New owner, new enclosure for our rabbit!

[Ted]

INTRO

Hi guys, the girlfriend and I recently purchased our first rabbit - male, 10 weeks old. Not sure of the breed, but he's black and white...!

Anyway, I'm looking to build him a nice indoor enclosure as we want him domesticated and not left outside on his own.

We've had him just four days now but he's settled in rather well and has a lovely disposition, it took just a couple of days for him to become relax and comfortable enough with our presence to sprawl in his cage etc.

I realise there are many different views on how a rabbit should be treated and kept but my take is that if we handle him often, treat him when we do and handle him very gentle with no sudden movements or loud noises he'll become accustomed to us and happy.

With that in mind (and I'm no expert) we haven't covered his cage nor given him a box to hide in, we want to see him and for him to see us - so far his inquisitive side seems to favour this, he likes to watch us watching the TV at night!

Before we give him free roam of the kitchen, living room and dinning room (his cage is in here) we'd like to expand his current cage to an indoor enclosure.

QUESTIONS

If I were to buy the below cage/enclosure am I best to put and MDF base under it, or perhaps double layered cardboard? I'm thinking the cardboard would be the better option because it'll be easier to clean i.e. we can simply throw it away, or is MDF OK as it can be wiped?

I don't want to leave him on carpet just in case he does a wee or worse, eats the carpet and destroys his digestive system!

Does the below look suitable ( 144 x 116 x 58 cm (L x W x H) ) - http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/small_pets/hutches_cages/runs_fencing/pens_with_racks/35638

It will fit perfectly in to the space/corner below -

Thanks in advance!

 

[mdith4him]

Hi and welcome!

It seems that enclosure would give your rabbit enough space to run around, but I do see a problem: the height. I'm not sure how big your rabbit is, but in whatever enclosure you build/buy for him, he should be able to stand up on his back legs and stretch up without hitting the ceiling. At only 53cm/20in high, most rabbits (all rabbits?) will not be able to stand up.

For your space, NIC cubes might be a good way to go (and probably cheaper). Do a search for it on the forum (or just browse the Housing section and look for "NIC cubes/cage" and you'll get a bunch of info.

Cardboard flooring can be good. He might chew at it, but that's okay--you'd just have to replace it every so often.

Also, don't be afraid to give him a little hide out in his cage. Rabbits like being able to hide and have a private space (just like people sometimes!). We have hide out places for our rabbits, too, and I think you'll find that while they spend a bit of time in there, it's not all the time. You'll still get to see your rabbit plenty!

Hope that helps! I'm sure more people will answer, too

 

[Ted]

If I'm honest I'd rather there were no 'roof' on it at all, but I'm worried he'll try and jump out at night when we can't watch him.

What would a suitable height be to avoid this or am I safer just to retain a roof of some sort?

 

[Nancy McClelland]

We love cardboard--cheap and easy to replace. We even have litter boxes inside cardboard boxes to contain everything. It's good to get them used to being hand--makes things like nail trims easier if you don't have a struggling bunny. Some are even cuddle buns and hang out in your lap. I wouldn't worry about the height of the roof if he's gonna get an enclosure to run around in. A good height is the height of a baby gate--none of ours have ever gone over one--about 30 inches.

 

[Ted]

Those NIC cubes look ideal, however it appears very hard to get them here in the UK? So I did a search for welded wire mesh which the NIC is made from and found a local supplier.


I've just spoken to a local fence manufacturer and they're going to build me an open top 1200mm (4ft) x 1600mm (5.25ft) run with a 1x1.5" welded mesh. That should be big enough for now.

The depth will be 600mm (about 24") which is hopefully enough, I didn't want it too tall as it'd look ugly in the house... if he manages to jump it I'll make sure the surrounding dining room is free of wires etc. We don't have any other pets.

 

[Ted]

Nancy McClelland wrote:

We love cardboard--cheap and easy to replace. We even have litter boxes inside cardboard boxes to contain everything. It's good to get them used to being hand--makes things like nail trims easier if you don't have a struggling bunny. Some are even cuddle buns and hang out in your lap. I wouldn't worry about the height of the roof if he's gonna get an enclosure to run around in. A good height is the height of a baby gate--none of ours have ever gone over one--about 30 inches.

This enclosure will be the run, going for roofless as per my above post.

He likes to sit on our laps for a good ten minutes and then he bobs his head up and starts looking around wanting to go off and adventure. We're currently not letting him jump off the sofa in the living room because there are too many hazards, we also don't want him to get too brave at such an early age... he might end up running away from us if he knows he can!

 

[OneTwoThree]

Xpens are great too, and probably much cheaper than having one built. 42in is a good height without a lid as long as you keep boxes away from the walls of the pen, 32 is ok as well for a small breed but might need a lid eventually.

I *really* recommend you give your bun a hide-out, its not going to make him any less social but it will meet a biological desire to burrow and hide when he feels the need. Things like concrete forms make great tunnels and chew toys, cardboard boxes stuffed with hay are fun to dig in, and willow balls are a fun toy for most.

For a good permanent flooring, linoleum is cheap and easy and can be cut to the size you need.

At 10 weeks bunnies are sweet and pretty passive, they really start to come into their own around 6 months ish or even sooner. Are you planning on litter box training? Or getting him altered?

This thread needs pics!!!

