housing please help!!
- Thread starter StefC
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I wouldn't get a dog cage....That just wouldn't hold shavings..etc. I would however go to your local tractor supply and get a cage with the pan bottom. They sell super expensive ones at pet stores, but call ahead and asked according to the size for the breed and make sure they have it in stock. Keeps your buns cleaner and the tray is easy to clean,take out, and put back in. The wire will have to be cleaned every so often, but I like it better than pet store stuff.
Ok thanks so much I'll keep that in mind & do you have any suggestions for
Litter training... What type of litter I should use? I asked the pet store & they referred me to a cat litter that is made of recycled newspaper & looks like pellets. Should I return those & get something else?
Litter training... What type of litter I should use? I asked the pet store & they referred me to a cat litter that is made of recycled newspaper & looks like pellets. Should I return those & get something else?
The pan cages are rather small and if you are going the cage route I would just get a standard wire cage. Make sure there is a resting board. However dog crates are quite frequently used along with xpens. You don't use shavings. You litterbox train. The rabbit gets a box like a cat litter box but with hay hung at one end and the rest of the pen is blankets or rugs for traction. If you want to go this route see the house rabbit society type information http://www.rabbit.org/care/index.html . Not everything on there is good (rabbits did not evolve to eat vegetables and not all need friends) but it covers various housing and litter box training.
my flemmish giant stays in a dog kennel. The litter box I use for her is kind of like a laundry basket I got it at Walmart http://www.walmart.com/ip/Mainstays-You ... k/19802844 I put wood chips in it and change it every couple of days. I would definitly reccomend putting something in the bottom of the crate, if you dont they tend to lay in the litterbox (at least mine does) which makes for a dirty bunny!
hoodat
Well-known member
Small independent pet stores often have used rabbit cages for sale at about 1/2 the price of new ones.
akane":2vg77osf said:
Haha I should I said I meant the wire cage with the pan bottom.
http://www.tractorsupply.com/home-rig-h ... n--2179457
I'd look into the one I've linked. What breed/size of rabbit do you have?<br /><br />__________ Wed Mar 07, 2012 7:44 am __________<br /><br />This one looks like it would nice -->http://www.tractorsupply.com/ware-manufacturing-heavy-duty-rabbit-hutch-large-2179342
Looks like it has a wire bottom with a drop pan too
Well I just purchased her from a pet store and I'm picking her up Friday hopefully. They are not sure of the breed but from my research I believe she is a engish spot rabbit. If someone lets
Me know how to post a picture of her (it's not a great one) but maybe who has a lot of rabbit breeding experience can let me know
Me know how to post a picture of her (it's not a great one) but maybe who has a lot of rabbit breeding experience can let me know
curlysue":36h2mfkl said:
That depends on the breed and what guage the wire is. If a rabbit has no board to lay/sit on, they will lay in the litter box, as mentioned earlier. I had that problem once. So I put a board down and the rabbit pooped on it instead of in the litter box. Some rabbits will not train well, so you may have to pick up poop berries every day.
Is it a doe or a buck? A buck may spray out the side of his cage (I have one that does it all the time), so consider putting newspaper around the outside of the cage and protecting a wall behind cage (if any), until you know if it is a sprayer or not, if it's a buck....Btw, the pet store may get the sex wrong, so don't fully depend on them to know. I had to show my local pet store owners how to sex a rabbit because they were just telling people what they wanted to hear, not knowing the differnece. So when you get the rabbit, check its gender.
If you decide to go the shavings route, a cage with plastic sides partway up may help, because rabbits sometimes dig in the shavings and they fall out of the cage and make a mess.
I was thinking that too. Once I get her settled in her new home I was going to make an appointment with the vet to make sure my rabbit is healthy and double check the sex of him/her. I am going to buy the cage today after I get of my class.. so do you suggest me buying a regular rabbit cage or buying a dog cage which I am considering. I am looking a the website that the member "Peach" posted above, the tractor supply store website to see what they offer. I am looking around and doing a lot of research on different cages and stuff so my rabbit has a good home. I just dont know what to get for a cage for her, Ive been hearing a lot of different things from people on here, pet stores and online websites as well.<br /><br />__________ Wed Mar 07, 2012 11:19 am __________<br /><br />I was also considering buying a hutch for her but she will be kept indoors so I am not too sure about it. I am trying to get other peoples opinions who have had a rabbit before
Stef, what kind of set up did you settle on? You realize that you can always upgrade later on :lol:
For my house bunny, I found that providing a litter tray with a piece of wire across the top was basically all I needed to do for him ... he would pee in the litter tray, but the poops would dribble out wherever ... I just kept a small broom/long handled dustpan handy and sweep them up whenever I found them.
