I think I am ready to get set-up and get some rabbits soon. I am looking primarily to raise some meat rabbits. I LOVE the idea of letting them "pasture" to some extent, but because of the large number of green onions and many threats from neighborhood dogs and miscellaneous predators, I think my best bet is a hybrid set-up that will give them space, but keep sufficient space between them and predators and protect them at night. I do plan to feed them free choice pellets along with the "grazing" and hand feeding of additional goodies (weeds and garden scraps).

Please let me know what you think of my proposal and give me some direction on sizing and better choices.

What I am thinking is this . . .

I have a small section that is walled on three sides (probably an area about 4' wide by 3-4 feet long). i was going to put a large cage with a couple of nest boxes in there and have a ramp/door that I would open and close every morning and night. This would open up into a "run" that would be fenced in with "field fencing", chicken wire below the soil and up to about 1 foot and several strands of barbed wire where they may squeeze through at about 2', and a couple strands above to discourage dogs from jumping.

Will the 4' by about four foot area be large enough for two nursing does and a buck all the way through weaning and butchering age?

Letting them out and putting them up won't be a problem as we have chickens and it will basically be the same routine. Chase em out and chase em in every day. My kids will also like to be able to see them and spend time with them occasionally.

Will standard field fencing (the kind that gets progressively larger holes as you go up) with the barbed wire strands above and chicken wire (partly buried) be a sufficient fencing solution? How much yard space will they need? In a colony set-up like this, if several frozen 2 liter bottles were placed in the fenced area, will that be sufficient to protect them against our summers in middle Tennessee (zone 6b)?

Chicken wire won't work, the rabbits can chew or dig thru it in a flash. You need to us a welded wire mesh, like what all wire cages are made out of. Otherwise, it sounds like it will work. I don't keep mine colony style, but there are many on here who do and I am sure they will chime in.

Hello, Hoping4Better,

Assuming they all get along very well, the whole 4'x4' area might be large enough to house the 3 adults, but it will get very crowded once the kits start running around. I'd say it would become a problem by the time they are 4 or 5 weeks old, especially if the litters are large. The run will help with the crowding, but I'm not sure it'd be enough since you plan to mew them up again each night. And putting a cage in there sounds like it would limit the space even further.

If I understand your description of the field fencing, the lowest holes the adult rabbits could fit through would be only 2' above the ground. Unless you have very small rabbits, this won't be nearly high enough. My mutts can reach 2' high just by standing up on their hind feet. They could easily climb through such a hole. My fences are 4' high, and I've had two does go over the top. (I added roofing to foil that.)

OneAcreFarm is correct, regular chicken wire will not hold a rabbit. I use 17 gauge stucco netting, which is like industrial strength chicken wire, though still not as strong as regular cage wire. I believe it's strong enough, but none of my rabbits have challenged it yet.

Barb wire will not discourage dogs. They learn where the barbs are and simply slide past them.

I set up my pens to give each rabbit about 36 sq feet. To my eye that's just enough for them. I also stagger breedings, so there's typically only one litter at a time old enough to be running around in the same pen. I came up with that size pen partly out of convenience since it fit the size of materials I had laying around, but mostly out of watching my rabbits over time, and thinking about what they seemed to need.

How big you make your run will depend on what you think your own rabbits will need and what you have available to build it with. Rabbits are adaptable. Once you allow for the basics, you can build anything you like to house them, and they will do just fine.

My little patch of New Mexico doesn't get particularly hot in the summer, and it's always low humidity, so I haven't needed more than good shade and a convenient breeze to keep them cool. Whether you use frozen bottles or not, make absolutely sure they have good shade and good ventilation -- especially in the hutch area. The more enclosed area will get hotter faster, and stay hotter longer.

If this is your first time raising rabbits, I'd recommend starting off with regular wire rabbit cages. Get to know your rabbits for a few months before you jump into the more complicated adventures of a colony.

I will definitely use the welded wire since I'll need to buy a roll anyway for the cages. Thanks for the suggestion.

The 4x4 area was supposed to be the cage only, the run will be significantly larger (probably on the order of 15x10 or larger. I guess if I don't put the cage in the walled in area I could make it larger, but I am afraid of it being too drafty and exposed.

