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Hutch sizes

*lily*

Wise Old Thumper
Just having a look on Ebay and I would say that 95%+ of the hutches for sale are well below even the minimum RSPCA recommended size.

4 and 5ft hutches are described as massive and some on there are truly awful, nothing more than a box prison :(

When will people realise how much space a rabbit needs and deserves? It makes me feel so helpless that rabbits are still kept in such horrible housing and I can't do a thing about it on a mass scale :cry:
 
It's awful isn't it :( That's why we only sell 6ft hutches. There is a pet shop near us that had some miniscule double hutches for sale yesterday they were just about 3 ft long and they wanted £119 for them as a clearance price!!!!
 
I just find it so upsetting. On a sunny summers day I keep thinking about all the rabbits sitting boiling hot in those little boxes, never getting to graze on the grass or run around :(

It just makes you feel so helpless.
 
So sad isnt it. I have just been to pick chuckles up and bring him home ready for rehoming and Shawn took one lok at the hutch and said 'thats awful how long has he been living in that' scarily I have seen much smaller hutches for sale
 
I just find it so upsetting. On a sunny summers day I keep thinking about all the rabbits sitting boiling hot in those little boxes, never getting to graze on the grass or run around :(

It just makes you feel so helpless.

It does make you feel helpless, but even if you can only help one rabbit to have a better life then that is something good.

If ever I get feeling like that I remember my old school promise (many years ago, but it still makes me feel better about myself!)

I am only one, but I am one;
I cannot do much, but I can do something;
What I can do, that I ought to do;
What I ought to do, that, by God's help, I will do.


I can't take in more rabbits because I don't have the money, but I help various rabbit charities, even if its just with a few pounds occassionally. When my circumstances are better I will be able to do more, but in the meantime I remind myself that at least I am doing something.

Be positive about what you do do, and feel proud of yourself that you care:love:
 
I recently had to search for a new cage for my dwarf, I managed to get a 4 ft double hutch off ebay. because the floor was slightly damaged I got it at £67 instead of £120. Even thou it was almost 8ft of floor space the height is only just suitable for my boy. All that money and you still couldn't house 2 medium rabbits in it. I personally am attaching a run too that will make the total floor space 20.5 sq ft. Plus he gets supervised grazing out the front garden and sofa time in the house. He is very small due to his breeding and slow developement (2lb) so I could technically keep 3 buns his size in the hutch or 1 other normal sized dwarf breed bun.

But to the average bun owner who might have some ignorance to believe: If the shops sell it it must be suitable - total misleading disaster. some people mean to do well by their buns but end up robbed by extortionately priced too small hutches which are often sold by trusted petshop employees and by the time they realise its too late...

on the other hand some people just dont care, the cheaper option is the easier one.
 
I recently had to search for a new cage for my dwarf, I managed to get a 4 ft double hutch off ebay. because the floor was slightly damaged I got it at £67 instead of £120. Even thou it was almost 8ft of floor space the height is only just suitable for my boy. All that money and you still couldn't house 2 medium rabbits in it. I personally am attaching a run too that will make the total floor space 20.5 sq ft. Plus he gets supervised grazing out the front garden and sofa time in the house. He is very small due to his breeding and slow developement (2lb) so I could technically keep 3 buns his size in the hutch or 1 other normal sized dwarf breed bun.

But to the average bun owner who might have some ignorance to believe: If the shops sell it it must be suitable - total misleading disaster. some people mean to do well by their buns but end up robbed by extortionately priced too small hutches which are often sold by trusted petshop employees and by the time they realise its too late...

on the other hand some people just dont care, the cheaper option is the easier one.

:? The RSPCA minimum for hutch sizes is 6x2x2, and the total area (hutch and run) should be at least 36 sq ft
 
ok maybe not 3, ill just have to make the run bigger if needed. I did look for a bigger hutch but cannot afford nearly £200. I can afford to get him the everyday best (food, hay etc) but £200 from nowhere when finding a job is next to impossible is not an easy task. not considering the amount he cost me in vet bills which were not due to inadequate care. I had him investigated thoroughly for his weight loss which cost a bomb, and I sold my luxuries and some necessities to pay those bills to find out the only method that worked was to make sure he was not ever lonley, a high fat diet and a restriction of exercise. Only after months of this has he returned to full health and can enjoy more exercise. I found the same to be true in other dwarfs with the same problems.. and considering the buddy I am getting him has the same problem....

