Housing Rules?

[mjpeter]

We are bringing home our first rescue, an 8 month old Dutch spayed girl early next week. I've decided to build her cage (along with my handy husband) so we can maximize her space. Is there a place where I can find specific rules about materials that are safe, and issues we need to avoid or be careful of? I just want it to be safe, but I wasn't too inspired by the large dog kennels recommended by the rescue. It's our first rabbit, so I have been doing a lot of research.

We already have the NIC panels, and they came with these circular holders to pin them together. Can these be used instead of the ties that I see most others use?

Thanks so much!!

Jennifer

 

[JBun]

Congratulations on your new bun!

You can use the plastic connectors, however longterm they may not hold up and could start separating. But temporarily they work fine, until you have decided more about your NIC construction.

This link has info on NIC construction, as well as a video tutorial.
http://rabbitcondo.com/lara-and-harrels-deluxe-wide-rabbit-condo

Here are some pics of other peoples rabbit setups as well.
http://www.rabbitsonline.net/f69/2013-cages-youve-made-73877/
http://www.rabbitsonline.net/f69/2014-cages-youve-made-78595/

Whether something is safe depends somewhat on how big of a chewer your rabbit is. You basically have to plan on the possibility that your bun will want to chew any and everything in it's area, and a rabbit ingesting some things could be unsafe. For fabric people usually use fleece, as it has shorter fibers and is considered a little bit safer if a rabbit happens to ingest some of it. Carpet makes a good flooring for well litter trained, non chewing buns, but can cause serious digestive problems for buns that are chewers. A lot of people will use a textured lino as a pee proof, easy to clean surface, though some rabbits detest any slippery surfaces. In which case you can sometimes use binder clips to secure fleece fabric to the floors. You may find that you have to make NIC alterations as you get to know your bun, and what does and doesn't work with her.

Best of luck