If you would like to create a larger, more flexible living area for your pet rabbit than the sizes typically found with a rabbit hutch or rabbit cage, then consider using portable exercise pens made for puppies and dogs. These pens are wire panels that link together in different configurations to form an exercise area for a small dog or puppy, but are perfect for your bunny. This layout offers plenty of living space to run, play, hop, eat, rest and to be a bunny! The Rabbit Haven provides the following: "Portable wire exercise pens are the most versatile, the easiest to clean, and the best way to give your rabbit what they need. Space, toys and a clean environment of their own while living inside with you! For those who want a quick housing solution without spending a lot of time and money, the wire pen arrangement (X-pens also called puppy corrals) gives you the best housing for your money and helps the rabbit feel at home in their own space. Exercise pens allow for the bunny to see what is going on around them. This gives a feeling of knowing what's happening and of being included in the household activities. Exercise pens are made up of eight heavy-gauge wire "panels", all connected together, so that they can be stretched out and shaped into a square, rectangle, octagon, or whatever shape you want. Each panel is 24" wide. The total space when panels are made into a square is 4' x 4', or 16 square feet (for a bonded pair, we recommend two pens and a space not less than 4' x 6'). When purchasing the pens, you can choose from these heights: 24", 30", 36", 42". We recommend a 30" height, 36" for jumpers. One of the eight panels acts as a swinging door when opened, and the pen is secured shut with large dog leash clips that come with the panels. Note: the wire slats of the pen must be close enough together so that a tiny rabbit cannot walk through! When not in use, the panels fold up like an accordion and can be easily stored in a closet. They can also be easily transported by car to another location. For a larger space, many people choose a corner of a room, using the two corner walls as walls of the pen. This makes an even bigger space for the rabbit, since you have all eight panels to complete just two sides of the pen." Read the full article: Sweet Home for Bunny: X-Pens and Other Housing Options Free Shipping on Rabbit Food & Supplies at BuyRabbitHutch.com bit.ly/BuyRabbitHutch To fully enjoy the relationship with your pet rabbit, it is best to keep your bunny indoors and to intereact on a daily basis. The time you spend playing, petting and grooming your bunny will pay off in a more pleasurable relationship for all. If you have the space to have a rabbit hutch indoors, then that will give your bunny plenty of personal space. If not, then choosing a rabbit cage, which I prefer to call a rabbit home, is a great alternative. You can also use a puppy training crate, providing it has a design that is both safe and workable for your pet rabbit. To choose the right rabbit home (cage), wikiHow offers the following suggestions: "Get an indoor rabbit cage. Indoor rabbit cages can often be restrictive for your rabbit. Make sure you have enough space in the cage for your rabbit. You should also be able to leave the cage open so he can get plenty of exercise. Give your rabbit enough space in his cage. There needs to be enough room for him to move around in the cage and lie down. The minimum size is three hops long and two hops wide. Of course, the bigger the cage, the better it will be for your rabbit. Make sure your rabbit has space for food, water, a litter box, and toys. He will need things to do and to eat and drink in his cage. Try a cage with a front door for your rabbit. Purchase a cage that opens either from the inside and/or outside. Cages with doors that open out enable your rabbit to come and go when he wants, whereas doors that only push in mean you have to get the rabbit out of the cage yourself. Make sure your cage has protection for the rabbit’s feet. Cage flooring can injure the rabbit’s feet, so provide soft material that can cover the cage flooring, such as an old blanket or towel." Read the rest of their informative rabbit care article: How To Choose A Rabbit Cage Rabbits benefit from exercise both mentally and physically. You must make sure that your pet rabbit has some free time out of her cage so she can run and jump and be a rabbit! It is important to make sure that your bunny is safe from harm or injury during this time, whether it be inside or outside. There are a number of different rabbit runs that you can purchase or build, but it is important that they are designed well to provide happy and protected play time! The Rabbit House provides the following: “The minimum recommended rabbit run size is 8' x 4', this is a minimum though and your rabbit will certainly appreciate being provided a larger area. The rabbit run should be tall enough for your rabbit to stand upright on its back legs, see size guide. Ideally your rabbit should have permanent access to the run by joining it to/combining it with their living quarters but when this is not possible a minimum of 4–6 hours per day is recommended. Rabbit are expert diggers, so rabbit runs should be stood on something to prevent rabbits digging out, such as paving slabs or mesh buried into the grass under the run. Outdoor rabbit runs should always have a roof. A rabbit will jump and climb 3–4' — even higher if there is something to jump from like a box. A roof is not only to stop your rabbit escaping but also prevent predators getting in. A cat or fox (foxes are active even in