the more traditional apex run, playpens and rabbit beds. For rabbit devotees, the shopping possibilities are almost endless!
Rabbit Care Tips on the Web
Our pet rabbit friends – though they may not know it – are beneficiaries of the growing popularity of the World Wide Web. Owners young and old are tapping into advice and information about new products and care procedures etc., when they hop around the Internet. After those owners have got past the sites that are actually about the movie Watership Down and the sites devoted to Beatrix Potter, or to novelist John Updike who wrote Run, Rabbit, Run, there is no excuse for not being clued up on all aspects of bunny care. Added to that, the fact that ordering from afar then having your purchases shipped to your door is now such a common way to shop makes the choice wider than it has ever been.
Websites like www.happyhopper.co.uk, which advise rabbit owners, now abound. Obviously, these sites often double up as, or link to, the suppliers of rabbit cages, rabbit runs, rabbit accessories and rabbit food. Naturally, if you took all of the suggestions and offers on board, you could soon become an exhausted (and penniless) slave to your nose-twitching furry friend.
Indoor rabbit cages and playpens are among the products on our website www.the-rabbit-hutch-shop.com as well as being featured on many other company websites. Indoor rabbit cages made of plastic and/or metal are basically larger models of guinea pig cages. Since they give full 360 degree visibility – keeping all members of the family informed of Bunny’s activities – they are best used in conjunction with a hideaway, a darker mini-house, in which the bunny can nap. There are some fundamental points on which virtually all these websites are in agreement: rabbit cages need to be spacious enough, easy for a (possibly growing) rabbit to get in and out of and easily cleaned. Experts are also adamant that exercise and human contact time out of the cage are the very top priorities.
With rabbit cages and enclosures of all kinds, one inescapable requirement is to try to achieve maximum cleanliness. The best way is to litter-train Thumper, something you might not have imagined to be a possibility. This is not necessarily difficult, though it will of course vary from rabbit to rabbit. First, you need to obtain a litter tray and fill it with suitable material (which could comprise paper pulp, dry grass pellets or compressed sawdust pellets). You could add some droppings, to condition the rabbit to using the tray for ‘evacuating’, before placing it in the rabbit cage. Now, start watching where your rabbit is actually going ‘to the toilet’, if he didn’t choose the tray right from the start. Move the litter tray to this preferred spot. When the habit of using the tray in the cage has been established, the next stage is to let Bunny out of the cage in a demarcated area. In this area, too, you should now place a litter tray. When you detect that your rabbit is on the point of defecating or urinating, coax him at once towards the tray.
While you should definitely never scold or punish the rabbit for failing to ‘go’ in the right spot, rewards can be connected with behaviour in the mind of the rabbit, so you might therefore choose to give a treat, but you need to do this straight away, without delay.
Since rabbits at play tend to defecate frequently, it is a good idea to take your bunny on a little ‘visit’ to his tray as often as once every ten minutes. Owners fortunate enough to possess rabbits which have become fully litter trained end up with highly cleanable rabbit cages and hutches. As a bonus, they are able to allow their pets the run of the home. Be aware, nevertheless, that accidents will continue to happen, on occasion. Be tolerant and where possible remind without reprimand that the litter tray is the place to go.
For more tips on training rabbits, or on purchasing rabbit cages, pens, litter and other items, take a look at http://www.happyhopper.co.uk and www.therabbithouse.com.
Top Bunny Care: Things to Consider Before Buying a Pet Rabbit
Rabbit Hutches, Rabbit Runs, Rabbit Accessories and Rabbit Food are subjects of great interest to rabbit owners – and rabbits, too, as they would tell us, if they could talk. It is worth getting all of these right from Day One, to be sure of giving your pet bunny the happiest life possible.
The most vulnerable part of the hutch is the spot where your rabbit most frequently urinates. Naturally, the resulting wetness can begin to rot the hutch floor, no matter what it is made of. Among the solutions are: when you first get your hutch, treat it inside with a wood treatment, such as Good for Wood, or similar wax-based product; carry out frequent hutch cleaning, including scraping the wet matter as this should ensure that Bunny continues to use just one area as a lavatory. Otherwise, the rabbit will be driven to select other corners as the original one becomes too dirty. Always have an adequate covering of shavings on the hutch floor, especially thick in that toilet area. Best of all, buy a litter tray, which of course acts as a barrier between the urine and the wood floor.
The next most vulnerable part of the hutch is the roof. This needs to have a covering of roofing felt or asphalt for protection against water penetration. Normally, such roof protection comes as standard. Being sure never to place objects on top will prolong the life of the roof. Probably the best design is the apex roof. For one thing, one isn’t tempted to store anything on top! Secondly, just like a house, the hutch with an apex roof has the least risk of rainwater getting in. Generally, the entire exterior of a rabbit hutch needs to be retreated regularly always with an animal-friendly product.
Let’s stray from the subject of Rabbit Hutches, for a moment, to one that exerts greater fascination: food. Rabbits are cheap and easy to keep as far as feeding goes. Roughage is important, partly as a means of preventing hairballs from forming. The best way to provide this is by giving the rabbit a daily supply of hay. Munching standard meadow hay has the added benefit of chasing away boredom. Younger rabbits can benefit from the nutrients found in alfalfa hay.
Next in importance are leafy vegetables and the green stalks chopped off when human food is being prepared. Go easy on vegetables that are high in calcium, such as broccoli and kale. Provided you haven’t been using any weed killer or other chemicals, the free food from your garden, especially rabbits’ great favourite, dandelion leaves, can be given. Grass is the most obvious free food, but rather than taking it to your pet, allows the rabbit outdoor time in a run or pen when he can do his own grazing for himself!
Rabbits can eat a small amount of fruit too, but not so much as would cause diarrhoea. Bananas, apples, peeled oranges and nectarines are fine, in small quantities.
Material comforts are, of course, not enough. That makes the next priority human attention. This should take the form of handling and stroking, but not teasing. It is for this reason that many people advocate indoor living for pet rabbits. If the bunny gets to be part of the family, hopping around the living room (supervised, of course), approaching human family members for cuddles, and learning to relax in the humans’ environment, then everyone gains. (It needs to be said that at no time should a rabbit be loose on its own in a room with electrical wires, since chewing through those is likely to be its very first thought!)
To take the companionship theme a little further, rabbits can be trained to be taken for walks. Admittedly, it won’t be like walking the dog, since your bunny doesn’t tend to maintain the same pace and rhythm as its human companion. More accurately, putting your rabbit on harness and lead is more likely to result in mooching around the garden, than actual walking! You can buy a soft, purpose-designed harness and lightweight lead from most pet supply companies. Additional accessories to help with the bonding process include grooming items and toys. The latter can take the form of found objects, such as cardboard boxes and tubes, balls made by crumpling up newspaper and empty cotton reels (not the tiniest). Plastic toys in the form of rattles, balls and tunnels can be purchased. While some of these can be placed in Rabbit Hutches to give the inhabitant a little diversion, the best place for toys is in the pen, whether indoors or out.
If trawling the market, whether for Rabbit Hutches at one extreme or small accessories at the end, be sure to look for recommendations and customer comments on the web, before you plump for a specific product.
Gimmie Shelter – Rabbit Style!
One way to look at the issue of Rabbit Hutches and how to build them is to think of how rabbits live in the wild. The warren (in other words, the burrow system which rabbits, rather amazingly, construct themselves) is not something you could possibly recreate, but certain of its features are worth bearing in mind. The first thing to bear in mind is the gloom of the warren. When rabbits go to bed in the wild, it is in the pitch dark. And down there, each rabbit has its own sleeping corner.
Trying to replicate this, with the minimum requirement being really well screened-off sleeping quarters, one area for each rabbit, is advisable. Additionally, it is paramount that the Rabbit Hutches be not only spacious, but also weatherproof, just like those burrows! Damp and draughts can give rise to illness.
For rabbits to be contented, they should receive plenty of human attention, including handling. The realities of family life can mean that a pet kept out of sight is also, regrettably, out of mind. Among the ways to combat this is to have a rota which family members are honour-bound to adhere to. Rabbit Hutch Chores shouldn’t be the main responsibility allocated, but instead make the top priority handling and stroking. Be sure to include all the children, even the youngest.
