Housing location help

[lereg15]

Hello all! I am totally new to trying anything having to do with rabbits and I plan on getting a couple for my granddaughter for Easter this year. I wanted to get her some chickens, but it's not allowed when you live on a golf course, go figure. So rabbits it is!! I plan on getting a couple of NZWs for her, and for food as well. Btw, the wife doesn't know about me trying to breed them yet, so this could be interesting!!

I have a place under my top deck where I'd like to house them, but I'm not sure if it would be a good location for them. On the other side of the back wall is my gas water heater and my furnace exhaust, so I'm not sure if the fumes could be bad for them or not.

The space is closed in with lattice around the end of the deck, so I would have plenty of room for the cages. I'll have 8' of the wall space until the water heater exhaust comes out. Then I'll have another 8' or so but the furnace vent would be in the middle of it. I was thinking about making a 8'x24" cage on the side before the heater exhaust, and possibly a couple of 3'x24 cages around the furnace vent. Would that work?

Here are a couple of pics of the area that I'm talking about, so please let me know what you think! Well, never mind on the pics, since I'm a computer idiot and dont know how to resize them to be able to post them here. Any help with that would be appreciated too.

If I can get help on resizing the pics, I will download them for a better reference.

Thank you in advance for your help!!

 

[Dood]

Furnace and water heater exhaust contains carbon monoxide so that would not be a good location for the rabbits, more importantly I would worry about the vents getting covered or plugged with fur and carbon monoxide getting trapped in your home :x

Rabbits have sensitive respiratory systems and need good air flow around their housing and they are not very tollerant of dampness

I just saw your pictures

I don't think dampness or poor airflow would be a problem but I would keep them away from the vents

 

[lereg15]

Here's the pics, maybe.

 

[Silver Cloud]

Copy the image go to your asseccories and open paint paste it and resize to what ever the size is you need. Then save it to a folder, then use the saved picture for here. Welcome to RT. <br /><br /> -- Thu Mar 19, 2015 1:47 pm -- <br /><br /> Looks like you got them ok.

 

[lereg15]

Furnace and water heater exhaust contains carbon monoxide so that would not be a good location for the rabbits, more importantly I would worry about the vents getting covered or plugged with fur and carbon monoxide getting trapped in your home :x

Rabbits have sensitive respiratory systems and need good air flow around their housing and they are not very tollerant of dampness

I just saw your pictures

I don't think dampness or poor airflow would be a problem but I would keep them away from the vents

That's kind of what I was thinking too. It was a thought that I had though. I have a porch to the right of that space, but I'm not sure if the wife would let me keep them there. Beings that I'm cheap, I was hoping for an already covered area. <br /><br /> -- Thu Mar 19, 2015 12:48 pm -- <br /><br />

Copy the image go to your asseccories and open paint paste it and resize to what ever the size is you need. Then save it to a folder, then use the saved picture for here. Welcome to RT.

-- Thu Mar 19, 2015 1:47 pm --

Looks like you got them ok.

Yes, but thank you anyway!!

 

[Silver Cloud]

What about around the corner where the latice is laying could you use that area?

 

[lereg15]

I could, but it's only about 4' high there. I have a spot on the side of my house, by the ac unit, that I can put them. If I can somehow raise them up, I could use the entire side of the house, (the gas meter is over there). I'll just have to put poop drawers over the ac unit.

-- Thu Mar 19, 2015 4:34 pm --

I think I figured out my placement!! On the side of the house I'd be able to fit 2 3'x8' pens on the bottom row and 3 3'x4-5' pens on the top of them. That should be ample space for 3 rabbits....so far, wouldn't you say?

I just found a breeder, not too far away from me that sells what I'm looking for, so I plan on going through him, possibly. Here's his pricing: PRICE LIST. (New Zealand & Californian)

8 to 10 weeks old (Hybrid-$20; Purebred-$25)

market size; can be difficult to sex

12 to 15 weeks old (Hybrid-$25; Purebred-$30)

Breeding Age (Hybrid-$30; Purebred-$35) call for availability.

If you want us to 'grow out' a baby to breeder age, call us to make a $10 deposit and reserve your bunny.

The above are 'pick up' prices at our farm sold 'at the door.'

Local deliveries can be accommodated for an extra fee.

We offer a 48-hour guarantee.

Does that sound good to you? Oh and what's the difference between hybrid and purebred, considering they are 2 different breeds?

 

[katiebear]

Hybrid would be a cross between the two. Pure breed would be only one breed. Pedigree is papered back at least three generations.
Prices are going to vary depending on where you are..and who is breeding..and quality of the stock.

