outdoor rabbits and cold temps

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Destefanol

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Hello. We have two 7 month old dutch bunnies. They live outside in a hutch. It has an enclosed wooden area and a wire area with room to move around. I have read that the cold temps are ok as long as they are outside consistently. Does anyone else leave their rabbits outside all winter? We do put a tarp over it when it rains or snows.

Also, they are always in the outside wire area. They only go into the hutch to poop and pee. I had hoped they it would be the other way around. But they are always in the outside wire area. Day/night/rain/shine. Does any one else's bunnies do this? It would be so much easier if they would do their business in the wire area so it would just fall on the ground.

Thanks!!
 
Destefanol":wlc1fdry said:
Hello. We have two 7 month old dutch bunnies. They live outside in a hutch. It has an enclosed wooden area and a wire area with room to move around. I have read that the cold temps are ok as long as they are outside consistently. Does anyone else leave their rabbits outside all winter? We do put a tarp over it when it rains or snows.

Also, they are always in the outside wire area. They only go into the hutch to poop and pee. I had hoped they it would be the other way around. But they are always in the outside wire area. Day/night/rain/shine. Does any one else's bunnies do this? It would be so much easier if they would do their business in the wire area so it would just fall on the ground.

Thanks!!
Click to expand...

I have 5 adult American Blues in all wire cages which are stacked on a 2 X 4 shelving system I built against the back of the house. I also currently have a litter of kits out there. They do have a roof over them, and the entire structure is shielded from intense weather by the eastern red cedar trees they are under. But, there are no walls in the structure. The only discomfort I have seen in them was during the summer. I have a tarp which I can hang from the front edge of the structure roof in the event of a serious storm, such as a hurricane, or a severe snowstorm. But, I have yet to use it. SE VA doesn't get many snowstorms, and most hurricanes just miss us, after flattening the Outer Banks. BTW, it's been in the 30's overnight the last few nights and you'd never know it by looking at the buns. They're just fine. I won't begin to be concerned about the cold unless it gets to single digits, which is not common here at all. Even then, I don't really expect any problems.
 
You could try placing a litterbox in their favorite potty spot. They may prefer that to the wire, and it would be easier to clean than the wooden floor.

There are lots of good ways to keep buns comfortable in winter. :)

My rabbits are on wire, under a roof, in what amounts to a wire building.

I wrap the whole thing in plastic when it gets cold out, mostly to block wind.
I have bottomless "bunny houses" that sit on the cage wire. That way they can't soil them (as easily.) :) When it gets really cold, I stuff the bunny houses with straw or hay. I have to be careful, since they do sometimes potty there, and wet hay will freeze to the bottom of the cage. I prefer straw because it drains better, and is a better insulator than hay.



Bringing them inside when they are accustomed to being out can trigger respiratory problems.
I believe I instigated the only case of rabbit pneumonia I've ever seen.
A buck was being kept out in winter temps, I thoughtlessly brought him home in a warm vehicle, and then placed him outside in a hutch.
A few days later, I noticed wheezing and the upward head tilt of animals who are struggling to breathe. He died within a few hours. :cry:
 
I used to have a 4 hole hutch. The top was wood, with wire for the sides and bottom. The outside wall on each side had plywood that came out about 24 inches before turning into wire. Wire was the only thing seperating the rabbits from each other, except in the back. The back of each hole had a 12"x24" wooded cubby/nestbox with a 6" wide round hole for an opening and it also had a wire floor. Plastic was tacked from the ground to the bottom of the hutch to keep the wind from whistling under their feet In the winter. I would stuff the cubby with straw when it was cold, but they seldom used it. They mostly just hid back there if they realized I was going to take them out vs. just give them an ear scratch. :evil: Many a -35/-40F morning I went to give them fresh water and they were all in the front wire part with their whiskers covered in frost.
 
Thanks for the quick response. I live in the Boston area and it is supposed to get down into the single digits for the next few days. I'm feeling guilty but from what I've read they should be ok in the cold temps. Thanks again!! <br /><br /> __________ Sun Jan 03, 2016 9:45 pm __________ <br /><br /> Thanks for the ideas to keep them warm and safe. Frost on their whiskers? lol, I guess mine will be ok over the next few days in the cold temps!
 
@Destefanol You may want to consider modifying your profile to indicate your location. It need not be specific. Simply what state you're in is enough. A lot of the advice you might get here is somewhat location dependent. You said in your last post that you were near Boston. So, let's say you asked another question and got a response from someone in FLA. The advice may not be applicable to you in that case. You might have gotten more responses in this thread if people had known upfront where you were. Just a friendly suggestion.
 
It was close to -20C this morning when I woke up and the rabbits greeted me with their usual spunk as I changed the frozen water bottles. Mine breed year round and raise litters in heat and cold. Keep the rain off their heads and the wind off their bums and they'll be fine. :D
 

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