Just moved the playhouse onto concrete ready for winter - I have some questions

Hi All

Yesterday I moved Max and Rubys playhouse to the side of the house as its sheltered by our house and next doors wall.Its also on the concrete as I don't think it will be suitable for the rabbits to be on the grass during the winter as I thought they would constantly be sitting out on wet grass.They have 24 hour access to the run as there is a cat flap and as their set up is now at the side of the house I can keep an eye on them in the evening as the kitchen window looks directly onto the playhouse.Anyway I'll get to the point -

-I'm looking for ways to cover the run as the buns seem to go out in all weathers .Should I be covering the run over at night anyway as I remember reading somewhere that if a fox approaches the run the shock of seeing a fox could kill the rabbits ?

-This is also the first year that the rabbits will stay out all winter as other years I have always worried about them getting too cold and ending bringing them inside which they hated .I have a snugglepad or whatever they are called and will be buying another on today so they have one each,I have put lots of hay in the playhouse for them to snuggle into and have put the perspex windows back on to cut out the drafts.What will keep them warmer straw or hay ? Will they have the sense to go in the playhouse in the warm as last night they were still in the run at midnight !

and finally they are usually very good with their litter trays but this morning when I went out to give them their breakfast they had used their litter tray but also randomly pooped all over the run - are they just marking their new territory :roll:?

-I'm looking for ways to cover the run as the buns seem to go out in all weathers .Should I be covering the run over at night anyway as I remember reading somewhere that if a fox approaches the run the shock of seeing a fox could kill the rabbits ?

It's true that fear can be enough to kill a rabbit. Ideally, I would cover the run over but you can also add some 'boltholes' inside the run for the rabbits to feel safe in (tunnels, boxes etc) as they will head for those if they feel threatened.

-This is also the first year that the rabbits will stay out all winter as other years I have always worried about them getting too cold and ending bringing them inside which they hated .I have a snugglepad or whatever they are called and will be buying another on today so they have one each,I have put lots of hay in the playhouse for them to snuggle into and have put the perspex windows back on to cut out the drafts.What will keep them warmer straw or hay ? Will they have the sense to go in the playhouse in the warm as last night they were still in the run at midnight !

I've read that straw is more insulating than hay, but I would cover with a layer of hay as they will most likely want to munch at the same time. (I've always just used hay though.) You could stuff a box with hay/straw leaving them some room to snuggle into it. If it gets really cold then they will have the sense to move somewhere warm; it's quite normal for them to want to sit in the run though and that's where Alfie and Bubbles spend most of their time, even in the really cold weather. :roll::lol:

and finally they are usually very good with their litter trays but this morning when I went out to give them their breakfast they had used their litter tray but also randomly pooped all over the run - are they just marking their new territory :roll:?

Yep, that sounds like territory marking and should settle soon. :thumb:

Have a look at my sticky thread：）ｐｏｓｔ　２５．　http://forums.rabbitrehome.org.uk/s...door-Housing&p=5046921&viewfull=1#post5046921

thanks all thats very helpful,the rabbits do have a wooden box in the run and a tunnel.I also have another wooden box in the playhouse which is filled with hay if they want to cosy up when it gets cold.I havn't used my snugglesafes yet - at what point does everyone start using theirs - when it starts freezing at night ?