 

[Zass]

Your pens sounds wonderful. The only thing I suggest is to make sure your setup allows you to reach into every corner.

 

[alforddm]

I'm not sure where you are located but is your AC unit a central AC? Those blow hot air. If it increases the air temperature very much near the rabbits it may be hard on them.

 

[lereg15]

Your pens sounds wonderful. The only thing I suggest is to make sure your setup allows you to reach into every corner.

I have long arms, plus I plan on making wooden hutches, just to hold the cages, that way I can pull out the cages and clean the like that.

I'm not sure where you are located but is your AC unit a central AC? Those blow hot air. If it increases the air temperature very much near the rabbits it may be hard on them.

It is central. I planned on keeping away from the direct fan, the cages should be about a foot from it. Would it make a difference? Btw, I'm on the far east side of middle Tn, before Knoxville.

Hybrid would be a cross between the two. Pure breed would be only one breed. Pedigree is papered back at least three generations.
Prices are going to vary depending on where you are..and who is breeding..and quality of the stock.

Thank you katiebear!!

 

[Zass]

The rabbit prices looked decent. Not the least expensive, and certainly not the most expensive ones I've seen. You will want to ask what traits that breeder is selecting for.

For example, it seems like it's taking 12-15 weeks to get to market size? Not exactly fast growth for either breed, or hybrids.
Are they pellet fed, fodder, or do they get a homemade hay-grain-forage diet? That can affect growth, and how well they will transition to your feed.

I am totally new to trying anything having to do with rabbits and I plan on getting a couple for my granddaughter for Easter this year

Another thing to look out for is temper (if you don't like your grand daughter getting bitten) Many breeders will tolerate biters, and many others do not. It helps to ask. (or buy a good pair of gloves for both of you)

I eat biters and handle my rabbits bare handed, but that is just personal preference.

Good temper is not going to be found in well-handled kits or nice bucks. Kits and buck rarely cause problems. It's the does you want to ask about. As puberty can and very often will totally change a docile, frequently handled doeling's personality. Your best bet it to get kits out of nice tempered mature does, from a breeder who actively culls for it.

 

[lereg15]

The rabbit prices looked decent. Not the least expensive, and certainly not the most expensive ones I've seen. You will want to ask what traits that breeder is selecting for.

For example, it seems like it's taking 12-15 weeks to get to market size? Not exactly fast growth for either breed, or hybrids.
Are they pellet fed, fodder, or do they get a homemade hay-grain-forage diet? That can affect growth, and how well they will transition to your feed.

I am totally new to trying anything having to do with rabbits and I plan on getting a couple for my granddaughter for Easter this year

Another thing to look out for is temper (if you don't like your grand daughter getting bitten) Many breeders will tolerate biters, and many others do not. It helps to ask. (or buy a good pair of gloves for both of you)

I eat biters and handle my rabbits bare handed, but that is just personal preference.

Good temper is not going to be found in well-handled kits or nice bucks. Kits and buck rarely cause problems. It's the does you want to ask about. As puberty can and very often will totally change a docile, frequently handled doeling's personality. Your best bet it to get kits out of nice tempered mature does, from a breeder who actively culls for it.

I'll have to ask him about that!! I found the place on RabbitBreeders, if that makes any difference. No, I won't tolerate a animal that bites me, at all. It can sit in the cage until it looks like it's a good weight for dinner!!

 

[alforddm]

It is central. I planned on keeping away from the direct fan, the cages should be about a foot from it. Would it make a difference? Btw, I'm on the far east side of middle Tn, before Knoxville.

It could, but I can't say for sure. I know in the heat of the day our central ac runs quite a bit and it definitely blows hot air. I've never bothered to see if there is a temperature difference within a certain distance of the unit.

 

[lereg15]

True, never though of that. I might be starting them in the basement now, but I may eventually need more space on the outside for them. If I built plywood on the side of the cage, do you think that would help?

 

[Susie570]

I would use caution with including plywood in the design, unless you paint it maybe. It can end up getting urine soaked into it and might be hard to clean.

 

[lereg15]

I plan on getting pee trays, but I will end up putting plastic on them anyway.

 

[Susie570]

The plastic should make it ok. Pee trays will be helpful but not all of the pee ends up in the trays.

 

[lereg15]

Yeah, I understand that, but I'm hopping to get the majority of it. I wouldn't think there is a solution to get it all, especially when the buck sprays.

 

[Susie570]

Yeah, I understand that, but I'm hopping to get the majority of it. I wouldn't think there is a solution to get it all, especially when the buck sprays.

Yup :x