new bunnies' housing - adequate?

[curiouscarrot]

Sorry for all these questions, but I know nothing...

My adopted bunnies have come with 2 hutches. One is a little house with an upstairs "bedroom" at one end, and a low run underneath the bedroom and an "outdoor area" (about 50cm high) at the other end. Both the outdoor area and the bedroom area have a roof. I've put that in the garden. The other is a metal cage with removable plastic bases, and a "nesting box" on one end. That is open on the top.

Our climate is mild, it doesn't get really cold. At night, in winter it is "really cold" if it gets down to about 5 celsius (41F), sometimes it'll get below that, but rarely. Mostly it might get as low as 8. It does get hot in summer, over 40 (104F) is not uncommon.

I don't yet know whether the hutch roof is completely sound above the bedroom. It doesn't rain often (we are in chronic drought) but it does rain. There are no eaves to speak of, so any wind will probably blow rain into the run (although the new fly wire should stop some of it). I've got hay on the floor which will probably get wet when it rains. The hutch is currently on the ground, so there'd be a bit of damp, but I'm looking at raising it up, either with some pavers, or a constructed floor on legs. At the moment, I've meshed the base and put in a partial floor of marine plywood.

The family I got them from had the indoor cage to bring them in in summer when it gets hot in the hutch. As the cage is open on top, any hot air would vent, but in winter they'd be exposed to draughts (before I set up the hutch, I just covered it with a fabric cover, it is under my carport adjoining the house (house wall on one side, garage door on another, fence with open bit at the top of the fence on the third side and completely open on the other side).

I'm trying to get organised so there are no dramas. Would another timber hutch under the carport be a good idea to put them in during winter when it rains, or am I worrying unnecessarily and they'll be fine outside, even if there's a bit of moisture about, or in their other cage with a cover over? I quite like the idea of having options to move them into when cleaning or something breaks or one needs quarantine or whatever, the question is whether the open cage is sufficient for that purpose or I need something warmer.

Also, I'm a bit confused about "bedding" and litter trays and... I've just put hay in the bottom area, to cover the wire mesh so they aren't on it. I put their litter tray with some recycled newspaper litter in a corner of the bottom outside area, but they'd pooed upstairs, so I put another in the corner they'd pooed in up there. The upstairs has a slide out metal-lined tray underneath and it's all marked so they've obviously "done their business" on it and not in a litter tray. I put some absorbent hemp "bedding" that I got up there. The family that used to have them had them in pine shavings and she'd put hay in the litter tray. If they are going to poo wherever they like, do I need the litter trays? Will they start using them if I leave them in there? Should hay be in there? (If there's hay everywhere, how can they tell the difference between their "loungeroom" and their toilet??) If they've chosen to poo "upstairs" can I take out the "downstairs loo"? They seem to jump in there, but don't look like they are going to the toilet, just hanging out. I'm a bit confused about what materials are meant to go where, and what arrangements for their toileting I need to provide.

Thanks.

 

[Acacia-Berry]

Okay. First and foremost- are they spayed/neutered? If not, make that your priority so they make better pets and poop/pee where they're supposed to!

Your climate does not get too cold for bunnies, in fact, bunnies sometimes prefer cooler temperatures. They do not tolerate heat. You want to have them in the house when it hits 25C at least. You want them to cool themselves in a shady area with air conditioner or ice bottles because they can easily give in to heat stroke.

You want to move them indoors when there is rain as well. Bunny fur takes a long time to dry on its own and if you have a rain spell which wipes all the heat out of the day a wet bunny can get very cold, leading to infection. If your winds are predictable and come from one direction you can protect the hutch with a plastic tarp, leaving one side open to allow ventilation.

If you can house them in your garage permanently, do it. I don't like the idea of bunnies being outside in hutches where they are easy target for predators. House bunnies make better pets IMO and they get more attention. But if you have to leave them outside, protect them from heat and rain.

 

[curiouscarrot]

The boy's already done, and I'm having the girl done. They aren't at risk from predators, they are in a suburban backyard so there are no foxes or coyotes (we don't have them) or anybody who'd seriously want to eat them and the fencing is such that no dogs or passing opportunists could get in. The hutch is meshed and flywired, so any cats or rats or whatever can't (easily) get in. The run and hutch have roofs, so any predatory birds wouldn't see them from above and if they wanted to land to try to get in through the mesh, my dog would chase them off. They do have foxes in outer suburban/semi-rural areas, but not around here.

I bought a tarp yesterday, so I can cover the hutch if necessary, but I think I'll go ahead and get another one just in case - I'd rather just move them than have to worry about keeping rain out if it decides to "blow the wrong way" or whatever and I think the open-topped one would be too breezy and cold in winter. Nothing about our weather is predictable.... except the heat in summer. I've got their portable cage, so they can move inside when a heatwave hits.

 

[Acacia-Berry]

Well that sounds good then

You should share pics of the babies now!

 

[PaGal]

I don't quite understand their living arrangements. maybe if you could post some pics or it could just be that I am so tired. Bunnies can be litter trained. Bunnies typically poop, while they eat so if you have a litter box for a bun most people either place some hay in a corner of the litter box for the buns to munch on while they potty or they hang a hay rack above the litter box. It makes it more likely that the bun will use the litter box if it can eat while in the litter box.

I know people will put hay in outdoor hutches in the winter to help keep buns warm. Drafts are bad for buns so they need protected from them as well as rain.

Buns can overheat easily. Bottles of water can be frozen and placed with the buns to help keep them cool when it is hot. I'm not sure at what temperature that even that may not be enough or if you live gets that hot.

