Flooring Question

[Tauntz]

Okay, I'm still looking for better floor covering options for my bunnies. While online today I found this & it sounded perfect to me (if I can find it locally):

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Artificia...2RSSCarouselShopallRollbacksinRugs-ip11987712

Or this from Lowe's:
http://www.lowes.com/pd_204470-373-...ntURL=?Ntt=artificial+grass+carpet&facetInfo=

Is this good? Does anyone see any potential problems? My bunnies are good for the most part but sometimes they get spooked & have a pee accident in their inside enclosure/xpen. Thanks for looking & any replies to help!

 

[whitelop]

My only concern would be that they would chew it and ingest the plastic grass part of it. Or they could think it is REAL grass in the beginning and eat it. That couldn't be good for them.
BUT if they don't chew on carpet or anything, then maybe it would be okay for them.
The hub and I have talked about getting that for the side of the kitchen that Ellie stays in, but I would be terrified that she would eat it.

 

[Blue eyes]

I'm afraid with flooring it's more a matter of trial and error. What works for some buns won't work for others. Some chew things that others won't. Some slip on surfaces that others seem to be fine with.

I've had rabbits that wouldn't step one foot on tile and others that hopped around on it without problem.

That being the case, I've also used multiple different floorings over the years in various cages. Though I usually try to have at least 2 different flooring in each cage to give them an option.

The carpet may work. It may not. Sorry that's not too helpful.

Here are some materials I've used successfully (depending on the rabbit):
Linoleum, tile, double-sided bath mats, rubber car-trunk mats, carpet, area rugs, foam-memory bath mats, plywood, over-sized metal oil-changing drip pan, woven fabric rugs.

I have seen that they now have some roll linoleum that is not at all slick. When you rub your hand on it it is rough. I found some at lowes on their sample racks. You have to feel them to find them though since you can't tell by looking at them. I believe they had some that looked like wood plank flooring and some that looked like large stone flooring.

I'm not referring to linoleum that has some slight texture. These particular ones really are more grip-py to the touch.

 

[Tauntz]

Thanks for the replies everyone! I have transportation problems so I can't go check anything out other than online. Don't want to be chintzy with things my buns & birds need but also need to be frugal so I can afford to give them the best of what they do need & some of what they want. lol But I can't afford to just let the house flooring be ruined if I can prevent it either. Also looking into Coroplast, think I have found a place locally to purchase it. Hoping I can find it in a better size than 4 x 8, would prefer 5 x 8 for a small inhouse xpen enclosure but once again I need it affordable. I know sometimes it is more affordable to pay more upfront & get good quality & what you truly need but sometimes the money just isn't there so you have to buy the next best.

 

[roxyllsk]

I used Coroplast on the floors of my NIC levels but my bunnies are chewing on it too much. I use NIC panels as the 'support' and am removing and replacing the Coroplast. I have one level that is wood covered in lino tiles, same as the base. One level is cardboard with fleece clipped on it. I may try those rubber pavers on another level.

My bunnies are pretty good at using their litterpans but sometimes they may track stuff around, and I like being able to wipe it up easily to keep their house very clean. They are very avid chewers, even with wood parrot toys, willow branches, pine blocks, lots of hay & hay cubes - they chew on everything so I have to be careful what I use.

 

[Tauntz]

Thank you for sharing your experience with the flooring for your bunnies. I'm still looking to find a better solution to my bunnies flooring. So far only a taste test by my bunnies of the mat I'm using but if I can find something a bit bigger & better would be great. Hope this thread is helping others seeking flooring solutions as well.

 

[roxyllsk]

It seems there is no straight answer ! I built my NIC cage almost 6 months ago and have been tinkering with the design to improve it ever since.

The base is plywood, with a 'lip' around it to keep hay and stuff off the carpet. I've used the glue on vinyl tiles, which are a little slippery, and I have wheels on the underside, so it's really easy to move the whole cage around as needed to vacuum underneath. I have 2 litterpans on this level, and the hayrack, and their veggies go on one of the liiterpans.

The pro's with the tiles is that they are really easy to keep clean - a spray with vingar/water, and a good wipe with paper towels, and it's good to go. But, it's a little slippery, so I have a piece of fleece on top of part of it. I thought I would replace the flooring in the levels with this but I think it's too slippery. So, I am still tinkering.

It's fun actually. I like playing with different ideas. So far I like the cardboard with the fleece clipped on top of it, but need to come up with a better way to keep my little diggers from pulling the fleece off. I plan to just replace the cardboard when it gets soiled. They like to chew on it but I don't worry as much as I did when they were chewing up the coroplast.

