Inside Cage

Rabbits Online Forum

Help Support Rabbits Online Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Joined
Nov 9, 2013
Messages
13
Reaction score
0
Location
NULL
So my newest addition (Cloud) will be arriving this Friday so I'm in the process of setting up his cage. He's going to be my first inside/free range bunny so I'm not 100% sure on if what I'm doing is right or wrong.

Cloud is a minilop buck, born on the 3rd of October (making him 6 weeks old when I get him). The cage I have set up currently is only temporary, I thought it would be better to limit the amount of space he is allowed in in the beginning while he settles but also until he gets the hang of using a litter box. I have read that sometimes young bunnies forget to go back to the litter box if given a large area to roam around.
So cage information :
Its a puppy pen, set up in a rectangle which measures 1.2m by 0.7m (of course he will get time out of the cage when I'm in the room). The pen is held in place by a wooden frame around the base which has a sheet of black tarp (its not an actual tarpaulin, but very similar, more water proof) which will protect the floor while he is still learning.
The bedding for the first few days is newspaper and a puppy training pad under the litter box - the bedding while change once he settles and everything is ok.
In the litter box is some breeders celect cat litter (its recycled paper pellets) with straw on top - his breeder had said they tend to use the area where she has straw as their, (his siblings/mum and himself) bathroom.

Pictured is the cage currently, I've still got a few things to add like the water bottle, a box and some willow branches for him to chew on :)

PB120252.JPG
 
His cage resides in the mouse room (I breed mice so my Dad built me a sleep-out/room for me to keep their cages/them in).
When he is using the litter box, I'll slowly expand the area he is allowed in until the point where he has almost the entire room - the room is 4m by 3m roughly but I'll only give him 3m by 3m of it. The 1m by 3m section will be where I keep my spare mouse cages, heater and vacuum cleaner so he can't nibble on them :)

PB100248.JPG
 
A couple of things I can see that might be a problem; not having a roof on the cage means he may easily jump out, the rope/tennis ball toy is probably not a good choice because he could swallow the fibers which is potentially dangerous, and the cloth items will most likely interfere with litter training (bunnies like to pee on soft things) and you should also watch closely to make sure he's not chewing them. You also should probably provide him with some sort of hideout where he can go when he's afraid of something. Otherwise I think it looks good, and good luck with your new baby bunny :biggrin2:
 
A couple of things I can see that might be a problem; not having a roof on the cage means he may easily jump out, the rope/tennis ball toy is probably not a good choice because he could swallow the fibers which is potentially dangerous, and the cloth items will most likely interfere with litter training (bunnies like to pee on soft things) and you should also watch closely to make sure he's not chewing them. You also should probably provide him with some sort of hideout where he can go when he's afraid of something. Otherwise I think it looks good, and good luck with your new baby bunny :biggrin2:
Thank you for pointing those things out. The puppy plan pen is about 80cm tall while which he is a young bub it should be enough to keep him in - of course when he gets older that will change and by then I would have sorted something out for my mouse cages, heater and vacuum cleaner.
As mentioned before, I do intend to add a box and a few other things but now that you mention the soft things part, I think while he is learning I'll just avoid using the bed and stick with the box. Maybe introducing the bed at a later date.
The rope tennis ball thing is hemp rope, I have used it with my guineas and mice and such so I guess I thought it would be safe - I can remove that though. I know he loves to toss things around and thought he would absolutely love it. Ah well.
 
Well I did a quick little update. Added 2 boxes (I've cut holes in the boxes so they connect as well), added the drink bottle of course and removed the soft fleece bed/blanket and the rope tennis ball toy :)

PB130318.JPG
 
It looks good :) You may have better luck litter training if you put the hay bag in front of the litter box, as bunnies like to use the bathroom while they eat. He also may pick a different corner of the cage to use as his bathroom so be prepared to rearrange things if that's the case. Otherwise I think you'll have a very happy bunny in his cage :clapping:
 
It looks good :) You may have better luck litter training if you put the hay bag in front of the litter box, as bunnies like to use the bathroom while they eat. He also may pick a different corner of the cage to use as his bathroom so be prepared to rearrange things if that's the case. Otherwise I think you'll have a very happy bunny in his cage :clapping:
I heard different things in regards to the placement of the hay. I know of some people whose rabbits chose the opposite end of their cage to where the food was to use as their bathroom and others who ate and pooped in a similar place.
Never the less, I'll move the hay bag to in front of the litter box and see how it goes :)
Everything is easy to re-arrange so if he doesn't choose that corner, it isn't a problem.

Thank you!
 
I'm a little concerned that he seems pretty young to be going to an adoptive home--6 weeks old this Friday. Some baby bunnies aren't quite weaned by 6 weeks and haven't transitioned to pellets and hay yet. Are you in touch with his breeder so that you know his weaning/solid food status?
 
I'm a little concerned that he seems pretty young to be going to an adoptive home--6 weeks old this Friday. Some baby bunnies aren't quite weaned by 6 weeks and haven't transitioned to pellets and hay yet. Are you in touch with his breeder so that you know his weaning/solid food status?
Yes, he is eating pellets and hay already - his breeder is a good friend who I talk to on a daily basis :)
 

Latest posts

Back
Top