My rabbit adventures for the past few weekends

TwoAcreDream · Dec 2, 2013

I swear the last 2 months, I have spent more time in the bunny room
than in the house. Between getting the area ready where I wanted to
put all the cages and now getting my stackers built, it has been
quite time consuming. Today was nothing exciting but getting the 3
plastic dog crates set up for the 3 does that are due shortly.
I now have 6 three hole stackers built. I use 16 inches high myself.
Only one unit has the legs that you can buy at TSC. That unit
I bought used for $ 30 including the plastic drop pans.
Rest of my units I put together with used
materials, like the legs from 2 metal shelves. Two units, I built
with free C and C grids. I used them to hold it all together.
Only thing I had to buy new was the plastic drop pans. I have mended
used cages. Cut down used cages to salvage material, etc.
When spring comes, I may break down and buy some new wire, after
I talk the family into helping me build my bunny barn

I like to use dog kennels myself in the good weather. But I don't like
it when it rains. I just use cheap blue tarps we pick up for $ 1 each
when they go on sale.

skysthelimit · Dec 3, 2013

TwoAcreDream":3vkxf675 said:
I like to use dog kennels myself in the good weather. But I don't like
it when it rains. I just use cheap blue tarps we pick up for $ 1 each
when they go on sale.

My dogs are all outside, for various reasons. In the temperate seasons they are in the backyard kennels. Tarping a 12x24 kennel only results in the wind off the Lake ripping the tarp off, or the rain sagging, and they can't handle the snow load. All that water on sagging tarps becomes an awful breeding ground for mosquitoes in the summer. I've waited for some time, but a permanent roof is the only solution.

TwoAcreDream · Dec 3, 2013

skysthelimit":3cl9poql said:
TwoAcreDream":3cl9poql said:

I like to use dog kennels myself in the good weather. But I don't like
it when it rains. I just use cheap blue tarps we pick up for $ 1 each
when they go on sale.

Click to expand...

My dogs are all outside, for various reasons. In the temperate seasons they are in the backyard kennels. Tarping a 12x24 kennel only results in the wind off the Lake ripping the tarp off, or the rain sagging, and they can't handle the snow load. All that water on sagging tarps becomes an awful breeding ground for mosquitoes in the summer. I've waited for some time, but a permanent roof is the only solution.

I have 20 sections of kennel fence. I bought these used off a craiglist
ad a few years ago. Enough for 5 kennel set ups. But only one section has the door. We use some of the sections for the chicken yard/run so if need be, only one of us can move it around by ourselves. These are 6 by 6 ft panels. I usually have one pen set up in the summer and that is in use like a chicken tractor. We raise our own chicks and this is their temp home till they get big enough to go into the main flock. It gets moved every OTHER day or else the lawn in that spot would be ruined. So the tarp gets shook good and any moisture on it, does not stay on it.
I did use the kennel cage this fall, as a temp holding area when I had a few extra rabbits. It worked good with the tarps in place. Once I got all my used cages in place, all my rabbits are in a building now. I probably won't be using the kennel cages for rabbits again. My plan is to get a bigger building built in the spring for my baby chicks and room for growout pens for bunnies. I like the area I have made in the addition on the garage. It's a nice bunny room. The stackers are really working well.

We have 2 dogs. Both are inside pets.

skysthelimit · Dec 4, 2013

This kennel is attached to post cemented into the ground over driveway. It's a single purpose building, for dogs only, and permanent and needs a permanent roof. Unstrapping and taking one giant 12x24 tarp off every time it rains in Ohio (it rained for weeks straight this season), or pulling off 4 individual tarps by myself, is more than I want. I'm getting a little too close to 40, the plan is to build it, to make things less labor intensive. If I pull my back pulling off tarps to empty water, who will feed my animals

Last year I lost the entire poly panel roof during Super storm Sandy, ripped it clear off. Shredded tarps on the bunny growout cages. I am now determined to attach a real wood roof on it.
It has to be something simple I can do myself and something with a serious snow load. I cannot physically go out and clear off snow, or drain a tarp in 35F weather when the snow starts to melt. If I do it the way luvabunny did, I should be able to manage it. It does need to be a low roof, 2 feet or less, any building over 8 feet would require me to get a building permit from the city.

I have more than two dogs, and as you can see from my signature, they are a bit more than pets. They are not permitted to live inside, I am quite fortunate I am even allowed to keep them here at all, so I must make do.

I really love luvabunny's roofing design.

luvabunny · Dec 7, 2013

I wish I could tell you I got plans from "X" or measured it out specifically, or things like that, but I didn't. We had the walls already up and knew they were 6 ft. I didn't want to be very tall, since it had to fit under the trees, but my "scientific" way of measuring was to stand on a ladder in the middle of the barn, hold up both pieces of 2x4, and mark the angle I thought I wanted, which was no more than 24" higher than the edge of the wall.
I then set the compound saw to the angle to make all of the cuts, and cut each of the boards. I ran into a problem when I determined I needed 1 more joist and didn't know what the angle was, because I was already "finished" with that part and had put the saw away. I ended up having to actually take down one of the installed joist to mark the angle on the new boards.
If I had it to do over again, I would somehow clamp the 2 board together before joining them with the screws. Even tho I "held" them together as good as I could, I found that even the smallest space between them changed my angle, and my roof, dramatically. I had to re-do one of the joists, even tho it was cut exactly the same, because I had allowed a space you couldn't fit a quarter thru, and it raised the height of the angle by about 1".

So, here's some pics of the barn fully enclosed, just before I headed out to work. Sorry they are dark, but that's how it is when I leave. The back doors have been temporarily enclosed by siding, as has 1 of the front doors. You can't really see it in these pics, but I also added soffit to the underside of the roof joists on the north side, as well as a trim piece, to keep the north wind out.
The angular siding, from the flat walls, to the roof, is a gigantic pain, but I think it all turned out pretty good. Once I can (snow melts, gets above freezing) I have a lot more cosmetic things to do, but it works for now.
The front. The open door was enclosed just before we got 4" of snow and the temp dropped to 10 degrees.