I was merely highlighting the fact of how difficult it can be to find and pay for a decently sized hutch, especially since not everybody can use the net and are reliant upon petshops...

My maths is not brilliant so my measurements could be a little off..
 
I was merely highlighting the fact of how difficult it can be to find and pay for a decently sized hutch, especially since not everybody can use the net and are reliant upon petshops...

This is so true. I was talking in my local pet shop last year about rescue requirements for adopting and when I started spouting about 6ft hutches they quickly responded, "You'll be hard pressed to find a 6ft hutch!" Hard pressed yes, but if you know you want it and have the means to find it they are out there and people in pet shops (like the one I'm talking about) should make more effort to sell them.... or at least 5ft ones. I'm ashamed to say my first rabbit started out in a 3ft 2 tier hutch because the shop that sold her to me said it was 'more than adequate' :evil: It was nowhere near adequate.

What shocks (or at least used to shock) me most about the ads on places like ebay - hardly any of them give you the sizes of the hutch they are selling - a picture seems to be adequate, surely most people buying ask "but how big?", don't they - surely they care how big? :shock:
 
I bought a 4ft x 2ft hutch for my rabbit when I first got him. I just look at him in it now and can tell its too small! don't know how people can live with themselves leaving their rabbit in a hutch like that. but if a petshop sells it to you and tells you its suitable why would you doubt it?

I found it cheaper to just buy a big run, and the guineas are getting the hutch, but mine are indoor rabbits so they won't get cold, and they love to be out on display and see what's going on :). If I was keeping them outside, by the looks of things its just cheaper to get a shed!

Is that RSPCA guideline for 2 rabbits? or is that 36 sq feet per rabbit?
 
This is so true. I was talking in my local pet shop last year about rescue requirements for adopting and when I started spouting about 6ft hutches they quickly responded, "You'll be hard pressed to find a 6ft hutch!" Hard pressed yes, but if you know you want it and have the means to find it they are out there and people in pet shops (like the one I'm talking about) should make more effort to sell them.... or at least 5ft ones. I'm ashamed to say my first rabbit started out in a 3ft 2 tier hutch because the shop that sold her to me said it was 'more than adequate' :evil: It was nowhere near adequate.

What shocks (or at least used to shock) me most about the ads on places like ebay - hardly any of them give you the sizes of the hutch they are selling - a picture seems to be adequate, surely most people buying ask "but how big?", don't they - surely they care how big? :shock:

yeah, I don't think I've ever seen a 6ft hutch apart from online. I think it needs to start in the pet shops to filter down to the majority of owners. On Amazon people are selling 'XXL indoor cages' that are 3ft x 1ft :evil:
 
good question - I know they say minimum but I just read the government codes of practice and it says:

The living area should be as large as possible. At least:
• big enough for your rabbit to lie down and stretch out comfortably
in all directions;
be high enough for it to stand up on its back legs without its ears touching
the top; and
• be long enough so that it can move around, feed and drink. As a guide,
your rabbit should be able to take three hops from one end to another
as a minimum.

My bun can do all this and more and gets more exercise climbing about indoors and runs full pelt around the front garden. I do keep a strict check on his weight tho and restrict exercise fraction by fraction if his weigh starts to drop.

he bunnyips, displays natural behaviour and is healthy. Btw he can take 6 full hops across the lengh.

Can the average owner afford £200 a hutch ? I cannot but I still own a happy healthy rabbit and if you dont believe me feel free to come look:wave:
 
I agree with you £200 is a lot of money - mainly because you are hardly getting anything for it!! i think the RSPCA guidelines and the actual legalities differ? They must do, surely, or pet shops wouldnt be able to sell these tiny hutches?

I believe you :) you know your own rabbit, and you wouldnt be on here if you didn't care!