urban areas) can easily clear 6'. Make sure the roof is firmly secured and cannot be blown off by strong winds. The wire on the run is your rabbit’s protection so it is important that you use strong mesh, like weld mesh, and it is attached firmly to the frame. The mesh should be small enough to prevent your rabbit putting its head through and predators putting their paws through. If the run is large or not attached to your rabbits sleeping accommodation then provide a box as shelter and a secure place to retreat to if your rabbit is frightened.” Read the full article: The Rabbit Run Free Shipping on Rabbit Food & Supplies at BuyRabbitHutch.com bit.ly/BuyRabbitHutch If you would like to create a larger, more flexible living area for your pet rabbit than the sizes typically found with a rabbit hutch or rabbit cage, then consider using portable exercise pens made for puppies and dogs. These pens are wire panels that link together in different configurations to form an exercise area for a small dog or puppy, but are perfect for your bunny. This layout offers plenty of living space to run, play, hop, eat, rest and to be a bunny! The Rabbit Haven provides the following: "Portable wire exercise pens are the most versatile, the easiest to clean, and the best way to give your rabbit what they need. Space, toys and a clean environment of their own while living inside with you! For those who want a quick housing solution without spending a lot of time and money, the wire pen arrangement (X-pens also called puppy corrals) gives you the best housing for your money and helps the rabbit feel at home in their own space. Exercise pens allow for the bunny to see what is going on around them. This gives a feeling of knowing what's happening and of being included in the household activities. Exercise pens are made up of eight heavy-gauge wire "panels", all connected together, so that they can be stretched out and shaped into a square, rectangle, octagon, or whatever shape you want. Each panel is 24" wide. The total space when panels are made into a square is 4' x 4', or 16 square feet (for a bonded pair, we recommend two pens and a space not less than 4' x 6'). When purchasing the pens, you can choose from these heights: 24", 30", 36", 42". We recommend a 30" height, 36" for jumpers. One of the eight panels acts as a swinging door when opened, and the pen is secured shut with large dog leash clips that come with the panels. Note: the wire slats of the pen must be close enough together so that a tiny rabbit cannot walk through! When not in use, the panels fold up like an accordion and can be easily stored in a closet. They can also be easily transported by car to another location. For a larger space, many people choose a corner of a room, using the two corner walls as walls of the pen. This makes an even bigger space for the rabbit, since you have all eight panels to complete just two sides of the pen." Read the full article: Sweet Home for Bunny: X-Pens and Other Housing Options Free Shipping on Rabbit Food & Supplies at BuyRabbitHutch.com bit.ly/BuyRabbitHutch To fully enjoy the relationship with your pet rabbit, it is best to keep your bunny indoors and to intereact on a daily basis. The time you spend playing, petting and grooming your bunny will pay off in a more pleasurable relationship for all. If you have the space to have a rabbit hutch indoors, then that will give your bunny plenty of personal space. If not, then choosing a rabbit cage, which I prefer to call a rabbit home, is a great alternative. You can also use a puppy training crate, providing it has a design that is both safe and workable for your pet rabbit. To choose the right rabbit home (cage), wikiHow offers the following suggestions: "Get an indoor rabbit cage. Indoor rabbit cages can often be restrictive for your rabbit. Make sure you have enough space in the cage for your rabbit. You should also be able to leave the cage open so he can get plenty of exercise. Give your rabbit enough space in his cage. There needs to be enough room for him to move around in the cage and lie down. The minimum size is three hops long and two hops wide. Of course, the bigger the cage, the better it will be for your rabbit. Make sure your rabbit has space for food, water, a litter box, and toys. He will need things to do and to eat and drink in his cage. Try a cage with a front door for your rabbit. Purchase a cage that opens either from the inside and/or outside. Cages with doors that open out enable your rabbit to come and go when he wants, whereas doors that only push in mean you have to get the rabbit out of the cage yourself. Make sure your cage has protection for the rabbit’s feet. Cage flooring can injure the rabbit’s feet, so provide soft material that can cover the cage flooring, such as an old blanket or towel." Read the rest of their informative rabbit care article: How To Choose A Rabbit Cage Free Shipping on Rabbit Food & Supplies at BuyRabbitHutch.com As a proud pet parent of a pet rabbit, you will want to provide the best quality housing for your bunny that you can. We always encourage people to think of rabbits as an indoor pet, to provide them with a higher degree of safety and protection, plus to provide for more family interaction. Rabbit hutches work great in a den, bedroom, or in the basement or garage, which are better than outside. No matter where you place your rabbit hutch, The Rabbit House offers a few tips on choosing or building the right one for your pet rabbit:
