Planning Stages of Setup, All input greatly appreciated :D

So I am just getting started in rabbits. Mostly for meat. Planning on Rexes and New Zealands (though I keep eyeing Blanc D'hotot, so that might be a later addition ). We still haven't gotten set up with cages though, and I feel so new and clueless so any help is much appreciated!

I live in a very old house, but it is in a residential area where the houses are all pretty close together. It would actually be nice sizable (normal looking sized) lots if you took my house out and split the land between the two neighboring houses. So yeah, my backyard is not very big. There is a very old shed in the back. It has dirt floors and is sinking into the ground on one side so the whole thing is tilted. I was thinking it would be ideal for butchering since we only have a fence on 2 sides of the yard. My mother in law grew up with her parents raising rabbits and said they squealed during butchering once every 20 rabbits or so. Is this typical? Should I consider relocating to a family member that lives in a more spread out town (the next town over) when it comes time to butcher? I guess I just don't want to offend any neighbors.

As far as the set up itself; I was thinking of building a lean-to type structure. Like a slanted roof on four posts. And then hang the cages from the roof. I'd have some kind of tarp or something hanging down on all sides, but they should have a pretty good wind block from where they would be located. It would be up against the side of my shed. Likely 5 ft or less from where the setup would end is where the neighbor's shed is (on the side without a fence). All this is back against the back fence, directly on the other side of which is another shed that comes just short of spanning the length between my shed and the prior mentioned neighbor's shed. Blocking the wind on the fourth side is my house, standing 7-10 ft away from where the setup would start. Does anyone see any potential problems with this idea? I'm paranoid that there's some kind of glaring problem than I can't see because I don't know what I'm doing.

If that all seems sound, then here are the questions I have. How high off the ground do the cages need to be to protect from predators? If I were to stack the cages two high, how much space would I need in between cages to be able to comfortably get into the bottoms ones. (I'm building my own cages and figured top doors were easier. If you know how to build side doors I would LOVE to hear how!) How high is too high to comfortably catch squirmy bunnies in? How tall is ideal for the cages? What size cage is ideal for the breeds I am planning for? And if you can think of anything else that would be good for me to know while putting this thing together, I am all ears!

Mine have never screamed. I always figured that would be a sign of a botched kill...
It's been a few years now without me even having to find out what a rabbit death scream/squeal even sounds like.


One of the reason I like raising rabbits over other small livestock is because they can be dispatched so quickly and cleanly.

We use cervical dislocation for fryers, and a crosman air rifle for older stock.

I have no idea how the previous generation was attempting dispatch to get such inconsistent results. :? It certainly isn't the first time I've heard of it occurring though..

Ah, that's good to hear! I hoped that might be the case, but again, I don't really have any experience to back that up.

Mine have never screamed either. The only screamers I've had have been silly little 3-4 week old escape artists who let everyone know when they have been captured.

All the cage heights, depths, widths are really dependent on your own height and reach. I'd just test and measure. I found that 30in deep hutches were just too far for me to reach. I hate having to get in shoulder deep to catch a rabbit who doesn't want to come out. I like a 24wx36lx18h sized hutch as a minimum size for my meat bunnies. I have some a bit smaller, and some 5 footers as well. The big ones are the best but do take up a ton of space. The smaller ones I just use for juniors now. I have mine in a single layer but that is because I have the room and I don't wanna be squatting and crouching because of my knees. Mine are wire hutches but inside a barn. If I used them outside they would need protection from the weather, wind, and a predator proofed enclosure before I'd sleep soundly :lol:

If you don't have a secure fence and your in an urban area then you're probably going to be dealing with dogs and raccoon most commonly. Sometimes possums, cats and definitely rats. I doubt you will be able to get hutches high enough to keep predators out so it is best you make them very very sturdy, and provide an escape platform so they can get off the wire if something comes. Really a dog proof enclosure is essential, although it won't keep raccoon's out. A big dog can tear apart a hutch or injure/scare them to death trying. Escape platform would handle predators who try to get feet.

One reason I like rabbit keeping, is that there are endless configurations that work and it's always interesting to see what people come up with. The one thing that all setups need is weather and predator protection. Other than that it can be whatever you desire!

I agree with imajpm about cage sizes. Most of mine are 48x24x18. Some have a wire shelf. Baby saver wire is critical IMO. All mine are 24 inches deep and have large doors because I have short arms.
Rabbits tend to HATE being pulled through small openings.

It still gets a bit crowded when the kits are close to weaning. (Mine are weaned at 6-9 weeks old, depending on litter size so they get pretty big in there.)
I do have a couple of smaller cages for juniors, but I'll be honest and admit that I really don't like even putting juniors in them.

18 inches high seems to be alright for mine.
I feel hanging cages under a solid roof like you suggested is pretty ideal.

Keeping sun, water and cold winds off are the most important part. Predators may or may not be a problem. Birds of prey are actually the biggest troublemakers I've had to deal with.
My cages now hang inside a solid roofed wire building that I can tarp in winter, giving them wind protection as necessary, lots of airflow in summer, and a second layer of wire for protection from birds of prey.

Waste disposal needs to be considered...Rabbits will make a lot of it.