There is a belief which is increasing in popularity, that rabbits should in fact live indoors. It is felt by many advisers on pet care that the threat from predators, especially at night, is just too great a risk, even in towns and during daylight. Not only foxes, but even owls, hawks, cats and dogs can attack rabbits. Saddest of all is that such predators, just by being in the vicinity can do your bunny fatal harm. The rabbit, alerted by his own acute sense of smell, terrified, can injure himself or herself in panic, or die of fright. Those who simply can’t accommodate their pet rabbit in the house should do their utmost to make sure that the hutch is at the very least enclosed inside solid walls of some variety be this in a garage, garden shed, or dry basement.
Predators are not the only problem. With pets generally becoming more expensive to buy, and especially, of course, those that represent rare breeds, the pet thief is real menace. Prowling youngsters, sadly, too can get their kicks from teasing and tormenting other people’s pets. Don’t let yours be on their hit list. Use outdoor Rabbit Hutches only during those times when a member of your household is able to supervise it.
Never forget when using pesticides or fertilisers to consider whether your rabbit is within range. Don’t let your bunny on the grass until the recommended safe period of time has passed. Ideally, if at all possible, switch over to organic gardening methods, on which note it is worth mentioning that rabbit droppings make a great fertiliser! In other words, stick to the rules of a pet safe garden. The weather has been mentioned, but it is worth emphasising how harmful to the rabbit can be direct or prolonged exposure to cold, rain, heat or direct sunlight. Rabbit Hutches that are sited in a sun trap are just that: a Sunny Traps! While not a great conductor of heat, the wood from which the hutch is constructed will nevertheless warm up sufficiently to make the interior feel like an oven. Factor this into any decision to leave the rabbit out there. Sunny weather is, on the other hand, a high suitable time to choose for outdoor fun and letting that rabbit run, rabbit, run, within the confines of its run, of course!
Be very sure that your rabbit is not coming into contact with dog or cat faeces, since the bacteria these contain can be extremely harmful. Bear in mind, too, that diseases spread by insects are not to be sneezed at. Frequent scrutiny of the hutch interior is vital, to ensure no rotten food or urine-soaked corners are presenting an open invitation to airborne beasties.
Returning to the topic of ensuring that your rabbit receives daily attention, if there is no choice but to keep it out of doors, then keep your hutch as close to the house as you can. And definitely consider bringing him or her in at night, when predators are most common. It is not vital to try to manhandle a large hut indoors. A smaller cage for use at night is fine, or maybe you could give Bunny the run of the utility room, with bedding in one corner and a litter area in another.
If positioned out of doors, then, Rabbit Hutches should be the temporary, daytime, solution for rabbits’ containment. As such, they should be kept cool and out of direct sunlight and must be big enough for the occupants to stretch out and move about adequately. They should not, even if sited indoors, be the location where the rabbit spends its time 24/7. On the contrary, facilities to allow the bunny some outdoor exercise and some indoor love and attention are crucial to the rabbit’s happiness and longevity.
Making a Rabbit hutch A Home.
Creating the right habitat for a rabbit – one that will keep Thumper happy and alive for as many years as possible – is a challenge, and one worth spending money on. As family pets (ranking third in popularity in the UK) rabbits provide a great deal of pleasure. Sociable and highly watchable soft-furred, docile creatures, they can give endless pleasure.
Rabbits are popular for several reasons: 1) they are fairly inexpensive to keep, their dry food and hay being quite cheap to buy, not to mention the fact that they thrive on leftover peelings, stalks of vegetables discarded during food preparation, carrot tops and unwanted old lettuce leaves. As a supplement, the contents of used teabags do them a world of good; 2) they are uncomplaining, don’t sleep all day, as hamsters and guinea pigs tend to do, welcome human attention, and are big enough to pick up and cuddle.
It isn’t too much to ask, therefore, that they be housed comfortably. Even though a bunny’s facial expression is not exactly easy to read, there can be no mistaking the listlessness when a rabbit is suffering from depression. To ensure Bunny’s mental well-being, it is important to provide a spacious, draught-free rabbit hutch and to site it where he will see activity and, above all, will be visited frequently.
