Barn cage setups?

[Hyatt101]

I have a bunny named cocoa, who lives in our barn. She's in a cage that I really don't like right now, and I want to try to give her a better setup. A little background about her exact location in the barn: her cage is on this long, high bench/table sort of thing, which I do like, since she's off the ground, especially because we have a bullmastiff. If I made a custom NIC cage design, would it work for the outdoors? Does anyone have pictures of their barn cage setups? Thanks!!

 

[Hyatt101]

Can NIC cages be used for outdoors??

 

[missyscove]

I wouldn't use an NIC cage outdoors because I would worry that it wouldn't be secure against predators and, at the very least, mice could get in through the spacing of the bars.

 

[Hyatt101]

That was my concern too, but she's up on the high bench, would that make any difference? I just love NIC designs, and I wish there was a way I could have one outdoors, because I'd rather make I myself, and make it with the amount of space she needs then buy one from a store that is too small

 

[Korr_and_Sophie]

If she is inside the barn, then an NIC cage should be fine. But if the cage was outside, then a NIC cage would not be good.

You could made a hutch and run for outside and it could be as big as you want. It would take some work and knowing how to use tools, but it can be done. You do have to make sure any outdoor housing provides shelter from the weather. The pen would have to prevent escape and protect from predators.

 

[Imbrium]

NIC should be ok if it's raised off the ground and is inside a closed barn, since the barn takes care of providing shelter from predators and the elements... though depending on how cold it gets in the barn, you might want to cover all but one side with a tarp in the winter to protect from drafts and keep some of the warmth in.

 

[Hyatt101]

Right. She's in the barn, raised up on the bench. I could make an NIC and cover it with tarp/ blanket, because that would insulate heat. Thanks for the replies!

 

[ldoerr]

Most barn rabbit cages are either stacking or hanging all wire cages that the poop falls through the floor to either the ground or a tray. The floor wire is tipically 1"x.5" spacing and the sides and roof are made out of 1"x2" wire. I know for a fact that wire comes in rolls that are 2ft wide and a few other widths can not think of them now). Those cages are the way that the vast majority of rabbits in the world (and this country) are kept. You can put devidors in the cage to make multiple cages. I do not have any pictures of my old setup on this computer otherwise I would show you.

 

[Bunnylova4eva]

I wouldn't use an NIC cage outdoors because I would worry that it wouldn't be secure against predators and, at the very least, mice could get in through the spacing of the bars.

I agree. Plus, even if it's off the gorund, something could get into it still. Mice and coons, skunks and other critters can still find their way into a barn; I just wouldn't feel safe with my bunny like that.

 

[ldoerr]

Also keep in mind that mice and rats LOVE rabbits, rabbit poop and hay. When I had my barn we had a constant rat problem. It was not uncommon for when I went down there to see 5 or 6 in the cages and around the barn at once. If you see 1 chances are that there are MANY more out there. I have herd that rats can fit through spaces as small as 1/2 inch. Just something to keep in mind. My guess is that you already have rats no offence. It is just inevetable, unless you have a good barn cat.

 

[Hyatt101]

I've never seen mce or rats in our barn... And I've been out there different times of day, early morning, during the day, at night, and have never seen any.

 

[Bunnylova4eva]

Keep in mind, mice don't usually make it a normal practice to come dance across the floor in front of people to show themselves. Usually they hide in the nooks and crannies. I agree though, where there's a barn, there are mice and rats. Inevitable. They're all around in rural and urban areas. And to add just one more thing, mice and rats can carry lots of disease ( I'm sure you know that though)-EC is carried by them (along with fleas and many other things) which is one of my biggest fears with one bun having already dealt with head tilt once. Personally, I just don't think I'd want to take the risk if it were my bunnies.

 

[Nelsons_Mom]

I'd make the nic and then cover it (more zip ties) with hardwire cloth or cage wire so that rats and mice cant fit through the big grids of the nic. It's pretty cheap ($30 bucks a roll) and easy to work with (even if it's hard on your hands). I've used it to make the walls of my indoor hutch as well as make it safe for my rats to live in a ferret cage before i got my martins (bar spacing).

 

[Imbrium]

I hate hardware cloth with a passion after meshing a rabbit cage to convert it to a hamster cage and making a crazy number of bin cages... works great, though! I didn't realize rats and mice were such an issue with barns (having never had a barn, I just thought of it as being like an unattached garage ) - hardware cloth would definitely be a good fix.

 

[Hyatt101]

Ok. What would you guys suggest for a cage? I certainly don't wan my bunns getting diseases!
What about a hutch?