Nesting Box and Shelves/Hidey Holes Dimensions

[Rebelucio]

I'm building my own nesting boxes and shelves\hidey holes for two Altex(TAMUK) does and two New Zealand does.
I would love for someone to provide me with the adequate dimensions for these. How wide and long and tall do they need to be? The cages are about 20" tall from floor to ceiling. and 36" by 30" at the floor.
Right now, I have the plans for building the space for all of the nesting boxes 24" long, 10" tall and 10.5" wide. And the shelves I have planned for 24" long 10" tall and 10.5" wide. With an opening on the right wall. Not sure how wide and tall the opening should be, either. I'm using 3/4" plywood.
Thanks for any help.

 

[ladysown]

Nesting boxes won't have to be 24 inches long, you can do 16-18" long.

I am not sure about the shelves/hidey holes as I don't use them. I like my rabbits having lots of room just to spread out.

 

[Rebelucio]

Here's what I have planned so far. Any more suggestions?

 

[ladysown]

those wood shelves could easily become feces-covered if your bunnies are anything like mine.....

 

[Rebelucio]

I was thinking about putting some ceramic tile or vinyl on top, what do you think, Ladysown?
Thanks for your replies btw..

 

[ladysown]

honestly... I'd put galvanized 1/2 by 1" wire up there...

 

[Rabbits by Accident]

All my rabbits have wooden shelves big enough to stretch out on (they love them) and the nest boxes have lids they can sit on. Some do poop on the shelves, but rarely does anyone pee on them. I brush the poop off once in awhile, but it doesn't bother me or them and the rabbits really love their shelves. My sweet buck even has a bucket playhouse that he keeps super clean and sleeps in. He is the only adult that likes that. You may find that some rabbits like different things. I have some that like to have ceramic floor tiles to sit on and scratch at and some hate them and fling them around the cage. They're all different. I just try to make them happy since they have such a confined world to explore.

 

[eco2pia]

My nest boxes have only a 3"board on the front, and have a longer roof. This means the mom doesn't have to jump to get in, only raise her belly enough to scrape off any kits trying to hitch a ride out of the box, and she has more room to stretch out on top. I make my boxes footprint roughly the size of what the rabbit needs to lay down, with an extra inch or two turning room and head height. One trick I've found incredibly useful is a perforated floor. Keeps the box drier. You can drill wood or use a punched steel floor. Just keep the holes smaller than baby bunny feet.

Instead of resting boards and shelves I use a lot of brown cardboard. I know it looks less pretty, but it's free and gets replaced often, and reused again in my garden.

 

[sweeethearts_2002]

I'm building my own nesting boxes and shelves\hidey holes for two Altex(TAMUK) does and two New Zealand does.
I would love for someone to provide me with the adequate dimensions for these. How wide and long and tall do they need to be? The cages are about 20" tall from floor to ceiling. and 36" by 30" at the floor.
Right now, I have the plans for building the space for all of the nesting boxes 24" long, 10" tall and 10.5" wide. And the shelves I have planned for 24" long 10" tall and 10.5" wide. With an opening on the right wall. Not sure how wide and tall the opening should be, either. I'm using 3/4" plywood.
Thanks for any help.

We purchased some "milk" crates from Tractor supply. I beli2v3 they were about $7 each..not too bad. We cut a partial side off so there's an opening big enough for a rabbit to hop in . Plenty of space... perfect size for kits. It was our first idea, however I'm sure for the future I will build better, wooden ones that serve dual purpose. These crates can be turned over for hidey boxes. Good inexpensive alternatives for those who don't have a lot of tools or resources. I used a Dremel tool for these.

