Buns are moving outside :o(

[rabitgrl]

I am feeling guilty about our bunnies moving outside, but also feel it is out of my control. I am just posting here to get it off my chest, and get any thoughts or support anyone can offer. I understand that most participants on this forum have house rabbits, and I agree with that philosophy. At this point it is starting to become an issue in my relationship, and I do love my husband more than the rabbits.

I have posted other places about our situation, but basically we have two rabbits who have mostly been living in our laundry room. They can not really be in any other room as we have carpet and Bob pees on carpet (even after being neutered many monthes ago). He is also an occasional carpet eater. Space is also an issue. It is a relatively small house, so not really any good location for a large indoor enclosure.

Probably most important is my husbands general reluctance to have them in the house. He is okay with them being indoors for visits, but wants them to mostly stay outside. This was his initial stance, but we tried the laundry room. This has started to be a problem. They shed a tremendous amount and even with daily vacuuming there are always clouds of rabbit hair. This sounds crazy, but is true. The hair has started getting in our dryer intake and making our laundry really grossly hairy.

Also, we are doing a lot of work on the house - replacing water pipes, water heater, electrical systems, and re doing the drywall in the laundry. The buns are really in the way of this, and the excessive hair cloud is a problem here as well. For all these reasons we have decided to move them to the backyard. Mostly at my husbands insistence, but also because I can see his point and want to maintain a happy marriage.

He is currently in the process of building them an outdoor enclosure. It will be very safe and secure. The floor space will be 4'X 8', and plywood. It will also have good coverage from the elements, and a wooden box they can go in and climb on top of. They will still be able to come in the house for some running around, but it is really limited/dependent on Bob's treatment of our carpet. They will also be able to have supervised play in the fenced garden, weather permitting.

My concerns are that they may not have proper winter fur from being inside all this time. Our winters are generally mild, but can get down to freezing. Not usually much lower than freezing, but that seems cold enough.

I think they will be very secure from dogs, etc. but I do worry about them being stolen, or let out by a person. That probably sounds crazy, but there are a surprising number of such cases in my area. They will be in a fenced yard, and not visible to passersby, but I still worry about this.

I really do love these two rabbits. I just want to make that clear. I will still provide them with the best care and life enriching activity I can. I just feel like I have failed now that they are moving outside.

 

[Tauntz]

Personally, I would try to keep them inside at least until after winter even if your winters are considered mild. They really need time to acclimate to the colder temps, in my opinion. Spring the weather shouldn't be too hot or cold & would give them time to acclimate to outdoor life & temps. I think I understand the situation you & the bunnies are in but I think someone should at least consider the bunnies need time before going from a warm house to outdoor temps & weather. Maybe others who live closer to you & your weather can better advise you. Have you considered finding them another home that can keep them indoors & later on getting another bunny or bunnies when you have everything ready for them outside & can start them out when the temps are mild so they can acclimate to the more harsh weather of hot summer &/or cold winter? Wish you & your bunnies the best.

 

[Bville]

I have outdoor rabbits and have gotten some help with questions from some other forum members who do too so feel free to PM me or post any questions you have. I think you should really wait until spring to put them outside because they haven't grown their winter coats. Do you think you could convince your husband to wait? It's really only a couple of months until the worst of the winter weather is over. As far as bringing outdoor rabbits indoors, I was told to limit it to 3 hours at the most. I usually only have them in for an hour in the late afternoon when they are normally most active.

 

[JBun]

Because of the cooler temps, if you do move them out I would suggest also providing them with a rabbit safe heating pad, so they can keep warm if it gets too cold for them.

And if you are worried about security, you could always put a lock on their gate. It would at least provide some sort of deterrent.

 

[rabitgrl]

Thank you everyone. I really appreciate your thoughts and advice.
I am not sure when they will move outside, but don't think waiting until spring is really an option. My husband is very nice, and an animal lover, but he is really fed up with the situation. However, I will discuss the possibility of waiting until spring with him. I have looked into microwavable heating pads, but have not purchased any yet. They will be out of the wind and rain, but I may also use a tarp to try and keep a little more warmth in. I will keep this thread updated as things progress.

 

[ladysown]

having rescued rabbits for the past nine years in all sorts of weather let me assure you that your bunnies will be JUST FINE moving outside even now in the winter.

What you want to do is
1. give them bunny sized hidey holes that are well protected from the elements. In my set up that means tossing in a whole leaf of hay that they can make into lovely tunnels for setting in.
2. if it is a particularly COLD time frame (for me that would be below -20 Celcius) a 40 watt lightbulb makes a difference between a cold rabbit and a not cold rabbit'
3. make sure you protect them from drafts WHILE leaving good ventilation.
4. something warmish (blanket, dog bed etc) to set on helps. Mind.. some rabbits simply won't set on anything other than bare wire or the ground. But as long as they look good and act good they will be fine.

I personally, if it came to the bunnies or hubby... I'd chose hubby and put the buns outside.

 

[J.Bosley]

Sorry to hear!