As far as the side/front doors, I know Bass sells doors. We add second doors to our 48" doe cages, and with the door kits, we just cut out the wire and attach the door with j-clips. I would think front doors would make it much easier to stack.

As far as stacking outside, predator prevention is paramount, unless you're like 8 foot tall
Maybe get an enclosed dog run and put the lean-to in there. Imajpm listed a lot of threats to worry about, and stacking cages can make it a bit more work with one row being forced to be closer to the ground than in a single row set up. How many rabbits are you looking to have?

Most towns consider rabbits pets as opposed to livestock, but you might want to check your zoning laws to make sure you're set. Any close neighbor kids? They can get very interested in rabbits and cause you problems. Cage locks might need to be considered.

Keep us updated!

Only screamers I ever had were during breeding and they were culled - silently - after repeated attempts at breeding caused all of my dogs to run around barking "like they mean business".

I am 6ft and still need my cages to be no deeper than 24 in., always build wide not deep. Use your own body to gauge what is a comfortable reaching range for you. I did not stack my cages, but I literally hung them and then reached in the doors and then adjusted the clips until they were the perfect height for me to reach into while standing normally without hitting my shoulder on the top of the door. Stooping or reaching too much can put a strain on your body over time.

I agree, you need an enclosure around the lean to of some sort. Either by putting wire on the sides (stick with Hardware cloth, every predator can get through chicken wire like nothing was there) or running a hot wire fence along the perimeter. If your property is thoroughly fenced though and you have extremely good dog(s) then you could probably get by without doing so for at least a while.

Thanks for the advice everyone! I really really appreciate it!!!

Ooo thanks for letting me know about the door kits! They sound really easy! And thanks for letting me know what size cages you all use. It really helps to give me a point of reference.

And I've heard of baby saver wire, but I honestly don't know what it is or how it's used. Could someone explain it to me please?

Good point about the predators. I'm not really sure what the main predators are for my area. I just moved here 5 months ago. I would assume cats and dogs at least. I haven't seen any dogs off leash, but I see more people owning dogs than I am used to so there probably are some wild ones. I don't actually own any dogs, but the neighbors do. I don't know if that means they will keep the wild predators out or if they will be the predators I need to keep out. The fenced one is a St Bernard and the un-fenced one is a German Shepard, but I've never seen her outside without being tied up and she's really well behaved, if a little young and energetic. I'm not very social and haven't talked to them much, but I'm wondering if I should drop in on the neighbors just to let them know I'm getting rabbits? Not sure what the protocol is supposed to be for this.

I hadn't thought about giving them some place off the wire. That's a very good point! Thank you! What type of material would it be made out of? The only thing I've seen like that is a nesting box.

And thanks for telling me about making a fence with hardware cloth! My husband keeps teasing me that I'm a city girl trying so hard to be country so details are very much appreciated!

I hadn't heard before about culling for breeding screamers, but that makes all sorts of sense! I'll have to remember that!

If anyone has any other suggestions or just want to share what they do to protect against predators I'm all ears!

Normal wire.


Baby Saver Wire

It is wire meant for the walls of your cages with smaller holes at the bottom so if babies fall out of the nest or are had on the wire, they don't then fall to their death trying to find their way to the nest. It pays for itself and then some.

As for culling for screaming, I've found rabbits only scream when they genuinely feel like they are dying. So far it has proven repeatedly for me that a doe that screams during breeding - and I don't mean just grunting and irritable noises. I mean screaming their lungs out. Something ain't right with them. The last one had a twisted stomach that was turning all kinds of strange colors.

If you are going to make your own cages, and can't find the pre-made wire above, you can cut a 4" strip of 1/2x1" wire (what most use for cage bottoms) and attach it to the bottom 4" of your cage walls.

As far as a resting board for buns to get off the wire, there are many options. I went to my local building supply store and bought some 12" ceramic tiles for a buck apiece.

I probably would not tell new neighbors I was going to raise/breed rabbits until I got to know them a bit. I would be concerned about the possibility of PETA supporters and potential problems.

I have outside cages,
For a small non-commercial rabbitry, -I personally like a multi-level cage , does can get away from the kits, and the exercise keeps them healthy longer.
I have a board I put over most of the top shelf area in winter, it stops the wind, and if it is really cold I can stuff it with straw.
I also like the under the cage nest boxes, [mine are from Bass] It stops a lot of kit death by letting gravity keep them in the nest box a little longer, [until they are big enough to jump out]. - and the few that are pulled out of the nest as they hang onto a teat, usually crawl around and fall back into the nest before they get too cold.

To get off the wire our rabbits have pieces of slate (they were here so we used them) and we also have a bucket hung in each cage, on its side up against the top of the cage. Does use them to get away from kits when they're first coming out of the nest box. My observation is that in general the rabbits like the stone in summer and use the buckets more in winter, but they have and use both all year.

For what it's worth our cages are 30" deep, but the shortest person here is 6 ft tall so I think it really depends on your reach. We started with 3' long cages but the new ones we're making will all be 4' to accommodate does with litters before weaning and grow-outs after. All of ours are 18' high.

Here's my trip down the rabbit hole: to-hang-or-to-shelve-t24210.html
I like them being outside. It does make things a little more difficult but I can't handle the smell even if it is light.

Hope this helps,
Cathy