 

[sweeethearts_2002]

All my rabbits have wooden shelves big enough to stretch out on (they love them) and the nest boxes have lids they can sit on. Some do poop on the shelves, but rarely does anyone pee on them. I brush the poop off once in awhile, but it doesn't bother me or them and the rabbits really love their shelves. My sweet buck even has a bucket playhouse that he keeps super clean and sleeps in. He is the only adult that likes that. You may find that some rabbits like different things. I have some that like to have ceramic floor tiles to sit on and scratch at and some hate them and fling them around the cage. They're all different. I just try to make them happy since they have such a confined world to explore.

View attachment 29646

Amazing idea! Thank you for this. How is it mounted in the cage? Also, what kind of rabbit is that? What a beauty! I'd love to have one.

 

[Rabbits by Accident]

Amazing idea! Thank you for this. How is it mounted in the cage? Also, what kind of rabbit is that? What a beauty! I'd love to have one.

Thanks

The rabbit is my huge Tamuk doe. She is almost 13 lbs. I call her Gertie, because she gallops around the cage LOL. She is SUCH a sweetie. I think sweetness is part of the Tamuk breed, they are all so laid back and easy to handle. Super calm, you wouldn't believe what they have been through. Easy to feed, no problems with scraps or changing feed abruptly.

(If you live near Fort Worth, Texas I will be breeding her to a buck that looks just like her soon and will have kits available)

For the shelves I just ran a couple screws, into the ends of the boards and left them sticking out about an inch. The screw rests on the bar at the sides of the cage. I can rearrange the shelving without any tools. Usually the two boards are separate, not screwed together. If I have a rabbit that is too aggressive with the board, I put a small strip of thin plywood on the outside of the cage when I screw it on and they can't move it.

I'll take some pics in a bit.

I try to re-use, re-purpose, and re-define. I tried to write a post with all the recycle ideas, but it was easier to just make a page - you can see it here - Recycled Rabbitry

Unfortunately, sometimes I think it makes my rabbitry look like a homeless camp. BUT! In defense - I bought a buck from a much more professional set-up which looked beautiful. A hundred rabbits in uniform cages outdoors under a canopy roof. Made me feel bad about my area until I really analysed it. His cages were smaller, only 18" high, no shelves, the rabbits didn't have hay (because of the mess I'm sure) no 'toys', no hidey holes, no real protection from wind or storms.

I want to make a thread in defense of homemade, recycled rabbitries built with not much money but a lot of love

- Liz

 

[sweeethearts_2002]

Thanks

The rabbit is my huge Tamuk doe. She is almost 13 lbs. I call her Gertie, because she gallops around the cage LOL. She is SUCH a sweetie. I think sweetness is part of the Tamuk breed, they are all so laid back and easy to handle. Super calm, you wouldn't believe what they have been through. Easy to feed, no problems with scraps or changing feed abruptly.

(If you live near Fort Worth, Texas I will be breeding her to a buck that looks just like her soon and will have kits available)

For the shelves I just ran a couple screws, into the ends of the boards and left them sticking out about an inch. The screw rests on the bar at the sides of the cage. I can rearrange the shelving without any tools. Usually the two boards are separate, not screwed together. If I have a rabbit that is too aggressive with the board, I put a small strip of thin plywood on the outside of the cage when I screw it on and they can't move it.

I'll take some pics in a bit.

I try to re-use, re-purpose, and re-define. I tried to write a post with all the recycle ideas, but it was easier to just make a page - you can see it here - Recycled Rabbitry

Unfortunately, sometimes I think it makes my rabbitry look like a homeless camp. BUT! In defense - I bought a buck from a much more professional set-up which looked beautiful. A hundred rabbits in uniform cages outdoors under a canopy roof. Made me feel bad about my area until I really analysed it. His cages were smaller, only 18" high, no shelves, the rabbits didn't have hay (because of the mess I'm sure) no 'toys', no hidey holes, no real protection from wind or storms.

I want to make a thread in defense of homemade, recycled rabbitries built with not much money but a lot of love

- Liz

I couldn't even finish reading before I was all bug eyed snd ready to tell you I'm just over an hour from you. Stephenville area...is there a way we could private message because I'm interested.