I'm checking out that other link now, think it's a great idea
 
Can the average owner afford £200 a hutch ? I cannot but I still own a happy healthy rabbit and if you dont believe me feel free to come look:wave:

I got a 6ft hutch about a month ago for £99.95 (including delivery). No run or anything attached so it needs adding to. I think some of the 3ft and 4ft hutches I've seen are about £70 so for the average new bunny owner setting their sights at something a bit bigger shouldn't be that unrealisic.

Also it would be really easy to have a vet bill of a rabbit of £200 so I worry that if someone can't afford to buy the animal a home for that (the main big outlay) then I'd worry about them finding money for vets bills also, but then rabbits are generally considered cheap pets so most people getting a rabbit wouldn't be expecting big vets bills and be unprepared for it (that was me and my first bunny who needed dentals every 12 weeks!!).
 
I got a 6ft hutch about a month ago for £99.95 (including delivery). No run or anything attached so it needs adding to. I think some of the 3ft and 4ft hutches I've seen are about £70 so for the average new bunny owner setting their sights at something a bit bigger shouldn't be that unrealisic.

Also it would be really easy to have a vet bill of a rabbit of £200 so I worry that if someone can't afford to buy the animal a home for that (the main big outlay) then I'd worry about them finding money for vets bills also, but then rabbits are generally considered cheap pets so most people getting a rabbit wouldn't be expecting big vets bills and be unprepared for it (that was me and my first bunny who needed dentals every 12 weeks!!).

You are right, people do think rabbits are cheap pets. I do agree with you here, I hate seeing people procrastinate over going to the vets because its going to be expensive, money would be no object for me when it comes to health. But when you think about the materials involved and the tiny square footage, the money for a hutch is way too much :) I think what I'm trying to say is that you could spend £200 on your rabbit and get him so much more than a tiny box to live in.

I spent ages ringing round vets and pricing things before I committed to buying my rabbit, but I think the way pet shops display and describe them makes them seem like a cheap child's pet. I also found that even though I did heaps of research I was looking in the wrong places and assuming pet shop workers were experts. I had no knowledge of this site at the time, and a lot of books that are easy to get hold of have incorrect information in them. I hope it doesnt sound like I'm arguing with you because I completely agree with you, just saying that hutches are a rip off :lol::) I love the shed set ups on here and the inventive indoor ones, I'd much rather invest in something like that (and I have :))
 
It is horrible, but a lot of people don't mean to be cruel, they just don't understand :( My poor bunny lived in a 3.5ft for most of her life (which yes, I am very ashamed to admit now), because I didn't know any better. I was told it was a good size for a bunny and never thought there was any reason to doubt a pet shop.

I think more shops should be educated, and more people, so they know what is more suitable. Since joining forums, I have had my eyes wide open, and now know much better. I see fault in most of my 'friends' pets accomodation.

My girls now have a 6ft double hutch, and a 7ft run. They will also soon have full run of the shed as well. Even now I feel that is small for them and feel awful my last bunny was in such a small space :(
 
I wonder if theres a good way of banning the sale of all undersized hutches in shops? and also it would be a good idea to make suggestions on how these rubbish hutches can be recycled. I know someone who adapted several 4ft hutches to make a quadro hutch for mini lops.....

my bun just gave me a thorough face face and is now grooming my neck...
turns me to jello.. hes trying to tell me something, time to go lol
 
ok maybe not 3, ill just have to make the run bigger if needed. I did look for a bigger hutch but cannot afford nearly £200. I can afford to get him the everyday best (food, hay etc) but £200 from nowhere when finding a job is next to impossible is not an easy task. not considering the amount he cost me in vet bills which were not due to inadequate care. I had him investigated thoroughly for his weight loss which cost a bomb, and I sold my luxuries and some necessities to pay those bills to find out the only method that worked was to make sure he was not ever lonley, a high fat diet and a restriction of exercise. Only after months of this has he returned to full health and can enjoy more exercise. I found the same to be true in other dwarfs with the same problems.. and considering the buddy I am getting him has the same problem....

I was merely highlighting the fact of how difficult it can be to find and pay for a decently sized hutch, especially since not everybody can use the net and are reliant upon petshops...

My maths is not brilliant so my measurements could be a little off..

If you have an RSPCA centre nearby, then they will normally sell you a 6x2x2 hutch for about £100 :wave:
 
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