The standard wooden structure, often made of lapped planks of one type or another, is attractive-looking and breathable. Any other materials for the construction of a rabbit hutch should be viewed with scepticism. A sloping roof – ideally an apex one – which has been covered with Asphalt is a good idea. The roof needs to overlap sufficiently for rain to run off. (It is not a bad idea to apply house architecture principles – I have seen a young IT-literate pet owner designing her rabbit hutch using Sketch-Up software.) A completely flat roof guarantees that sooner or later Bunny will be the victim of damp. Rabbits have fairly delicate constitutions and can easily become ill if living in a damp environment. Flat-roofed hutches are on the market, but are entirely intended for indoor use. None of these decisions would normally present any difficulties, but for the fact that there are so many woefully inadequate hutches on sale.
Rabbit Shack, Trixie, The Rabbit Hutch Shop and Happy Hutch are just four of the many rabbit hutch brand names and each company offers a range of models. The advice to all rabbit owners or prospective owners is always the same: the larger the dimensions, the happier the rabbit Ryedale Pet Homes is a company in Yorkshire building their own hutches, many of which have quite grand dimensions. Few rabbits would sniff at Ryedale’s Double Whopper, with an impressive width (Length) of 6ft, a height of 40 inches and depth of 2ft. The listed price of is £281.00 with discounts for telephoned orders.
In addition to decent housing in a well-constructed rabbit hutch, in good weather your rabbit really ought to get some outdoor fun. Placed on a lawn, it is also a convenient and free diner for your rabbit who was, after all, designed to pull up grass. The obvious thing to do is to move the run from one spot to another, ensuring that no one patch of lawn ends up bare.
Constructing a run or pen (and making regular use of it) is one of the very best things you can do for your rabbit. Ideally, this is totally enclosed, the cheapest and easiest being triangular in shape. If, however, you are willing to take a little extra trouble, or run (no pun intended), to a little more expense, a conventional cuboid with six sides including a mesh floor is likely to give your rabbit the most exercise without the risk of escape. Gnawing and burrowing are habitual behaviour for every rabbit. A floorless run, no matter how well anchored, can be got out of. When you aren’t looking, your Houdini-like furry friend is likely to make a break for it with some superfast burrowing. Equally, an unroofed run, no matter how tall the fence, represents an invitation to Bunny to practise the high jump. No matter how well enclosed, however, you need to check regularly for any gnawed wire. Thumper could easily be working, Prisoner – of – War style, on gradually enlarging a hole that you haven’t even noticed.
There are many comprehensive rabbit care guides out there, such as the RSPCA’s “Care for Your Rabbit” and “Rabbitlopaedia: A Complete Guide to Rabbit Care”, co-written by a vet and published by Ringpress Books. Finally, when it comes to choosing your rabbit hutch or rabbit pen, don’t rush into the decision, and spend your money on space, space, space.
Finding Flopsy a Home: Where should my Pet Rabbit live?
If you are embarking upon rabbit ownership – becoming a member of the bunny brigade – your biggest outlay will be on the choice of what rabbit hutch to plump for. There are lots of factors to consider when you are making that selection, or, for that matter, building the hutch yourself.
Your rabbit may be a newly-purchased youngster and you might have been tempted to invest in a starter rabbit hutch. This may look cute and dinky, but is not generally a wise economy. Top priority in most experts’ opinion, is space. Just like you, that bunny needs elbow room, or ear room (okay, only kidding). The growing pet – unless it’s a dwarf variety – in one of the smaller “starter-homes” could soon be suffering from that “I’m-a-rabbit-get-me-out-of-here” sensation, not to be wished on any domestic animal.
A serious point is that as rabbits travel by jumping, head room really is vital. On a similar note, rabbits when they sit up on those long powerful back legs grow pretty tall. Think of the Watership Down bunnies when they stretched up to check for approaching predators. Even if you are being careful to select an adult-sized hutch, remember that your rabbit while it is sitting normally is considerably more compact than he will be when stretched out resting or sleeping. Measure your lounging long-eared friend when you get the chance, then quadruple that measurement. That way you will have the ideal length for a really comfortable hutch.