 

[Ted]

Ok understood - once we get the run sorted we'll add a card box with hay for a hideaway. I don't want one in his cage right now because it'll be too cramped without access to a run.

We will litter train him, we've placed a litter tray in his cage but he's yet to use it - I keep introducing his poo to it.

And as requested, say hello to Hubert!

 

[OneTwoThree]

<3 <3 <3 !!
So sweet!!!

It looks like there is bedding in the whole cage in that pic? Its a little hard to tell. If so, you only need the bedding/litter in the litter box, and just leave the plastic cage bottom as the bottom for now. Once he gets the litterbox thing, you can try to add a grass mat or fleece blanket, but some buns will pee on the blankets. If you put his hay in the litterbox that will help as well

 

[OneTwoThree]

double

 

[Ted]

OneTwoThree wrote:

<3 <3 <3 !!
So sweet!!!

It looks like there is bedding in the whole cage in that pic? Its a little hard to tell. If so, you only need the bedding/litter in the litter box, and just leave the plastic cage bottom as the bottom for now. Once he gets the litterbox thing, you can try to add a grass mat or fleece blanket, but some buns will pee on the blankets. If you put his hay in the litterbox that will help as well

Yes indeed, I'm a red blooded heterosexual man but even I can't help going all gooey over this little guy - I just won't be telling my friends down the pub!

My girlfriend collected the rabbit, the pet shop gave her wood chips and straw, I instantly threw the straw to one side and bought some timothy hay - the way I see it, if the straw is coarse to my hand the rabbit won't like it either, nor it's eyes!

I placed newspaper and wood chip in the litter tray and lots of hay in the rest of the cage, so it would appear I've done the wrong thing to start with? If I leave the plastic where will he sleep, in his pee/poo tray?

Once he gets the litter tray idea is it ok to introduce the timothy hay back in to the rest of the cage so he has feed and comfort?

 

[OneTwoThree]

Haha its ok, my husband is a total mush towards our buns too

The straw is def crap, so good thinking buying the timothy hay! My girls also love orchard grass and I mix in a little oat and botanical hay sometimes too (oxbow )

As for the litter, well, you can't give them 20 toilets and expect them to know which one you want them to use! He'll sleep on the plastic, or you can buy grass mats, they double as a chew and most bunnies tend to like them My girls sleep on tile for the most part, so the plastic definitely wont be an issue. It seems more uncomfortable than it is

Oh, and keep the hay in the cage with the litter
Here's how mine is kinda set up, originally for Samson I bought a store bought cage, then I learned they were way too small. Inside the cage is similar, another litter box and a wicker basket full of hay. Some people put the hay directly in the box, but I've found I get less waste if I put it in a cardboard box and then shove the litter box in that-

 

[Ted]

Right we're going to clear out the cage tonight and work on that litter box - fingers crossed!

One other thing I was wondering (worried) about is teeth, is it critical I get the rabbit a wood block to chew on so they can file down their teeth and if so is this OK - http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/small_pets/toys_transport/rabbit_toys/153206

I've just ordered some large grass mats for the indoor run, we'll introduce that once he's properly litter trained. Hopefully in a week, or sooner if supervised.

 

[OneTwoThree]

Hay will wear down his molars, but wood is good for his front teeth That carrot looks fine, dried apple branches are great too, as well as other woods, balsa, poplar, all untreated of course. I've been meaning to buy some scrap wood from the hardware store

ETA- It only took a couple days at most for Samson to get it, but watch once he gets hormonal he can lose his litter habits.

 

[Nancy McClelland]

:yeahthat:

 

[Ted]

A report back on progress already...!

He played on the girlfriend's lap whilst I cleared the cage, put newspaper, a little saw dust and lots of hay in his litter tray - like a layer sandwich.

We put him back in his cage, initially he didn't want to go in perhaps because it looked different and the fact he preferred the girlfriends laps, but literally as he 'landed' he started dropping pellets. So, we threw the pellets (about four to five) in the litter tray, he turned, looked, hopped in the tray and started weeing. After standing off the litter tray he'd also left a massive pile of poo!

How good is that? Less than one minute to learn his new loo, let's hope he keeps up the good work!

(and where the hell does all that poo come from)

 

[OneTwoThree]

Thats very good! Just a share, I use stove wood chips for our litter, its super cheap, about 5 bucks for 40lbs, I'm not sure if its available over there but if you can find it, it works really well!

 

[woahlookitsme]

Congrats! Thats good that he started using the litter box. For my buns box we use wood pellets (very commonly used here in the horse world for bedding).

this is what it looks like. It ends up looking like sawdust and expanding when wet. Very easy to clean out (doesn't stick to the pan very much) and helps with ammonia smell except when over used.

 

[Ted]

I know this is going beyond the original topic but does anyone know why he's started to nip me? Barely our days in and he's getting confident enough to have a nipple on my arm and hands whilst sitting on my lap and/or exploring the sofa and our laps.

Is this because he needs more things to chew and play with?

It's not malicious, it doesn't really hurt at all, but I don't want it to evolve in to bites!

You can tell he's not being malicious because this is a picture of him straight after we put him in the cage from letting him explore our laps:

Notice the neat poo tray, no spillage elsewhere thus far!

 

[Ted]

Ted wrote:

I know this is going beyond the original topic but does anyone know why he's started to nip me? Barely four days in and he's getting confident enough to have a nibble....

NIBBLE

I meant to type nibble. Not nipple!