To litter train him, I kept him in a cage for a week so that he had established his "bathroom corner" in the tray, then moved the tray with a top wire to an out-of-the-way place in the house and showed him where it was once ... after that, the odor would draw him back to the tray. I also found that with a buck, it is definitely necessary to clean/empty the tray every day and even 2x per day. Now, if I had used pee-pads to line the tray it might not have been necessary for cleaning 2x per day.
If you do go for litter box, you should also still find a wire rack for the bunny to sit on if it is a long haired bunny like mine. Even a short haired one might want a rack so his feet don't trail the litter material out ... depends on if you have a fastidious bunny like mine :lol:
For my house bunny, I found that providing a litter tray with a piece of wire across the top was basically all I needed to do for him ... he would pee in the litter tray, but the poops would dribble out wherever ... I just kept a small broom/long handled dustpan handy and sweep them up whenever I found them.
To litter train him, I kept him in a cage for a week so that he had established his "bathroom corner" in the tray, then moved the tray with a top wire to an out-of-the-way place in the house and showed him where it was once ... after that, the odor would draw him back to the tray. I also found that with a buck, it is definitely necessary to clean/empty the tray every day and even 2x per day. Now, if I had used pee-pads to line the tray it might not have been necessary for cleaning 2x per day.
If you do go for litter box, you should also still find a wire rack for the bunny to sit on if it is a long haired bunny like mine. Even a short haired one might want a rack so his feet don't trail the litter material out ... depends on if you have a fastidious bunny like mine :lol:
palmettogirl
Active member
I have two holland lops and the boy is somewhat litter trained(he was a stray) and the girl is perfectly liter trained. The boy has smelly pee so I agree you have to change out the liter or shavings daily or every other day. The girl does not smell at all. I bought two wrong housing options. I first bought a cage(long one) with a plastic bottom from petsmart. If i put shavings or paper in the bottom he would pee in it like a liter box. This was too much work to change everyday so I took out the shavings and put a carpet type mat in the bottom and just left the litter box in the corner. He used the liter box to pee in and poop would get dragged out or he just pooped some outside of it. I would just vacuum this up daily. Then I ordered a hutch to keep him on the porch(he's kinda smelly). This hutch is a terrible design(wasn't aware of it when I bought online). It has a top and bottom area. The top half of the upstairs floor comes out but its like a trough. I really hate this design. I have to put shavings or hay in it because with or without it he views this as a litter box. There is no room for a litter box up stairs so on a daily basis I have to remove everything...such a pain. I got a girl holland which is kept in the house and she is using the cage fine; however, I'm going to go to tractor supply and get those cages with the pull out pan. Now that I've lived with this set up awhile I realize the advantage to this sort of cage. They get really dirty feet if they sit or jump around in pellets. Sometimes the bunnies will get that soft night poop on things. It is like glue! Really hard to clean off. They are suppose to eat it but often they don't or have more when you change food, etc. I ended up changing my food way too many times so i recommend researching the pellets you want and stick to one. Don't feed much veges at first. Don't feed cabbage(lots of sites say this ok but both my buns can not tolerate it). Unlimited timothy hay, good pellets, rolled oats, papaya or pinapple twice a week or less and some other things just as a treat. I would keep it bland at first b/c the bunny will be stressed from the transition(bunnies don't like change). Find out what they are feeding her and continue this feed and gradually change out to something better if you think it's poor quality. Black sunflower seeds ok but not those pet store feeds with all the seeds and other junk in them. These are the things I've learned so far. I now see the advantage of the cages with wire bottoms and the pull out pans. You won't keep them in it all the time b/c you have to let the bun out to get exercise so if you pen off an area just put a litter box in that area too. Use paper litter(balls or shreds) and you can compost it. I have worm bins and a big compost bin in the yard and fill it up pretty regular. Buns are pooping machines but that poop is great for the garden! This is one reason I actually love them.<br /><br />__________ Fri Mar 09, 2012 10:14 am __________<br /><br />Oh! great idea about having a litter box with wire over it. I've seen those at the pet store and never bought them. So that's why the wire is there....haha...The bunny will definitely drag poop out. Even my good girl bun does that. I will be switching to those and then maybe I won't change my girl's setup b/c she is great about using the litter box. I also keep her door open and she has this huge penned off area to run around in and still only uses litter box so she's great! The boy is definitely getting a wire cage. This will be better for summer anyway and I might have to move him in if it gets too hot and so that will be easier to change out daily.