So, agreed, the biggest rabbit hutch you can stretch to (Oops) is the first concern. This by no means rules out two-storey structures, provided one storey at least has good head height. In fact, the advantage of these hutches is that they help to address Priority Number Two: ensuring Thumper has separate sleeping quarters. It should be mentioned, that up until now we have been considering the accommodation needs of the single rabbit with its own ‘pad’. If you are accommodating more than one rabbit in a hutch, it will be essential to allocate a separate sleeping area for each animal. Either way, a designated sleeping area, screened from prying eyes by not having wire mesh over the front, with, of course the benefit of darkness, is a must. In addition, the litter area needs to be a reasonable size, ideally located in a far corner. Naturally, this needs regular mucking out by Bunny’s owner, not least because rabbits are very clean creatures who hate to live among their own droppings.
The next dilemma surrounds whether to keep your rabbit indoors or out. While it may seem far more natural to place the hutch out of doors, the realities of life for pet rabbits tend to dictate that you think again. The rabbit owner soon learns that Enemy Number One is Mr. Fox. There is a great deal to be said for finding a “half-way house”! In other words, you should consider housing your pet in a conservatory, utility room or lean-to, in other words a predator-proof space. It is not widely known that death from sheer fright can be brought on just by being in the presence of a fox. If the rabbit hutch really must be positioned outdoors, place it as close to the house as possible, even if this means cluttering the patio somewhat or re-positioning plant pots and other garden features. Predators are wary of coming too close to human habitation.
With these vital factors dealt with, you can now at last have fun planning minor features such as interior accessories or the addition of a name plate.
Transform your Indoor Rabbit Cage to an Outdoor Rabbit hutch!
If you’d like to have an outdoor rabbit hutch for your pet bunny but you’re not quite yet ready to invest in a commercially available hutch, there is a way you can customize an indoor cage to do “double duty”. The basic idea is simple: use the wire structure of the indoor cage as an internal metal skeleton over which you will create a wooden outdoor rabbit hutch.
Some indoor cages come with wheels for easy portability and if you live in a single story home with only a few stairs, the cage/hutch can easily go back and forth between the indoors and outdoors. Depending on how you convert the cage, it’s also possible to add handles to the cage/hutch roof, allowing you to pick it up and carry it back and forth, provided of course it doesn’t weigh too much.
You’ll have to have some basic carpentry skills to do this, but if it is an idea that appeals to you, you can also select a wire dog cage for the conversion. Wire dog cages have the distinct advantage of being much taller, allowing a truly skilled person to create a second floor living quarters for that precious pet. While no dog cages come with wheels, wheel caster assemblies can be attached to the bottom of the cage. How would you start?
First, check the Internet or your local pet supply center to see examples of commercially available wooden rabbit hutches for outdoor use. All you’re looking for here is ideas. Visualize your final design and then sketch out the details of each step on paper.
The first step will be to enclose the wire cage with a wooden frame of 2 x 4 or even 1 x 2 lumber. For the walls you’ll most likely want to use exterior plywood, attached to the frame. If you have the skills you can top the wooden shell with an A frame style roof. A simpler alternative is to extend the framing lumber on one side higher than the other and then attach a sheet of plywood to create a slanted, shed style roof. Regardless of which you use, you can shingle the roof for better protection and beauty, although it will add to the weight of the hutch if your plan calls for mounted handles to pick the hutch up and move it. For a lighter alternative, you can cover the roof with sheet plastic.
The floors of both indoor rabbit cages and door cages are made of welded wire, and in the case of rabbit cages, with drop pans underneath. Some dog cages don’t have drop pans, and in either case, your cage/hutch will be resting on the ground so the drop pan can be eliminated when outdoors. Cleaning then is a simple matter of moving the cage and collecting the rabbit’s droppings. Welded wire is generally spaced so wide that it can provide a painful surface for some rabbits to walk on. You can either install a narrow mesh wire, like hardware cloth, directly over the existing wire, or you can cover a portion of the floor with wood or plastic. Avoid a continuous solid wood floor as rabbit urine may soak into the wood and begin producing ammonia like fumes over time. This is a tough project, but you’ll be proud of your creative result if you decide to do it.