I have 2 outdoor bunnies at my Aunts. They are outdoors in the summer, with frozen water bottles to help cool them down as well as plenty of shade. And in the winter they are in basically a shed, we also added a space heater to keep them just above freezing! This way they stay at a good temperature and their water doesn't freeze. We tried heating mats, but they didn't enjoy them. The space heater has worked wonderfully!

 

[jemm]

Mine live outside and they do fine, they have free run of the garden as much as I can (supervised) if it gets cold they come in the house

 

[carriedaisy]

We started out with one house rabbit who had a great indoor life. We also had pet rats. My oldest daughter was having terrible allergies, and I tried all sorts of things from putting her on allergy medication to changing the pets bedding, washing everything non-stop, etc. Nothing helped. So we had to return the rats to the rescue and the bunny had to move outside. She had instant relief so I know it was the right thing to do. Our rabbit lived in a single enclosure outside until we added a few more rabbits a few months ago. Now we have a huge hutch that my husband built and they all have their own section. When it is nice out they all take turns in a big exercise pen. When they are in the grass running around, they are the happiest they ever are. I think they actually love being outside. Winter does get pretty cold and I do worry, but I just make sure they have lots of extra hay in their shelter and I also have a heat lamp on them when it's really cold. They also each have a towel or blanket. So far we have had no problems with predators or people. In the winter their water freezes of course so I go out 3x a day with warm water. We may add cooling fans to the top of their hutch this year for the summer. As guilty as you may feel putting them outside at first, it may not be ideal, but I really think it can work out.

 

[Bindi]

I sympathise. I preferred it when my rabbits were indoors but due to space restrictions I was forced to put them outside a few years ago. I always felt that I wasn't as close to my outdoor bunnies as I was to my indoor bunnies, which I regret. I know the feeling about security- it really bothered me at first, imagining anything happening to them, and I still get like that, especially when Pandora thumps at nothing in the middle of the night. I second what someone said about locks if it will give you added peace of mind.

My shed is currently cocooned in duvets for winter... not sure what temperatures you are getting to at the moment but I imagine you are probably colder than here in the UK. I know the duvets have helped a bit though...

 

[mrsmeyers]

I know this is difficult for you. It sounds like you have a kind husband who is trying to make their move outside a good one. He's reluctant to have them indoors, but knows what they mean to you. It's lovely of him to be out there making them a new home. When he's done building the enclosure, may I borrow him? I'd like to make a new rabbit hutch.

Our rabbit has been an outdoor rabbit from Day 1. He comes inside during heat spells in the summer, though, for a few days at a time. Having seen him in both environments, he truly seems happiest outside. The only down side is it seems to require more effort on our part to spend time outside with him. It can get a little boring (for me) sitting outside while he races around, nor does he get as much exercise in the winter when there's snow on the ground and temps are in the 'teens here. But all in all, I'm happy with our decision to keep him outside.

Depending on your climate, I might wait to bring them outside until spring. They won't have their winter fur to protect them against cold temps otherwise.

 

[Mariah]

I have to say, if my SO, told me to move my buns outside, I would be getting rid of him... Lol, that being said, I agree with what others have said about waiting till spring. I own & work with horses, and it's a general rule, that if a horse is going to be living outside 24/7 with just a shelter for protection against the elements, we would wait till spring, so they can build up their coats for winter. And this is a 1000 plus pound animal I'm talking about.
Good luck with your buns!

 

[rabitgrl]

Thank you all for your comments.
The buns moved outside yesterday. I realize most everyone said wait until Spring, but it was not possible. My husband is doing a lot of work in the laundry room now, and there are exposed electrical wires, and other dangers. So it just was not safe for them in there.

Here are some photos of the finished hutch.

It was made from mostly re-purposed wood, as may seem obvious. I do like that it is big enough for the kids and I to get inside and spend time with the buns. However, ideally it would be even larger. They will be able to run around the garden with supervision, and come in the house with supervision.
So far they seem to like it well enough, but I really have no way of knowing what they think. They have two large litter boxes. One visible in the photo and the other inside the built in box area. They like to lay around in their litter boxes, so I thought it would be good to have one in the sheltered area and the main area - and they do use both. Since taking the pictures I have put a tarp over the front, that I raise in the day, and lower at night when it is a little cooler.
I do miss having them inside, and do worry about them staying warm and safe outside. However, it is what it is, and I did not have a lot of options. Once the work in the laundry is finished they should be able to spend some time in there again. Hopefully they are happy in their outdoor home.

 

[**SRonchi1]

If my hubby told me to put my buns outside, I would pitch a tent & tell him to sleep outside until he changes his mind!!

In saying that I have 3 buns inside & 2 buns in our insulated shed in a two story "night time cage". All my buns have free range of our big fenced hilly backyard & also my bunnie play world which half of my shed is converted into. It has toys, sleeping decks, box hidey holes & cat climbers. In winter I add in a couple of warm fleece blankets on there top level & put a blanket over half of their cage. My shed is insulated and can be completely closed so they are toasty warm in our winter & then a fan in summer although they can sleep under a shady tree in our backyard as they only spend nights in their night cages. Just a few ideas, give them a bunny world and you won't feel sorry for them out there but envious

 

[**SRonchi1]

That's a nice hitch, go to a charity shop & buys some blanket & pillows (if they like them) and your bunny house will be complete