Cardboard nesting boxes?

[bilder]

Would cardboard work for a nesting box? We use these cardboard bins at work and the big ones are roughly the same size as a commercial metal nesting box. I can get all I want of these things to take home, just wondering if they would work a disposable nesting box or perhaps just a little place for the bunnies to rest in similar to the buckets or such I see others use.

 

[UK-backyardbunnies]

Don't see why not, if you can dispose of it between litters (if necessary - not sure how dirty it would get)

 

[MaggieJ]

Yes, they would work, but you need to anchor them to the cage wall so that they are impossible to tip. Just punch a few holes in the side and wire or zip-tie them to the cage wire.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

Would cardboard work for a nesting box?

Only if you secure it to the cage and your doe doesn't shred it.

I have the all wire "Sani-Nests" from BASS, and they sell waxed cardboard liners for them. I never purchased any, but one was included with each nest, so I used them, and once they were gone I cut cardboard to fit. Some does tend to tear the cardboard apart either with their teeth or by digging and use the shreds as nesting material. It got to the point that I attached the cardboard to the outside of the wire nest and under the floor to try to prevent this, but some would still strip the cardboard from the sides.

I now have plastic panels that I line the nests with, since I got tired of cutting cardboard to fit. They are easy to clean and the does cannot destroy them.

 

[TerriG]

MSD,

What kind of plastic? Where did you get it?

 

[Miss M]

I used a cardboard box as a nesting box once. Worked great! Make sure you have plenty of absorbent material in there, since it's a solid bottom. The cardboard will absorb a lot, too, so pick up the nest carefully when you do.

 

[mystang89]

Didn't work for me but I didn't secure it and I had a crazy doe that chewed 3 of them to pieces.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

MSD,

What kind of plastic? Where did you get it?

It is the plastic wall covering used in commercial restrooms, and is available at Home Depot and other hardware stores. I paid about $24 for a 4' x 8' sheet.

 

[Diamond]

I lost 7 of 12 kits because I was short on nesting boxes. It was early autumn, and all was well. Then I came home from work late one evening, checked on the kits (they were about 5 days old). Box was tipped over. The cold ones had been cold too long and I could not save them.

So, if you must use cardboard, use a broad washer (donut-shaped metal ring) and a screw or roofing tack to anchor it to the wall of your hutch (if you have wood) or make a clamp out of two small pieces of wood, one inside the box and the other on the outside of the cage, and use a screw to fasten the 'clamp' together.

My husband got busy making more nesting boxes for me after the loss of the kits.

 

[curlysue]

I use them sometimes but i raise Netherland dwarfs.

 

[Wheels]

I use the boxes that reams of paper come in as a liner in my hutches - I built my own hutches and the nesting area is wood just wide enough for the boxes to fit in. So tipping isn't an issue, but I do have to change them out once or twice as the bottoms get soaked with urine.

 

[bilder]

Thanks for the tips.

I have one wire nest box and one wooden one that came with my freebie cages. Those will be the primary ones I use and will keep some cardboard bins on hand in case I need more.

Nearly got the framework for the cages built and am working on patching up the freebie cages before we hang them and start to keep an eye out for free or cheap bunnies. We should be in the bunny business for under $100 when this is all said and done. I will have to invest in some new floor wire in the future, but we should be up and running in another week or so.