How to keep colony dry- battle with rain/snow

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theMarjolein

Member
Joined
Dec 27, 2022
Messages
14
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Location
Germany, NRW
Hi there,

We started our small colony and want to build a bigger colony as we want more does-
We live in Germany and there are some laws about rainwater and roofs.. you pay taxes for the amount of rain that passes your roof. Something like that. So we have a bit of problem making a roof on our bigger colony. Any tips how to keep them dry in 6 rainy cold months? Little hutches, underground tunnels/pipes?
Thanks for thinking along.
All the best and God bless,
Marjolein
 
I would read up on that rules for tax or fees, here I think it would only apply if I funnel the water into the sewer. There might be issues with getting a permission for building a permanent structure, if you're inclined to bother to ask for one, lots of local differences there.
I can't imagine there are that many rules about non-permanent structures like tents, an awning, tarp or sun sail.

I don't have a real colony, just pairs of does and their offspring, I use (connected) hutches for the night but they have free roam of the garden during the day, they don't mind some rain much as long as they can go back to their hutch at any time.
Sime pictures of my setup: Some pictures of my hutch setup
 
My husband has a colony for his rabbits. It has not been a good experience. They have tunneled underground and that is where they have their kits. Unfortunately, when it rains here, the water table is so high it fills the tunnels. Today was such a day. This morning I found one dead kit and one barely alive kits about 2 weeks of age. They somehow managed to get out of the tunnel. I was able to save the one and put it with my Lily who is a wonderful foster mommy. We have no idea how many others are down there and if they are alive. Hubby did suck all the water out of their holes, but tonight I saw that one was filled back up to the top with rain water.
We had this happen about a month ago as well.

I am sure that colonies work great in some areas, but not in our location.
 
Colony for not breeding times in the summer when shade is enough and hutches for breeding season so you know who is related to who. Knowing the traits of your does is important, handling bunnies helps with plenty of things including care and possible sale as a pet.
Either get a permit for building rabbit housing the size you want or work with what you have and adapt housing to the season. Dry feet (and liquid water) is baseline for landbased livestock.
One of my does comes from a breeder who has all does in a big outside pen in the summer when she is not breeding. Winter/breeding season they have their own hutches in the shed/barn. Be flexible and adapt housing to weather and what you have.

For water as in rain, the first rule is : it finds/seeks the lowest point i.e. tunnels, holes and so on. That makes going underground a bad idea for solutions. You could try building small hills in your colony (pipes and everything), but i suspect you'll need to pave everything first (including under the hills) so they can only dig into the side of a hill, not down after all. Note on that, not all soils are suitable for unsupported tunnels, they may very well collapse due to weight (bunny or human) combined with weather.
Colonies i see are either indoors or in dry climates. Not everything translates well or wholesale to another area.

I would sit down with a pot of tea/coffe/whatever and write down your goals for breeding (closed herd just buy in new bucks every so often, care (who has to/can care for your animals if you (or worse your family) can not? And what works best for each, add regulations, feed costs and local concerns (soil type, pests attracted to feed/manure, neighbours complaining about smells and so on)

Note that while animal wellfare laws may not be well defined getting inspection send to you from neighbours (or workmen for maintenance and so on) means first impressions are everything. Place looks neat, animals happy, active and so on gives you benefit of the doubt and inspector more likely to label the complaint a misunderstanding or friction between people rather than abuse/neglect.
 
Hi there,

We started our small colony and want to build a bigger colony as we want more does-
We live in Germany and there are some laws about rainwater and roofs.. you pay taxes for the amount of rain that passes your roof. Something like that. So we have a bit of problem making a roof on our bigger colony. Any tips how to keep them dry in 6 rainy cold months? Little hutches, underground tunnels/pipes?
Thanks for thinking along.
All the best and God bless,
Marjolein
What do the regulations define as a roof? Can you check the laws and provide more details?

I’m wondering if a non-permanent structure would count? What about using a hoop house type structure? Here in the US small-scale vegetable farmers use hoop houses to cover their crops and they are not usually regulated because hoop houses are considered non-permanent, though they can last for 5 or more years. They consist of a frame of bent metal tubes, with a UV-stable 6 mil poly plastic stretched overhead. Lots of materials can be used to make the frame, depending on the amount of snow you get. (areas with more snow need thicker metal hoops)

We use this method to cover a garden in the winter, following Elliot Coleman’s methods. We also use one to cover our chicken run in winter. Keeps the snow off so the chickens can get exercise.

Or could you use cattle panels with some sort of plastic cover? I guess we need more details on how the law defines a roof.
 
Thank you all! Honestly, I had no idea how lovely you all gave your opinions/tips/advise! So thank you!

As what the laws consider- I have not read it thoroughly for my German-reading is not fully developed. (They can make really long sentences!)

The soil drains quite well here. Our plan was/is to dig out, put wire underneath, soil back in, add some tunnels (pvc would be okay?) and some small tunnels attachted to kindling totes (as Bobby from the Rabbitry Center makes them). This way I can check on the kits. I have one buck (German Giant) with my does (red NZ and a rare Blauw van Ham (Belgium)).
We moved here to live with our friends, who are our neighbours, we care for each other animals whenever there is illness or vacations.
The hoop idea is also really need. Thank you!
Again, I feel fortunate for all your response!
 
My husband has a colony for his rabbits. It has not been a good experience. They have tunneled underground and that is where they have their kits. Unfortunately, when it rains here, the water table is so high it fills the tunnels. Today was such a day. This morning I found one dead kit and one barely alive kits about 2 weeks of age. They somehow managed to get out of the tunnel. I was able to save the one and put it with my Lily who is a wonderful foster mommy. We have no idea how many others are down there and if they are alive. Hubby did suck all the water out of their holes, but tonight I saw that one was filled back up to the top with rain water.
We had this happen about a month ago as well.

I am sure that colonies work great in some areas, but not in our location.
So sorry to read this... this is one of the most important reasons I want a roof/cover above the tunnels. Shade in summer, dry in winter. I am trying to find the right laws applying to my colony. That is, tonight - after I have brought my five little ones to bed.
 

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