So I personally..

[CoolWaterRabbitry]

Would not recommed the cages I'm using. I bought serveral drop pan cages (the ones that have wire bottoms and a slide out tray for bedding and to collect droppings) for my rabbits and they've given me trouble. I like the 'easy to clean' ability that they've given me, but they are not quite that easy. For one, they are not that deep, maybe and inch at most, so they build up fast with loose hay that is dropped and overall droppings. I use pelleted bedding sinceI love the way they mask oders and absorbs liquid, but it is a true pain to slide the tray out to clean it when it gets packed and starts letting pieces fall everywhere. I don't think it's because I don't clean them enough (I clean twice a week) but it's just not a large enough pan. Plus, I wasn't thinking to clear on size, they're fine for now, but they're only 32" long and our growing Bella is starting to show that we're going to need a larger size. :biggrin2:

What other cages and sizewould you recommed? I was thinking around 42 or 47" inches long?

 

[undergunfire]

I think a 47" long cage is great, but it really depends on your bunnies breeds. I used Super Pet Giant cages (solid bottoms) for a few months and they were 47" long x 24" high - my rabbits are each about 4lbs.

 

[CoolWaterRabbitry]

Well, Bella is a satin, so she'll get to be around 8-11 I think, Hunter is a mix and looks like he'll be a medium sized breed, and then the two havanas will be on the smaller sized I think, so around 4 or 5 pounds.

 

[imsarah]

have you considered using those absorbent puppy training pads to line the pans instead of bedding material? Then you could just slide them out and fold up the mess and drop it in the trash bin.

 

[CiaraPatricia]

42 or 47 is a good size, since one of your rabbits is big, I'd say 47".

 

[Brandy456]

RabbitOwner1986 wrote:

Would not recommed the cages I'm using. I bought serveral drop pan cages (the ones that have wire bottoms and a slide out tray for bedding and to collect droppings) for my rabbits and they've given me trouble. I like the 'easy to clean' ability that they've given me, but they are not quite that easy. For one, they are not that deep, maybe and inch at most, so they build up fast with loose hay that is dropped and overall droppings. I use pelleted bedding since I love the way they mask oders and absorbs liquid, but it is a true pain to slide the tray out to clean it when it gets packed and starts letting pieces fall everywhere. I don't think it's because I don't clean them enough (I clean twice a week) but it's just not a large enough pan. Plus, I wasn't thinking to clear on size, they're fine for now, but they're only 32" long and our growing Bella is starting to show that we're going to need a larger size. :biggrin2:

What other cages and size would you recommed? I was thinking around 42 or 47" inches long?

Why not turn a closet into a 'room'?
But what I do is I sneak up on Babii when she's laying all stretched out, and measure her.
Then i'd get a cage ATLEAST 4 times her.

 

[Mrs. PBJ]

I would not do a cage that small for a 8 pound rabbit. My four pound Holland lop barely fits in her pet giant at 47 inches.

I would go no less then a five by 2 NIc size cage for a 8 pound bunny which would be 70 inches by 28 inches.

But that is personal preference.

 

[jcottonl02]

Brandy456 wrote

But what I do is I sneak up on Babii when she's laying all stretched out, and measure her. .

:roflmao::laugh:

That is hilarious!!!

'Sneak up'. Brilliant. I am wiping the tears away.

All I am imagining is Babii, lying down, looking in the opposite direction, and you creeping really dramatically over to her with a tape measure, begging her not to turn around.

Hahahaha

 

[jcottonl02]

Sorry- now I've got over my hysterics lol.

I would get the biggest cage you can accomodate and afford. And 8lb rabbit is quite big. Rabbits need lots of space, so ultimately just get the absolute biggest you possibly can.

Mine have 78inches x 72inches each (and you don't know how long that took to work out, seeing as I work in feet lol). One of them is 4 1/2 pounds, and the other is about 6 1/2 lbs.

 

[undergunfire]

Mrs. PBJ wrote:

I would not do a cage that small for a 8 pound rabbit. My four pound Holland lop barely fits in her pet giant at 47 inches.

I would go no less then a five by 2 NIc size cage for a 8 pound bunny which would be 70 inches by 28 inches.

But that is personal preference.

I have to agree with you on the SP Giant cage. I think it is "just right" for a rabbit under 5lbs. Although, I think Miss Molly is about 5lbs (she's all chubby, LOL) and I don't think she would be happy in a SP Giant. Infact, I need to make her NIC cage 4 long because a 3 long is really too small with her giant cat litter box in there (just need to get some wood cut!).