Yes the holes where the rabbits could squeeze through was about 2' high, but I was going to string barbed wire across these levels. I was then going to string the barb wire about every 4" above the 4' fence for a couple of feet. Will this still not work? I could run a strand of hot wire at the top, but that gets expensive for me since I already have all the other stuff (except the welded mesh) laying around. Having to buy clips and a charger puts the expense into a new category for me.

I was also thinking I may house the boy separately so I can control the breeding schedule. He may end up being an inside bunny . . . (read "pet") just so that we can have a better handle on that piece. Staggering the kindling sounds like a great idea so we don't have to many then nothing for two months then too many, etc. That sounding fantastic. Thanks.

Any more input would be awesome since I'm not really committed to anything yet, just planning. I'm hoping to get bunnies within a month or so though.

4" spacing on the barb wire might keep dogs out. It depends on how much give there is -- whether they can push the strands apart and slip through anyway.

I can't picture how you're planning to block the lower holes so the rabbits can't escape. And barb wire is probably not safe for rabbits anyway.

If you have enough field fencing, maybe you could double it so the top of the second layer is raised high enough to block the dogs, but the bottom is low enough to block the rabbit sized holes on the first layer.

15x10 would make a nice big run. That's more space than my rabbits get, so yours should be very happy.

Cages are easy to shelter against the weather. Just wire scrap wood to the most exposed sides and lay a big piece over the top. You can also use cardboard, or anything else that's reasonably sturdy. Just make sure it's safe to chew on. Rabbits deal with cold weather very well, so drafts shouldn't bother them at all. The does will tend to choose the most sheltered area available for their nests, so the babies should be fine, too.

You should measure your walled area. If it's a little bigger or a little smaller than you think, it could make a big difference to how you install the cages. Even a couple inches of extra clearance could mean the difference between an easy set up and an awkward one.

Hmmm. I guess I may just have to choose to run a strand of hot wire along the bottom-most holes they could get through (about halfway up) and across the middle of the barbed-wire (about 5 feet up). The field fencing is 4 feet tall, with an additional 2 feet of barbed wire and a strand of hot wire through the middle of the fence and middle of the barbed wire, it should keep the dogs out (except any real high jumpers maybe, ). The hot wire may keep the coons and possums out too.

I've also reconsidered the walled area. I will probably put the cages between a couple of apple trees by the chicken run. That could provide some shade in the summer and I won't be hindered by limited space for the cage. The trees will NOT, however, be in the run, so the bunnies shouldn't girdle them (which I've heard can be a problem). They will be separated from the chickens/chicken run as trying to fence in the bottom of both areas would be too large a task.

Thanks for the help!

I was thinking of using electric fence around my bunnybarn too. I think it was akane that said sometimes rabbits will get so frightened when zapped, that they will hit the fence repeatedly, as well as the furnishings in the run, until they kill themselves.

Could you buy some smaller holed wire and run a strip of it on the fence attaching with j or c clips? You could still hotwire the top to keep predators out.

Thanks MamaSheepdog. I guess I will forego the electric in the middle and just put the mesh in the middle. A larger holed mesh will probably work fine for this (2x2 or what ever I can find).

I also think I will keep the boy inside as a pet to be able to time the pregnancies better. So at first anyway, it should be just two girls in there. Will two be enough for them to not get lonely an /or bored? I can definitely put some apple-wood and other stuff in there to play on, hide under or chew on. Anything that I should consider off limits (like an old tire?)?

[quote="hoping4better"Will two be enough for them to not get lonely an /or bored? I can definitely put some apple-wood and other stuff in there to play on, hide under or chew on. Anything that I should consider off limits (like an old tire?)?[/quote]


I've seen it recommended by those who colony raise that it is better to start small like that, and then keep a doe or two from their litter- that way they grow up together and you have less problems.

I don't know what "furniture" might be dangerous, except for common sense thoughts like no sharp edges, nails, lead paint, etc. I love the tire idea- the kits would love it I'm sure. I have some tires lying around that I could put to use! They use them in playgrounds, so unless they are irresistibly edible they should be safe.

I raise in cages, but have a play yard for them, so hopefully the Herd of ColonyRaisers here will chime in shortly!