Most that have a house bun use only a litter box in the cage. They do not put bedding throughout the cage because it can be confusing to the bun when litter training. Wire mesh floors are not always the best thing for a buns feet. I know that is the case for the flemmies. Rabbit feet do not have pads like dogs and cats instead they are protected by the fur. If your flooring is wire and you want them to be able to get a break from being on it all the time then you could put some wood in as flooring so they would have somewhere they could lay down or walk around without being on the wire.

 

[curiouscarrot]

I don't quite understand their living arrangements.

Their hutch is like this. It's in my backyard, so I meshed the bottom so they can't dig out (their former owner said they were diggers and would dig).
http://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/kenw...en-coop-rabbit-hutch-free-delivery/1019238561

I've put some marine plywood sheeting on top of part of the mesh, and the rest is covered with hay.

Yes, it gets hot and I'll have to take steps to keep them cool when summer hits, but we're coming into winter so I'm more concerned about keeping them warm enough at the moment.

Most that have a house bun use only a litter box in the cage. They do not put bedding throughout the cage because it can be confusing to the bun when litter training.

Yes! And not just the buns, that's what confuses me. If the bedding is also the litter and also the food, how do they know what's dinnner, where to sleep, and where to poop?

Wire mesh floors are not always the best thing for a buns feet.

Yes, I'd read that, but I was more concerned that they can't get out (given that I've got dogs and cats). Also, I've extended the mesh and put a brick on it, so that the hutch can't be knocked over. My dogs haven't tried to do anything to get at the rabbits, they've been very good with their new "pet colleagues", but I'm happier knowing they can't.

then you could put some wood in as flooring so they would have somewhere they could lay down or walk around without being on the wire.

Yes, already have, also thick layer of hay over the rest.

 

[Acacia-Berry]

Litter substrate can be anything from aspen shavings, to shredded newspaper to newspaper pellets. It should not be cat litter, pine shavings or corn cob husks.

Then the floor can be fleece or flat newspaper, foam puzzle tiles, linoleum or a bedsheet (depending on how much cleaning, discarding you want to do)

And since its best to fill a hay rack in the litter box they will pee and eat hay. Just hang the hay above the litter substrate so they don't mess it up with messy hocks or pee on it. Hay racks come in various shapes to fit any type of cage. Or you can make one.

 

[curiouscarrot]

Thanks, acacia-berry. When I got them, they had pine (it's all they sell in the shops here) shavings on the floor and in the litter box, and hay in the litter box as well. I don't know how they couldn't be confused, anyway we'll sort everything out. I'll put their hay ball thing above the litter tray, but they claimed it as a bed last night, so not sure whether they'll get the hint that it's a litter box, or whether I should get them another box as a bed, or what. We'll get there in the end......

 

[PaGal]

it helps to have others ideas and suggestions but it seems mostly it comes down to trial and error because buns can be so different and of course how you prefer things to be or the items you prefer to use are different then others.

I'm sorry I can't be more help as my bun lives indoors. Is the hutch in your yard? If it is and you have grass growing there then I would think that would eventually make it's way up through the mesh on the bottom of the hutch and give them some cushion for their feet. If you have some wood down so that they can get off the mesh some of the time then I don't know that you would need to put straw or anything else down to cover the mesh.

From what I have read those that have buns in an outdoor hutch will put a lot of straw in the wooden enclosed area so that the buns can go in there to be warm.

You could hang a hay rack above the litter box(es) for them to eat out of to get the idea to use the litter box as well as so they have clean hay to eat. I don't know if buns would choose to eat hay if there was straw also around or if they would eat the straw as well.

Hopefully someone that has outdoor buns will chime in since I'm at a loss as my bun is inside. I have read posts discussing keeping outdoor buns but I don't remember it so much because it does not pertain to my situation.

 

[sparkly]

i live in the south west, s i know what you mean about the weather. you shall have some rain this week. my bun likes to lay in his litter box (prior to use) so i gave him another one (of late, one of cardboard), filled with hay to eat and nap on. i always used tarps, but now use a car cover. i'm not big on buns sleeping outside, coz i tend to panic if it rains or it's cold or it's hot, or if it thunders. however, i did think of using elastic from an old sheet to help secure the tarps/ car cover (i bought one for a 4WD from ebay, and it fit two cages- too big!) as well as bricks. if you have them under a carport, perhaps you can peg some tarps around the cage to form a protective shield, not attached to the cages? i got some large dog cages from deals direct that are collapsible, and on sale, when they have free shipping, around 60-70 dollars. these may give you flexibility in poor weather, but if your buns don't fight, a small cage inside can be fine, if they have some run around time. i agree hay everywhere can be confusing. sometimes, moving to a new situation, has them a little out of sorts, and cleaning trays too often can unsettle them (once when mine were in during a storm i cleaned after every wee/ poo, so both buns did it elsewhere). i think the chicken coop in the picture is quite similar to mine. cino would remain upstairs, so i gave him a tray, but ben doesn't usually toilet up there, so he just has a system of boxes up there. he used to poo in the corner, near to where his cage would abut cino's (after 4 months, he got aggressive), and now that he is outside during the day due to cooler weather, he is using the corner downstairs again. i don't cover the floor, as it does have wire to prevent him digging out, because he could go upstairs, or downstairs in his box i gave him to play.. hope this helps.

 

[curiouscarrot]

Thanks, I went ahead and got them a second hutch which is under the carport, so they've got outdoor, under cover, and indoor options. I've only got one house, and they've got 3....