The 8lbs Elop foster is in a 4x2 NIC cage and I need to make it an extra panel long this weekend because he has a lot of toys that take up space in his cage.....but I do think a 4x2 NIC for an 8lbs rabbit is a good size if they get out of the cage on a daily basis.


I also agree with Jen....get the biggest cage you can accomodate and afford. I know a lot of us aren't lucky enough to have an entire room to devote to bunnies who live inside, so a ton of massive cages accross the house isn't always able to be done. A friend of mine had a ton of NIC cages in her house, but she decided to switch over to good sized "pet store" cages for her bunnies because they get a ton of run time....but her buns in those cages are all also under 5lbs I do believe.

 

[MCatCar]

So what would be a good size cage for a 2-4 pound bun?

 

[CoolWaterRabbitry]

Thanks all, I'm planning on measuring the buns and going to the store this week. I'm already planning that Bella's will be the biggest and I'll be buying her a new one first since she's the oldest and biggest lol

 

[jcottonl02]

MCatCar wrote:

So what would be a good size cage for a 2-4 pound bun?

At the very least, 5ftx 4ft, which is 60inches by 48inches. These are RSCPA guidelines, and no reputable rescue centre here will allow you to adopt one of their rabbits with a pen smaller than this. AND with an permanent attached run, if they are outside.

Like said before, the biggest pen you possibly can. Ultimately, this is an animal, and needs as much room as you can possibly provide for it. I would say that a 6ft x 5ft pen would be a nice, quite large pen, with obviously at least 3 hours of exercise time outside of this pen a day, in a much bigger area.



Rabbitowner- hehehe I really can't get this picture of people measuring their buns with a tape measure out of my head. Show us some piccies when you decide what cages you are getting

 

[CoolWaterRabbitry]

jcottonl02 wrote:

Rabbitowner- hehehe I really can't get this picture of people measuring their buns with a tape measure out of my head. Show us some piccies when you decide what cages you are getting

lol I will. I tried measuring Bella tonight and she didn't quite care for it, since it was in the middle of her 'couch time'. But I'm just planning on going for the biggest ones that I can find, even though shehas made the living room and the couchmore ofher home now.:biggrin2:

 

[jcottonl02]

Lol hahaha bless her heart.
Have you thought about NIC panels? They are a great way to build an indoor pen, however I have seen some great already-built pens online etc. too.

I love what attitudes buns have sometimes.

 

[Brandy456]

jcottonl02 wrote:

Brandy456 wrote

But what I do is I sneak up on Babii when she's laying all stretched out, and measure her. .

:roflmao::laugh:

That is hilarious!!!

'Sneak up'. Brilliant. I am wiping the tears away.

All I am imagining is Babii, lying down, looking in the opposite direction, and you creeping really dramatically over to her with a tape measure, begging her not to turn around.

Hahahaha

I can't tell you how many times she's done that and attacked the tape measure (it was a fabric one.. for sewing).
Babii has this (i've taken out the shelve to make more room, plus.. she's to heavy for it, it bends down)
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2753256&lmdn=Pet+Type
and it fits her just right, for now.
(She's roughly 8 lbs)

 

[CoolWaterRabbitry]

Hm I've checked out a few sites with the NIC condos and I'm interested now lol

 

[Racheler]

i have the largest dog crate made and put in 2 more levels so my bun can get lots of exercise when he is contained. the 2nd level is 2/3 the size of the bottom and the top level is 3/4 the bottom, and he can jump up rather than needing a ramp. i think it is 32inches by 4 foot and 33 inches tall. oreo is a black dutch, about 8 months old, but i don't know his weight.

 

[jcottonl02]

Racheler wrote:

i have the largest dog crate made and put in 2 more levels so my bun can get lots of exercise when he is contained. the 2nd level is 2/3 the size of the bottom and the top level is 3/4 the bottom, and he can jump up rather than needing a ramp. i think it is 32inches by 4 foot and 33 inches tall. oreo is a black dutch, about 8 months old, but i don't know his weight.

Mine have three different levels- look on my blog n u can see . My Dad just finished it. They have the 'downstairs', which is 78inches x 72inches, and then a level that's about quarter of the width, for the second story, that runs around two of the walls, and then another story at the top, which runs down just one of the walls, with a bedroom box at the very top. And a litter box is down the bottom.
The actual height of the shed (the bit they actually live in) has got to be about 72inches/6 feet high. They can't fall from the very top though. There is just one way- that's down to the other level. So that's great.

The average adult weight of a Dutch rabbit is about 5lbs, so your bun should be around 3/4lbs i should reckon.

 

[undergunfire]

Dutch rabbits only get up to about 5.5lbs, but that is the largest per the standard. I had one as a kid/young teen and I think Quizbee averaged at about 4lbs.