Do you think this is cruel

[onnie]

Just curious for your thoughts,my 2 lionheadrabbits were living in the house but i decided to move them to thelarge covered run in our garden which has a hutch inside as i feltsorry for them stuck in a cage in the house for so long while i'm inwork.The run is big enough for them to run around'binkie what ever theywant'but now the winters coming i'm feeling guilty again'will they getto cold out there through the winter.They have plenty of toys'treatsand food.Do you think it's best to bring them in through the winter orwill they be ok. Thanks Sharon Onnie:?

 

[Snuggys Mom]

How cold do your winters get there? Ifthey have adequate shelter, they should adjust. I wouldn'tbring them in and out though. Frequent changes might be toomuch for them.

I've never had outside buns because our weather here is soextreme. I have a friend who keeps hers outside year-round,even in below zero temperatures. She covers three sides ofthe hutch with plastic in the winter and hers do fine.

Laura

 

Thats a tough call Onnie. As long as they have enough warm fursettled in before the wintergets really harsh they shouldbe fine as long as youcan provide enough hat tosnuggle up in , plus they have eachothers body warmth .

They should be fine . Imnot sure just how coldit can get where you a re but Iwould check them often forfrost bit ears . toes etc . Which I knowYou being a Diligent Person woulddo with out reminders

 

[Iwuvbunbuns72]

Some rabbits do well outside in winter, othersdont. If it was me i would keep them out a day or so to see how wellthey do and if you feel that their not doing so well bring them inside.

 

[onnie]

Thanks all'our winters here don't go much below-2 but i think i will bring them in'in a few weeks as i really don'tfeel that happy about leaving them out there and that's why i wantedthe advice of more experienced members Thanks

 

[Stephanie]

That's around 30F (I'm pretty sure, still thinkin Fahrenheit all the time lol), so if you keep a close eye on them,they should be ok.

 

[Bunnys_rule63]

They should be fine if they are sheltered. Inthe winter i load the back ofour hutch with straw tokeepour bunnieswarm, cover the front with an oldcoat, and put an old sleeping bag and an old horse blanket over the topover back bit(bed bit) to insulate it a bit more. I'm alsogoing to get them one of those 12 hour heat pad things this year.They've done fine during winters, i on the other hand don't like it asi can't see them as much.

I'm sure your bunnies would like being out in the run duringthe day, i put a pipe, toys and a box if its not raining in my bunniesrun and that keeps them amused all day.

 

[Starlight Rabbitry]

Is there hutch off the ground? I askthis because here in New England...we get a lot of snow. Theyshould be fine outside as long as their hutch is up. Buildthem a ramp so that they can come and go. Is their runpredator proof?

Sharon

 

[onnie]

Yes that is another thing'i do spend a lot oftime in the garden in the summer'but now the winters coming i will onlybe going out there to feed the rabbits and check on them a few times aday'that's it i'm bringing them in .I'm such a worryier lol

 

[Pet_Bunny]

Another thing is that the water needs replacing if it freezes up.

Rainbows!

 

[onnie]

Yes the hutch is off the ground and the runwhich surrounds it is 10 ft by10ft completely enclosed with chickenwire with a removable roof and a storm cover

 

[Linz_1987]

You can get really cool water bottle warmers at pets at home They look so funny but they must do a brilliant job!

In the winter i cover all my rabbit and guinea pigs hutches up withthem plastic car covers you can get. They are really good cos theycover the hole of the hutch, and you can even fold them in half andthey still cover everything. And definetly lots of straw!

I have recently put my indoor bunnie outside in a hutch. I have done itnow before it gets too cold which is a good idea,yes. She is fineliving outside, so i see no reason yours wouldnt like itGood luck!

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

Did you mean -2*C?

It's not cruel. My rabbits are outside all year around. Yours should befine as long as they have been out and stay out as temperaturesdecline. Mine stay out until it gets to -30*C without windchill. Theexcept will be Kiara, she'll be coming into the garageif itgets to be -20*C.

My bunnies really love it outside and they get very stressed inside.They binky for hours in their hutches when they finally get to go backoutside.

 

[Kricket]

Last winter, I used one of those heat lamps(outside of the cage). Just make sure no electrical cords arewithin their reach. It was warm and toasty in their hutch

 

[Bunnys_rule63]

Pet_Bunny wrote:

Another thing is that the water needs replacing if it freezes up.

Rainbows!

I use water as a good judgement of how warm it is in their hutchactually, if the bottle on the front of the hutch freezes up it's toocold, if not it's ok! It's never freezed up with a coat over the meshfront. It works really well.We just use an old one.Lindz_1987 is right about the water warmer things. I've seen them too.They work well for if you want to stop the outdoor water freezing or ifit gets below 0*c in the day.

Onnie, their run sounds very big, i'm sure they'll love being out in it.

 

[onnie]

Thanks all for your replys'i've changed my mindi will leave the rabbits outside and see how it goes.I will put extrahay and straw in as it gets colder'it sounds like our winters arepretty mild compared to American weather our's would never drop to -20the lowest i've seen here is -3 and that's cold enough for me 'how youcope with -20 are never now.:thanks: