Large Grower Pen - Good Idea or Not?

[jpm]

Like many I have read about I too suffer from cage space issues. I have floor space just a limited number of cages and not enough money right now to keep buying the Bass hanging cages. I do have the materials laying around that could be put to use, What would you all think of building a large pen say 30x60" (possibly bigger) that I could put our kits that have been weaned? I can get it off the ground and keep a wire floor. All the kits would get mixed up and processed as they hit 5 lbs or so. From my newbie perspective this would enable me to keep a couple additional young does in the cages and get them ready for breeding in the Spring. These are cages that sit empty most of the time. Would something like this work? What would the drawbacks be?

 

[Zass]

I think it's a great idea for a couple large or a few more small litters at a time.

My litters have always blended well in the 6-8 week range.
Others have reported fighting.
So I guess it depends on your buns?
I do have a 4x7 foot pen that I sometimes use for growouts.
I like it because they get a lot more exercise in there. Unfortunately, it's mostly wooden and has wood supports, so I kind of hate how unsanitary it can be.

I've been thinking 2x6 feet wire cages would be nice for my current setup.
I'd build 2 of them. One for bucklings and one for doelings.

If you build them, make sure to have good floor support, and that the doors are numerous and/or large enough for you to reach every corner for cleaning and fryer retrieval.

 

[3mina]

I have a 5' x 4' cage and I had less than stellar results. I went through very large amounts of feed and ended up with dirty, small rabbits that never came up to the weights I process at.
I had better success with 24'' x 30'' cages with 3 or 4 in each, the fryers made weight far more rapidly and I could cycle litters through fairly quickly

 

[Rabbitdog]

I see more negatives than positives with that plan. Unless you use quality Klubertanz bottom wire, you're going to have extremely severe sag in the bottom. Additionally, the more buns you have together, the more likely that you'll see big differences in growth. Some rabbits will be dominant and some will be too submissive at the feeder. If, for whatever reason, you can't butcher in 10-12 weeks, you'll have fighting issues.
But if you give it try, please post some pics and let us know how it goes!

 

[Marinea]

My grow out cages are 7'x 26" x 16" high. I put a litter of 9-13 New Zealand kits in each. I don't mix the litters, and have had no issues with fighting. I use large dog bowls for feeders and haven't seen any food problems or weight disparities.

The kits take full advantage of the room. I love to watch them binky.

 

[wamplercathy]

I have 3 breeding cages of 24"x24"x48", a bucks cage of 24"x24"x36", and one 24"x24"x48" that I divided into. That one I plan to use to grow out potential new stock or grow out litters if need be. The only cage floor wiring I could find is 16ga, so I reinforced the bottoms with pvc pipe.
I can see that size could matter a great deal when it comes to growing out litters. Too large and the kits can run off the extra feed and too little being cramped and uncomfortable. It really comes down to personal choice. My 2'x2'x2' seems small but I don't plan to have them in it very long. A month max. I plan to butcher at 5lbs or 12 weeks which ever comes first. I'm really hoping that it's closer to the 5lb mark. :lol:
Also need to state that I currently only have 2 litters and they are 2wks apart. A total of 14 kits. If I had a different situation I would re-plan.

Hope this helps,
Cathy

 

[Zass]

Found a pic of two litters in my big pen.
No trouble at the feeder :lol: Everyone found their place and grew well.

 

[SuburbanHomesteader]

What would you all think of building a large pen say 30x60" (possibly bigger)

I'm thinking you'll need a pretty big door because I'd have to stick my head and shoulders in through the door in able to reach to the back corners. Even with more than one door, the rabbits will always be just out of reach.

I strongly recommend that your floors are 14-guage GAW wire with reinforcement. You can get 30" spreaders from Bass that will do the job. I put four in my 48" grow-out pens. Have never had a problem with sagging floors.

Looking forward to updates with photos - best of luck to you.

 

[Zass]

I strongly recommend that your floors are 14-guage GAW wire with reinforcement. You can get 30" spreaders from Bass that will do the job. I put four in my 48" grow-out pens. Have never had a problem with sagging floors.

Looking forward to updates with photos - best of luck to you.

:yeahthat: I pretty much hate everything about the floor in that pen, which is why I'm not using now.

The wire is too thin, and feces collects on the wooden supports.

 

[BlueHaven]

Good point about the feeder being enough. Think I will add another to my grow out pen with five bucks in it. Good idea.

 

[jpm]

So I am building my pen, thought I would give a little update on my learning process (mistakes). The good first. Made the pen 60"x30" which seems like a good size. I was able to keep the floor all metal with a couple of support bars underneath. Floor and structure are good. Now for the bad, I put the sides in and used a product like this because it is what I had on hand, no good. The little 6 week old bunnies want to hang themselves in it.
http://www.amazon.com/Origin-Point-3428 ... op?ie=UTF8

The second mistake I made was to use a staple gun to put it in, bad idea. Within 2 minutes of putting 6 week old bunnies in one of them had pulled a staple out and was probably going to swallow it. My new plan is to use chicken wire for the sides and use J clips to join it to the floor. Any problems with rabbits and chicken wire?

I will post pictures when it is complete.

 

[Zass]

My rabbits chew right through chicken wire, and predators can reach through it to grab animals and eat them through the wire.
For predator-exposed areas I prefer 1/2 in. hardware cloth.

 

[Preitler]

Chicken wire is more symbolic than an actual obstacle for a determined rabbit...

I use it additional to bigger fence/wire to keep the kits in.

 

[TF3]

Reading with interest.
I have a couple of large cages holding the bulk of 3 large litters (divided bucks and does, just because they were even).
I held back the smaller kits with their moms and put in the biggest together.
I have been adding kits as they grow and keeping several bowls in addition to the feeders.
I am going to weigh them all tomorrow in hopes of sending out the 5+ pounders next week for processing.
At this point I'll see if I have any that are not keeping on their own growth curve.
They are all 7-8 weeks.
In the spring I hope to stagger litters a little more strategically so I am not trying to juggle 30+ kits LOL
My keeper does (the hopefuls) are in a pen together (4).