"Many rabbit hutches have doors that are secured with a twisting section of wood. Unfortunately, this can easily become loose or a fox (or other predator) scratching at the door can open it. This style of hutch door catch should be replaced with proper slide bolts and in some cases with the addition of a padlock too. These can also be handy for preventing young children opening the hutch unsupervised. Another potential problem area can be the mesh sections of the hutch - this should be securely fastened and preferably weld mesh rather than chicken wire. You can attach mesh using U-shaped nails available from DIY stores. Mesh that has small holes (under half an inch) is best - larger diameters can allow cats (or other animals) to put their paws inside and claw at the rabbit. Rabbit hutches need to be raised of the ground to protect them from rising damp. If your rabbit hutch doesn't already have legs then you can make your own or some hutch manufacturers also sell separate legs. Another alternative are castors (wheels) designed for cabinets which should be available from your local DIY store. A lower tech solution is a brick at each corner. Where possible avoid hutches with thin plywood walls - these might be slightly cheaper but will need replacing much sooner than a strongly built tongue and groove hutch. Check the walls regularly for water stains and wear. The protective stain/varnish will need maintenance approximately every 1-2 years. Hutches should not be all wire; they must have an enclosed box/bed area for your rabbit hide in when frightened, feel secure when sleeping and snuggle up in cold weather. Hutches should have solid floors rather than mesh, which is bad for rabbit's feet. To make the floor easy to clean and protect it from urine, I would suggest fitting lino style floor covering. You may be able to obtain off cuts or pieces from the end of a roll cheaply by asking local kitchen/bathroom flooring suppliers. A slightly tougher alternative is vinyl safety flooring, which is used in many vet practices; it's a harder, more rigid, material and is non-slip. To fit the flooring you'll need to cut it to fit the base of the hutch and then fix it in place with either double sided tape or glue (tape is easier). To prevent your rabbit chewing or digging and lifting the lino you'll need to fit edging strips or battens where the wall meets the floor - like a skirting board. The edging will also hide any wonky bits when you didn't cut straight. There will be a variety of styles available in your local DIY store and they can be nailed into position." Read the entre article here: The Rabbit Hutch Free Shipping on Rabbit Food & Supplies at BuyRabbitHutch.com For many areas of the country this summer, we have had some pretty hot weather. As a responible pet parent, it is critical that you take steps to keep your pet rabbit cool, especially during times of high heat. But hot weather and rabbits do not mix well, so it is always best to plan ahead, take the necesssary steps and keep your bunny cool!
HopperHome.com offers the following tips in Buns In The Sun: "Made for Shade: Keep your rabbit out of the sun and have a cage in the shade. Indoor rabbits with direct sun into their cage or pen in the summer need to be protected, too. Heat passing through a window doesn't escape back out so the room heats up. If you let your rabbit run in the garden in the summer, have a shady place for it to rest. Fans: A fan that will pass a breeze by the rabbit is great and particularly a circulating fan so the breeze isn’t constant. Groucho spends his summer by his own personal fan. Don't put the rabbit's cage in front of an air conditioner and so they really "chill out!" Be sure to bunny proof the cords! Less Fur: On long-haired rabbits – give them a "hare" cut for the summer. Also, brush hair out of a bunny’s coat so there isn’t extra. After all, that is a fur coat your rabbit is wearing in the summer. Vegging Out: Vegetables help keep rabbits hydrated so make sure they are getting plenty. Rinse the vegetables and leave the water on them. Be sure they don't get too warm and remove if they look wilted. Cool Spots: Ceramic tiles, marble tiles or brick/cement pavers in the x-pen (puppy pen)/large cage or in a favorite spot are cool areas for lounging rabbits. Water: Put a couple of ice cubes in their water crock or bowl – this will keep their water cool and the ceramic crock will be nice for them to lounge next to when it gets too warm. My rabbit, Rosemary, used to take them out to lick them on the pen floor. Mist Ears: Rabbits dissipate heat through their ears so you can mist them to help them keep cool. Don’t make them wet – just mist occasionally. Plant misters work well. A spray bottle full of water will scare a rabbit. Cool Buddy: Freeze a few 1 liter pop bottles full of water and then put a thin sock over the bottle, then get wet under the faucet and put it in the rabbit’s area. Rabbits will lay next to the bottle to cool off. I keep one or two in the freezer all summer and rotate in the rabbit pen. Rosemary and Groucho shared theirs by laying down with their bottle "ice cube" between them. Hops is pictured next to his "cold buddy." (Yes, that is a hole in the sock.) Heat Stroke: If your rabbit gets heat stroke, mist his ears. Absolutely no cold baths or showers! Call your vet immediately!" The entire article is available at Buns in the Sun Free Shipping on Rabbit Food & Supplies at BuyRabbitHutch.com Before deciding to adopt any pet rabbit, please make sure that you have a plan to let your bunny have ample, safe and supervisied time to exercise, outside her rabbit hutch or rabbit home. It is healthy for your pet rabbit to get time to run and hop, and basically - be a rabbit!
