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Can you suggest something to stop water freezing.

silverfox

silverfox

Warren Scout
I have to change my rabbits water every day, due to the cold freezing the bottles. I am worried that the water is too cold for them especially at night when I am not there. I have looked at pets at home and they want £10 each for a bottle snug which is beyond expensive especially as I need 4 of them. My rabbits was moved into a shelter that was built for them with tarpaulin on the front to stop rain and wind getting to them, they are now a lot warmer but the bottles are still freezing.

Would old socks do?
 
Tape some bubble wrap round them and cover that with a hanky or old flannel to stop them nibbling the plastic. :)
 
You can achieve a similar effect to the bottle snugs at home, with some old socks - could put tin foil on the bottle before the sock to trap the heat inside I think. Try to use black socks if you can - black is supposed to absorb energy better/be warmer (as it absorbs all the colours from light rather than reflecting some black like coloured socks). Several layers are good, insulation is partly about having air to trap heat between layers too. Can achieve this with bubblewrap between the socks too :)
 
An old sock should help but probably wont stop them freezing completely. Do you have any polystyrene packing or bubblewrap lying around? Those both make very good insulators and putting them around the bottle and then a sock on top might be good enough :)

I've also wondered about putting something like hot marbles inside the water bottle before you put the top on. Obviously they shouldn't be hot enough to melt the plastic but I'm wondering if it would slowly release heat into the water. Don't know if it's safe to heat marbles though.
 
Luckily enough I have some bubble wrap, which was with one of the xmas presents so I can use that. My sons have loads of old socks, I need to make sure the're washed first as my youngest always tells me he likes his socks crusty. (he is 8 and a bit :shock:disgusting) I will also think about using foil between layers. Thanks for the advice.
 
I've just had this problem and the annoying thing I find is the bit that freezes solid (the spout) can't be protected as the bunnies just chew any insulation off. I hang their bottles on the inside of their kennel now and voila, no freezing. If they're in a hutch, can you not hang the bottle in their bed compartment which hopefully stays frost free. I just used a hook screwed into the wood and wrapped some wire round to make a cage for the bottle to rest in.
 
TermiteFrank said:
I've just had this problem and the annoying thing I find is the bit that freezes solid (the spout) can't be protected as the bunnies just chew any insulation off. I hang their bottles on the inside of their kennel now and voila, no freezing. If they're in a hutch, can you not hang the bottle in their bed compartment which hopefully stays frost free. I just used a hook screwed into the wood and wrapped some wire round to make a cage for the bottle to rest in.
Click to expand...

Going on from this, you could hang a hay rack on the inside of door - stick something solid like a piece of card at the back to protect it from the wind, pop your bottle in, and pack in hay either side of the bottle - that'll act as insulation as well as holding the bottle in place. You could pop it in the corner so it has one side (two if you count the cardboard barrier) shielding it from the wind
 
I wrap bubble wrap round our bottles, then an old sock over the top and then a piece of cardboard with a hole for the bottle spout that then goes between the mesh and the bottle to stop naughty bunnies chewing the sock/bubble wrap. Its worked well for us so far :)
 
Can you suggest anything to stop water bottles freezing.

You could try putting a tiny drop of Olive Oil in the water bottle :)your bun won,t be able to taste it and it WILL stop it freezing:)
 
change the water just before you go to bed, then change the water first thing in the morning. That way, in a worst case scenario that the water is frozen, it's only be 4 - 6 hr., it's still not good, but not the end of the world
 
Freezing Water?

I use a product called Vyderphor this is a four in one disinfectant, not only does it help to stop the water from freezing, it also stop the bottles from going green in the summer. It keeps the water fresh and clean. it can also if used stronger be used for cage and aerial disinfecting as well as scrubbing out food dishes and litter trays, i find it very good for getting rid of buck wee :cry::cry:from up the walls of cages.
http://www.deemillen.co.uk/product_...d=260&osCsid=d4370196a3fc06df4c6599e08550e3d4

An idea is to have two bottles on the go, one on the cage with a bottle cover on, the other indoors, when you go out to check bunnies you swap the bottles over, the rabbits will drink almost straight away because the water will be at room temperature, which they enjoy, and they will soon learn that when it is cold, mummy or daddy will swap bottles.:p:p
 
Rabbit bottles freezing

I have eleven rabbits that live in hutches outside. To prevent water freezin in the bottles I hang them inside. I use a plastic tie to secure the bottle around the lid and the hanger that comes with the bottle secures the top. Even though I know the bottles dont freeze I still make two checks daily in freezing conditions. I also do not remove the lower layer of bedding during the winter but place lots of dry hay twice a week on top. This warms the top bedding and bunny stays cosy. I cover the wire netting at the door with clear plastic bought at the garden centre by stapling it to the wood. The outside of the hutches are covered with stapled on tarpauling and have a curtain of tarpaulin at the front. This curtain is weighted with stapled lengths of one by two wood at the bottom to prevent the wind lifting it. The hutches are raised from the floor and the bunnies get extra food as they need it to keep warm. I have kept rabbits for twenty years and never lost one to the cold. Hope this helps. Etta:wave:
 
My parents read that you can put glycerin in the bottles. I've not tried it myself but was wondering if anyone else has.
 
Suzanne said:
My parents read that you can put glycerin in the bottles. I've not tried it myself but was wondering if anyone else has.
Click to expand...

I've heard this as well but not tried it/don't know if it's suitable for bunnies? At the moment I'm just carrying on with checking bottles on a regular basis.
 
I think the glycerine tip was on this years rabbit welfare winter tip sheet but I've not tried it either.
 
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