What Do I Need Indoors?

Am planning on house buns in few weeks time. Have just purchased an extra large dog crate and am in the process of ordering a playpen from vagavalley.co.uk. I want to know, other than toys, what other equipment I need and where do I put it, i.e. what goes on the floor of the dog crate, do you use hay/straw in the bottom or something else, what will they sleep in? Can anyone posst some pics of their house bun set up, particularly if you are using a dog crate - so I can get some ideas.

I have stuck lino tiles to the bottom of my dog crate to make it easier to clean. They have hay in a large under bed storage box lined with newspaper as they wee in in. I did give them blankets and soft dog bed but Snowdrop just uses them as a toilet so I dont bother anymore.

My two are free range in the dining room.

Flooring - there is vinyl with a textured surface (so their paws grip; Muppet doesnt like slippery floors, wont go on them at all).

Bedding - they each have a piece of profleece (like vet bed) which they both like. Sadly Sooty does tend to wee on them (especially Muppet's!) although Muppet never does. I'm hoping she'll give up eventually, but in the meantime I expect to wash one piece every other day. Muppet used to have a soft dog bed but that's put away until Sooty stops wee-ing in his bedding! I'm sure he misses it though, poor soul

Litter tray - I recommend a decent sized one for their comfort. Muppet's a small rabbit but even he never looked comfortable in the standard corner one I started out with. I have one normal-but-deepish cat litter tray and one rectangular hi-back/low front small pet litter tray. I line them with newspaper (easier to clean/empty out then) and use paper litter [from Tesco] and put some hay in one corner.

Hay dispenser - as well as some hay in each of the litter trays, I have another one that only has hay in for general eating. This is just for my sanity really, to reduce the amount of hay that gets tracked everywhere!

Other equipment - water bottle or bowl or both. And finally somewhere to store all the food, the hay, the litter, the newspapers, the toys that arent currently in use... :lol:

:wave: As Gizmo comes in at night only usually, I have a playpen (6 sides connects with rods from PAH, with a large rectangle (cage base) as his litter/hay tray on one side and blankets fleece pet ones, rabbit cushion, water bottle and food on the other side. This is all on top of a huge tarpaulin which I peg about 6 inches up on the sides (which stops any drafts aswell as he is near the french doors) of the pen and it is waterproof as we have oak flooring underneath. However he is really clean and only ever goes in his tray on one side so the edible hay / timothy hay I pile up on the other side for him to nibble while he tiddles, I clean this out everyday. He does free range for at least an hour in the lounge/diner at night before sleepy time and is usually quite happy to lounge as he runs around outside for a couple of hours before he comes in. I do pop a net curtain/voil across the top when I go to bed though as he can jump out of it I expect although he hasn't I like to be safe going to bed. I am interested in this though as I feel that I could do with a more permanent solution myself

i use straw & hay for bottom of our dog cage & has her removable toilet tray in there with foods/water & toys inside & outside the cage, she sleeps & eatsin there & has the run of the bungalow during the day/evening
i can go to bed feeling she is safely tucked up in bed & not causing mischief
here is Shadows set up, looks small on here but its more than adequate for her

:wave: I think I am gonna get a big dog cage and then he can have the play pen aswell as a little extension to it while he is not free ranging around I am here and for security I can shut the door which will be less hassle than pegging a voile and netting round the top of the play pen when I am going out in the evenings/going to bed. I like the lino idea aswell, much better/tidier than the tarpaulin - although you can't really see it. Any suggestions on good dog cages much appreciated..

VickiP said:

:wave: I think I am gonna get a big dog cage and then he can have the play pen aswell as a little extension to it while he is not free ranging around I am here and for security I can shut the door which will be less hassle than pegging a voile and netting round the top of the play pen when I am going out in the evenings/going to bed. I like the lino idea aswell, much better/tidier than the tarpaulin - although you can't really see it. Any suggestions on good dog cages much appreciated..

Click to expand...

I have just bought one from ebay - an extra large one (alsatian size) - private auction - got for £39 - there are loads on there though from about £19 upwards. Just search dog crates or cages.

I also have the six sided playpen from PAH (think its called the Park 6) and this is an ideal size for my two buns and a brill size for the price compared to buying a cage. I have a strip of lino underneath it so they cant chew the carpet when they are unsupervised! They also have litter trays and carpet cut offs to lie on (these will be replaced with vetbed when I have the money!). I also have a big wooden box with a lift off lid for them to hide in when they are in the huff! Hope that helps! I personally dont think you will need the dog crate if you have the pen as there is ample room but of course its your preference xx

Oh and just to add, the playpen is also useful as it can be divided off into two for when you are bonding buns (as I am now), which means I didnt have to fork out for an extra cage and they can see/touch through the bars!

Good ideas, I have 2 playpens (did have 2 buns)- I was thinking about the dog cage with the play pen at the front of it as an extension, the other one I use now to put outside the shed door and round as an extension/alternative to the fixed run.

I must admit I don't have a box for him to go in (indoors) I put a voile over the top of one half and a net (that came with the playpen) on the other half he seems to stretch out mostly in there anyway but, I am gonna get my OH on it as he is a chippie, thinking about getting a lady friend so with the cage + the play pen at the front I could put a nice big box in the playpen part.