AnnClaire, I went on a 48" dog cage built for extra large dogs with a pull out tray. I am going to try that out first and see how that works. I went to the tractor store and saw one there which is what I will be purchasing tomorrow before I pick her up. I am going to purchase the cage they set it all up and then go pick her up at the store. I cant wait to see her in her new house. I hope she loves it. I also bought her a lot of things like different kinds of toys, lots of hay, (I didnt buy pellets yet), I bought a litter box which is going to be in one corner so i can litter train her. I am knew to this so I am trying to find out as much information about things as possible. I am also purchasing another tray to go inside the cage so that portion of the tray/cage is a play area with her house, water, food, toys and the corner of the other half of the cage is the litter box. I bought "carefresh" bedding for the bottom of the cage (which doesnt have a wire bottom)- I found out that this is better not to have. For the litter box I bought this "purina recycled cat litter" that the pet store I bought my rabbit from suggested it was good. I am not sure if I should return it or not because it is in pellet form and I dont want her to mistaken it for food pellets and eat it... You think i should return it (I got until tomorrow when I pick her up to decide). If I do return what should i use instead. I am still trying to figure out how to post pictures on here. I am still fairly new to this site. I will be taking lots of pictures of her and her knew home tomorrow and would like to posts them on here....
I also plan on building her a little play area in her cage since its so big. the cage is HUGE since its meant for extra large dogs. I got a cardboard box from work that is the perfect size for her to go in to use as a home to hide in. i also bought another home, its a plastic little cave. Im sure you've seen it in the store. When I was purchasing her the other day i stood there and watched her. She literally flipped the plastic house upside down to sleep in... she uses that as her bed.
I also plan on building her a little play area in her cage since its so big. the cage is HUGE since its meant for extra large dogs. I got a cardboard box from work that is the perfect size for her to go in to use as a home to hide in. i also bought another home, its a plastic little cave. Im sure you've seen it in the store. When I was purchasing her the other day i stood there and watched her. She literally flipped the plastic house upside down to sleep in... she uses that as her bed.
MamaSheepdog
Well-known member
Sounds like she is going to have a happy home! She wont eat the pelleted litter for her potty box because it doesn't smell like food. Make sure to buy a small bag of the pellets she is getting fed at the store and then if you decide to change her diet you can mix it with the new food.
She may get diarrhea from the stress of the move, so don't give her lots of treats at first. Keep her on pellets and hay and some rolled oats as a treat. After a few days or a week you can start to give her small amounts of fresh greens and vegetables.
Looking forward to see pics of your new baby in her new home!
She may get diarrhea from the stress of the move, so don't give her lots of treats at first. Keep her on pellets and hay and some rolled oats as a treat. After a few days or a week you can start to give her small amounts of fresh greens and vegetables.
Looking forward to see pics of your new baby in her new home!
Saying animals will mistake pellet bedding for pellet food is like saying humans will mistake glue for mashed potatos. The only time we've had a problem is with the horses who will grab a bite of anything out of an open bag without looking first. They've gotten mouthfuls of ice melt and fertilizer before as well. The only exception are the corn based beddings. Corn is food (sort of) so some animals do try to eat corn cob based pellets.
thanks so much mamasheep, Yes i hope she has a happy home and she enjoys it a lot. I plan on spoiling her. So you suggest to keep the litter I bought her since she most likely wont eat it since it doesnt smell like food. Thanks for the helpful tips. I am going to buy a bag of pellets tomorrow when I pick her up from the store.. I will start her off with timothy hay I bought and the pellets. then once shes settled in like you said im going to start slowly giving her other kinds of food.
akane, thanks for the helpful tips and hints. much appreciated. if there is anymore tips please feel free to share.
akane, thanks for the helpful tips and hints. much appreciated. if there is anymore tips please feel free to share.
Petstore pellets are over priced and 3/4ths are junk so if you are getting her from a pet store don't wait to get your pellets there. Go find a good feed store pellet and you'll save yourself a ton of money and it's healthier aside from things like oxbow which are $1/lb if you buy in bulk and probably more like $3/lb in the pet store. You can put it in a rubbermaid container for up to 4 months or if you have a large freeze you can freeze it for another 4 months. Even if you have to throw some out to the wildlife or trade it off to someone (you might find someone else with a pet rabbit willing to go in on a bag) you'll still save money over buying little pet store bags.
Stef - sorry it took so long, but I had to do a google search to find one that works ... it isn't the original one I was looking for but it is similar http://breyfamily.net/bunnycage.html You will find that levels are what are truely entertaining for the bunny! I started out with one cardboard box with a couple of holes in it, then had to get a larger box, so moved the smaller one to the top and just kept adding layers :lol: Oh, yeah, make an inside hole up to the next level too so they can squirm up and down!
Hope this helps!
I also want to see photos ... you realize you are not building a bunny cage, you are building a bunny CONDO! :lol:
Even if you can't figure out how to upload photos here, you could always upload them to a free photo site and post the link for folks to take a gander
Hope this helps!
I also want to see photos ... you realize you are not building a bunny cage, you are building a bunny CONDO! :lol:
Even if you can't figure out how to upload photos here, you could always upload them to a free photo site and post the link for folks to take a gander
