Might try a colony....

... or something similar. I"m thinking of a caged area about 4'x12' and using concrete blocks and 2'x2' patio slabs at one end to make a cave/hidey hole/nesting area and covering that with dirt. Kind of like half cage/ half colony. I might make it bigger but I like working with dimensions that accomodate the size of building materials. I know I would have to deal with predators and outside weather. I"m not saying all my rabbits are going outside but I have a few does and an unrelated buck scheduled for freezer camp so could start a small colony experiment and see how it goes.

Would 2x4's and chicken wire be strong enough to build a caged area? I think I would have to put hardware cloth on the bottom foot to keep kits from getting out. Also thinking of putting chicken wire or something similar on the ground so they couldn't dig out but the grass could grow through.

Anyway, just rambling and throwin' it out there. My mad scientist brain is always working overtime and wondering... what if...?

Chicken wire is not strong enough to keep a determined predator (raccoon, dog, coyote) out. Chain link might be a better bet, although it will not protect against weasels or rats.

For the underground part, you may get some ideas from this article, even though it is geared to hot climates:
http://ressources.ciheam.org/om/pdf/c08/95605275.pdf

Thanks Maggie. I have that article and that's where I got the idea from. It just seems to be a cool way to house the rabbits, controlled but they still have some room to run around.

My setup in the garage has worked out very well, no predator problems, the buns are healthy and breed well, not to mention how convenient it is . I would just like to set up something outside if possible, something more than a cage but not a full blown colony.

oOOOOo!! a modified colony! The "long and narrow" seems to work the best..the longer the better. (unless you can go HUGE, of course). You could try the 2x4 welded wire fencing instead of chicken wire. As Maggie said, chicken wire won't hold out any predator...a coon can sheer right through it with their claws. HOWEVER chicken wire works really well, doubled over, as a "skirt" around the base to the outside, to keep critters from digging under the fence and going in. We use it on all our chicken hoopcoops around the outside. you just lay it on the ground around the perimeter, folded over. Staple it to the base of the pen...or stake it down somehow. The grass will grow up through it and you won't even see the stuff after a month or so.

The 2x4 welded wire has kept out dogs, coons, coyotes from our coops. At the base we add a layer of the smaller mesh stuff (1x1) so the coons can't reach in and grab someone who's wandering by. And it would keep kits IN.

You could put a tarp or other covering over the one end so that they can get out of the sun, or rain.

I hope you can build your experiment and report back on how the rabbits do there

Thanks Ann. I was thinking at one end to use conrete blocks and patio slabs to build a kind of den for them to hide in, keep cool/warm and build a nest. I was thinking of covering that with dirt so it would be insulated. The fencing comes in 36" and 48" widths and 2x4's come 12' long so I could build it 12' long and either 36" or 48" high/wide. I think 48" would be better for more room and the patio slabs are 24" square so they would fit in better. That fencing aint cheap!

Would 12' x 48" be big enough for a buck and a doe? A buck and two does? I was thinking of putting fencing on the ground inside the cage to prevent dig outs. Would welded wire eventually rust? Would the "colony" need regular clean outs? Do does in colonies keep the tunnels/nesting area clean by themselves, removing dead kits, old nesting material, etc?

Sorry for all the questions. I'm trying to read more about colonies but I'm on dialup so it takes a while.

Peter and Mama-san live quite happily in a 4x6. Once the kits come, however, it's a bit tight. Your 4x12 would be EXCELLENT, I'd think. With 2 does...if you can get them to bond..maybe from the same litter? that would work quite well. Give them a couple of shelves maybe? something they can hop up onto to get away. Actually, your hideyhole nest sounds great, too.

I agree with Ann... Two does from the same litter or a mother and daughter who have never been separated. Put the buck in the colony first so the girls mind their manners.

MaggieJ":2j1kfb68 said:

Two does from the same litter or a mother and daughter who have never been separated.

Click to expand...

Or if you know you are planning a colony pair.... you can combine litters in the nestbox and raise a pair of unrelated does together, then move them into the colony. With my luck everyone would turn out to be bucks, but you seem to have much better luck than I do

(Not that I have anything against tight linebreeding, but some people want a wider genetic spread :| )

Chicken wire is junk for holding back predators. It's only designed to keep chickens in not predators out. Pretty much everything can break it. Even a large rat or snake can bend some of it. When I was doing guinea pig rescue and regularly had 8-15females at a time I built a double fenced 10x10' outdoor pen for all of summer. I lined the bottom with 10' 4x4s that were sitting around in the barn and then put chainlink on the outside and hardware cloth or small field fencing on the inside with both fastened to the 4x4s using fencing staples. Guinea pigs could not get out of the interior fence, large predators could not get through the chainlink, and small predators could not get through the interior fence.



I then used the shelving panels to fence off plots for growing herbs that I would later let them loose in to eat and used round tubes made from brick material as cool laying tunnels. Don't ask me what they are I just found them on the farm. Despite being ignored to turn in to a giant patch of mint surrounded by 7' high weeds and several puppies trying to get in to it the pen still stands just as solid as when I built it years ago. I've been thinking of cleaning the area back up and putting the rabbits out there but now that the dog yard surrounds it I don't trust the gate to take constant abuse.

That's a great idea, Akane. My hoop coops are covered along the same lines...fence on the outside that is heavy, but larger openings; fence on the inside with 1/2x1/2 openings.

That underground set up looks sooooo cool! I want to try making one of those really badly! Problem in my climate would be keeping it cleared in the winter.

I don't even use chicken wire for chickens. I've got no use for the stuff. I sold 2 lionheads to a first-time bunny owner for his kids. He called me shortly after, and said that predators had ripped the cage apart and got his bunnies. I said "what is your cage made of?" He said chicken wire. He wandered if I had any more bunnies for sale. I did not. Poor kids must have been disappointed........... You could try using chain link, and around the bottom use 1" by 1" or 1" by 1/2" wire, a couple feet up. Good luck! FYI, they really like short hollow log pieces to run through, jump on, and chew on.<br /><br />__________ Fri Sep 17, 2010 1:37 pm __________<br /><br />I don't even use chicken wire for chickens. I've got no use for the stuff. I sold 2 lionheads to a first-time bunny owner for his kids. He called me shortly after, and said that predators had ripped the cage apart and got his bunnies. I said "what is your cage made of?" He said chicken wire. He wandered if I had any more bunnies for sale. I did not. Poor kids must have been disappointed........... You could try using chain link, and around the bottom use 1" by 1" or 1" by 1/2" wire, a couple feet up. Good luck! FYI, they really like short hollow log pieces to run through, jump on, and chew on.

Well, it looks like this project isn't going to happen this year. There are just too many projects to do here including a whole house cleanout, I have a half built chicken coop in the backyard that might not get finished and I'm getting laid off at the end of the month (for the winter). I'll try and design something over the winter and hopefully get back at it in the spring.

Where does the time go??