yay rabbit colony!

[ohiogoatgirl]

well i'm getting rabbit stuff for christmas. right now i'm planning the area where i'll have the colony at. it is 7x10 foot. i may be adding a little more to it... have to go out and remeasure and see if i want to rearrange the walls, etc.

the to buy list:
*feeders
*waterers
*fencing
*nail trimmer
*notebook for record keeping

on the to do list:
*save 2 liters for ice bottles in summer
*find rabbits to buy
*make "tunnels" for rabbits
*move a feed barrel to rabbit area
*move junk from the walkway to-be (my dad's stuff :evil: )
*measure area with posible extending, do i want to rearrange the wall?
*price stuff on tractor supply website

anything i should be adding? i will take pics and make drawings and try to get em up. thanks!

 

[MamaSheepdog]

Nestboxes? Or does that fall under "tunnels"? I like to have any cleaning/management tools near my different animal's pens so things are handy... also to avoid the "now where did I use that last?" syndrome. If you can afford to buy an extra rake/shovel whatever it will save lots of aggravation in the future.

Sounds like last year's Christmas list for me, except it was horse stuff!

 

[Secuono]

Tunnels...I would make them above ground so rain doesn't drown anyone. Place all this stuff on a slight hill. Cut a large plastic tube lengthwise in half[makes a C shape] and place the open side down. Use a rubbermaid tub upside down w/2 holes on either side for big dens. Once all the tunnels and dens are connected, cover it all w/dirt. Make a large mound of dirt over the whole thing. Thus no water going in, its 'under ground', cool and you can plant grass on the mound to hold the dirt together before you move the rabbits in. =D
Though, if you let them nest in the dens, you will have to have them near an opening so you can easily reach in and get w/e you need w/o digging it all up.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

That sounds cool, C&B! What a clever plan.

 

[ohiogoatgirl]

that is a good idea chickiesnbunnies. i had a plan drawn out a few years back for a complete "no work" colony with similar type dens or nests as you explained.
the floor of the barn is on a slight slope. well i plan to have tunnels and play areas in the colony as well as nests that i'm going to build.

just did some clean up in the barn. i dont think i will take out the wall and expand. instead i will just take the gate down. that way its like two rooms and i dont have to take down the wall. working on pics now...

__________ Wed Dec 07, 2011 2:49 pm __________

can't seem to load up the pics here... this link should take you to the pics.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set ... 208a40cc5e<br /><br />__________ Thu Dec 08, 2011 1:45 pm __________<br /><br />okay so the colony will be about 130 sq ft. i have another post with other questions on size...
the floor is dirt and i will be covering it and up the walls a bit with fencing. bedding will be hay, mostly b/c we make our own hay so its there and free other than my work during the summer.
i will likely be making some sort of movable fence system to let them graze outside in the summer. my dad wants to have a permanent outside run for them... but i am finding too many downsides to that. i mean i would have to buy fence to put up and fence to put on the ground... fence aint cheap! next spring, summer, and fall i will have to do plenty of harvesting and storing for them. i will be feeding grain/pellets (not sure yet) and depending on how the garden goes next year, maybe some of my own grains. but i would really like to do as natural as a diet with them as is possible. and with 250 acres there really isnt a good reason not to at least try! but i am a very independent person... hee hee.