It is also importatnt that you provide your pet rabbit with a rabbit hutch or rabbit home that provides for some room to hop around inside. We always recommend that you choose a rabbit hutch or home that is as large as you can afford, and that will fit in the area that you are going to keep it. But remember that when it comes to rabbit housing, bigger is better. The Petfinder.com website suggests the following about exercise: "Many people think that rabbits don’t require much room for housing or exercise. Not so! Rabbits have powerful hind legs designed for running and jumping. They need plenty of out-of-cage exercise time, as well as a cage that allows them to move freely. The minimum recommended cage space for a single rabbit is 2’ x 2’ x 4’. Although wire-bottom cages are common, they can ulcerate a rabbit’s feet. If you have a wire cage, cover the bottom with a piece of wood or corrugated cardboard. Better yet, buy a cage with a floor. Your rabbit needs a safe exercise area with ample room to run and jump, either indoors or out. Any outdoor area should be fully enclosed by a fence. Never leave a rabbit unsupervised outdoors even for a few minutes! Cats, dogs and even predatory birds can easily get around fencing material. Also, rabbits can dig under fences and get lost. You can rabbit-proof an indoor area by covering all electrical wires and anything else your rabbit is likely to chew. Recommended exercise time for indoor rabbits is several hours per day" Learn more about pet rabbit care here Housing and Exercise Free Shipping on Rabbit Food & Supplies at BuyRabbitHutch.com Yes, like many other pets, rabbits will also shed. This is normal, but it also means that responsible pet parents need to make time each week for regular grooming sessions. Pet rabbits can get hairballs, like their feline counterparts, but for a pet rabbit, this can become more serious. Take the time each week for a gentle grooming session - your pet rabbit will enjoy and be healthier because of it!
The House Rabbit Society explains this in more detail below: "Rabbits shed every three months. Every alternate time they’ll have a light shedding that may not be very noticeable. Next they’ll have a heavy shedding that you will not be able to escape. Rabbits are fastidious groomers. They insist on being clean and tidy and will lick themselves like cats, and like cats, they can get hairballs if they ingest too much hair. Unlike cats however, rabbits cannot vomit. If hairballs are allowed to form they can become gigantic masses of tangled hair and food and will block the stomach exit, causing the rabbit to starve to death while his stomach appears to be very fat. Rabbits need to be brushed at least weekly. In addition to removing any loose hair, this weekly brushing session helps prepare them for the multiple daily brushings that they must undergo when their heavy shedding begins. Rabbits will shed in different ways. Some rabbits will take a couple of weeks or more to loose their old coat of fur. Other rabbits will be ready to get rid of their old coats all in one day and these rabbits are the ones that cannot be neglected once they start shedding. You can often remove a very large percentage of hair by just pulling it out with your hand. But, however you remove it, remove it as soon as possible or your rabbit will do it during grooming. Bald spots on rabbits are quite common when they are shedding. I have one Angora rabbit for instance, that gets totally naked except for her face and feet. But, short haired rabbits can do the same thing. If these bald spots occur from shedding, they will begin to grow back within a week or two." To read the entire article on grooming pet rabbits, clcik here: Rabbit.org Grooming Visit BuyRabbitHutch.com for more great info about Pet Rabbits! |
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