Now that I think about it, the coroplast may actually work for me if I cover it with the fleece. Then if it gets yucky, I can wash the fleece and still wipe down the coroplast.

 

[Shmoo06]

I have a cheap floor rug from Big Lots with a fleece blanket on most of it for my xpen enclosure. The carpet's pretty thin, and it's hard to get everything off of the carpet.

Basically I'd rather have something that's easier to clean eventually. lol.

 

[Imbrium]

Also looking into Coroplast, think I have found a place locally to purchase it. Hoping I can find it in a better size than 4 x 8, would prefer 5 x 8 for a small inhouse xpen enclosure but once again I need it affordable.

I'm 99% sure that 4'x8' is the absolute largest size that coroplast sheets come in ><

home depot has 3'x6' sheets for $12-13 or so... I got purple 4'x8' sheets from a sign store for my condo because home depot didn't start carrying the 3'x6' sheets until after my condo was done (b*stards!), but it was like $18 a sheet (and that's with them arbitrarily being nice and giving me the price for white when I was getting colored... I think they did it 'cause I bought two sheets and not just one). of course, pricing's going to vary from one sign shop to the next, so you may be able to find a better deal.

 

[Tauntz]

Locally both my Home Depot & Lowe's, neither one carries the Coroplast sheets in any size. I've found a place locally that sells it but I have yet to see if they sell it to individuals or only big companies or if I might could get their scrapes if they only sell to companies. Going to give it my best shot next week, have too much going on until then.

 

[Imbrium]

are you SURE home depot doesn't? if you just asked an employee, they said no and you took their word for it, then it's entirely possible they DO carry it. they just tend to not KNOW that they do for some reason. if you ask to be told where the plexiglass is, coroplast will be right beside it if they have it.

 

[Tauntz]

No, I'm housebound with no transportation so I did an internet search of my local stores. I did use the word coroplast in my search. Maybe I should have used another search word but didn't know any other. Came up at both Lowe's & Home Depot as not found. Hey, I live in the city of He** Hole in my state! Just kidding, I think! lol Rarely do we have anything until it has become a household word in every state of the union & in most foreign countries! lol

 

[fluffums]

I bought woven mat bottoms that were safe for bunnies to put on the bottom of his cage/right outside of it- he's pretty clean and doesn't have accidents but also likes to chew stuff (everything...) so it worked out! I'd replace them every month or so when they started getting too patchy. He now has a new house so he doesn't use them anymore but they were good for keeping things clean and entertaining him.

He now has a towel and a cheap carpet in the room he lives in and he doesn't chew them or anything. I'd say the artificial grass is safe if he's not a chewer, but if he is I'd try to see if there's any woven mats you can find that won't be a problem for him if he eats them.

 

[Tauntz]

Thanks, Fluffums!

 

[PaGal]

I'm not sure if this will help or not but does Lowe's or Home Depot give you the option of buying online and having it shipped to your local store? I'm not sure if you pay for shipping if you choose that option. Seems stupid that they would have you pay if it would be going on a truck headed there with our items anyway. I don't shop online much.

Many years ago I bought coroplast from a local sign store to build a nic cage for my daughters guinea pigs. I told them at the store what it was for. I know it was very inexpensive. I think because it was for a pet they were more willing to sell to me so you could try that angle.

 

[Tauntz]

Thanks, PaGal! I have some things the first of the week so hopefully after that I can get back to checking out the flooring again. So far my setup is working pretty good but we do still have the occasional "pee" accident which manages to leak to the floor. Would like to find a better solution if possible to avoid ruining the flooring. Everything would be a snap if it weren't for the transportation problems. Well, then I guess there would be the money problems! lol Guess that's life getting through it with all of its problems! Everything is better with a bunny even problems!

 

[JBun]

Something like this might work for you if the edges of it are outside the cage so your rabbit can't chew on it. It's somewhat slip resistant and waterproof. I got some at my local walmart in the fabric section. It was a bit cheaper than the online price, and they had several thicknesses available. The thicker you get, the more it will hold up against chewing attempts, and the higher the gauge, the thicker it is.

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Vinyl-Deluxe-Weight-Clear/17248565
http://www.fabric.com/apparel-fashion-fabric-apparel-vinyl-laminated-fabric-clear-vinyl-fabric.aspx

The cheapest thing, but not the prettiest, would be a basic tarp, but it could be chewed on. Entry wiper mats with the rubber backing, may also work.

 

[sbaxter]

In my buns new shed I've got think vinyl non slip safety flooring cost me £29 for 8 x 6 ft pice really quite think handyman used 4 blades trying to trim it to fit had a bunny on it for a week so far no chewing &#128522;