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Keeping bunnies on gravel???

bunnylover1995

Alpha Buck
Soooo, basically I'm going to be getting my girls a fabulous new hutch :D

However it will take six weeks for the turf to root properly over the wire I'll lay where their run will go :(

For those six weeks I'll have to keep them on gravel. Their run will be 8ftx4ft, and I have a 4x4ft thick picnic blanket which I use at the moment so they can cross to the grass from their hutch without running on it. The only problem is this will only cover half their run. Will they be okay for six weeks on this?

It's big smooth stone gravel, not little bits and it's not sharp (had to be child safe when we got it). This also means it's too big for them to try and eat it.

I don't want to splash out more money, another of those blankets is £30, especially as there will be about 20p left in the kitty after the 8ft double hutch plus run, wire, turf and lino... oh and paint and a custom cover :roll: ...and it's only temporary.

I can't do the turf before the hutch comes because it will be trodden on by lots of men in workboots while the hutch is sorted, lino fitted, doors put on etc. which will ruin it :roll: nor will I have a way to block it off from the dog until the old hutch is dismantled (we're using the run pannels to protect the grass but still giving it light :)

Also, do any of you have experience with buried water dishes? My girls always tip theirs over, so I was thinking of digging a hole, lining it with wire and then dropping a large dog bowl in there, with some way to get it out for cleaning (either some washing-line rope tied under the rim, or one bowl inside another). I think they just hate bowls, they take their food out to eat it off the floor :roll: unless I pack wood shavings up to the edge of it :roll: :shock:

Oh and as you can see, I listened to the RU advice, my girls will only be free-range for a few more months, and after that they won't unless there's someone to watch them, so they'll probably only free-range from about 4pm until 8pm and at weekends, when my bro is around. :lol:
 
Have you tried a large dog bowl? Once full it's almost impossible for them to tip.
 
Have you tried a large dog bowl? Once full it's almost impossible for them to tip.

I'll see if I can dig out the video evidence because it's very funny, but they can tip it, they both sit there and jump onto the edge of the bowl until it tips. :roll::roll:

It's an organised crime unit :lol::lol: ...although they don't like the soggy consequences :roll:
 
I don't think it'd harm them to stay on gravel. Are any of your buns rexes? I think that'd be the only concern - if they have previous experience of sore hocks. Otherwise I think it'd be fine.

With their water bowl, have you tried a massive bowl with 1-2 bricks in it too, as well as water? That might work. Otherwise burying it like you said should work, and as long as there's 1cm around the sides you should be able to get enough grip to lift it out. They also do shallow horse feed bowls similar to this, but more shallow: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Genuine-T...t-Trug-Tub-Horse-Feeding-Bucket-/261233255793 - one of those might work well as it gives you two handles to lift it out of the hole? I've seen ones that are maybe 5-10cm deep, unlike those which look much deeper.

EDIT: This http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Black-Rec...oods_StableAccessories_SM&hash=item3cd0404113 ! Although not sure why it's like £11, seen them for less than a fiver in my local horse place!
 
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I'll see if I can dig out the video evidence because it's very funny, but they can tip it, they both sit there and jump onto the edge of the bowl until it tips. :roll::roll:

It's an organised crime unit :lol::lol: ...although they don't like the soggy consequences :roll:

Even a ceramic one? :shock:
 
I don't think it'd harm them to stay on gravel. Are any of your buns rexes? I think that'd be the only concern - if they have previous experience of sore hocks. Otherwise I think it'd be fine.

With their water bowl, have you tried a massive bowl with 1-2 bricks in it too, as well as water? That might work. Otherwise burying it like you said should work, and as long as there's 1cm around the sides you should be able to get enough grip to lift it out. They also do shallow horse feed bowls similar to this, but more shallow: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Genuine-T...t-Trug-Tub-Horse-Feeding-Bucket-/261233255793 - one of those might work well as it gives you two handles to lift it out of the hole? I've seen ones that are maybe 5-10cm deep, unlike those which look much deeper.

EDIT: This http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Black-Rec...oods_StableAccessories_SM&hash=item3cd0404113 ! Although not sure why it's like £11, seen them for less than a fiver in my local horse place!



Thanks for the links :D

And no they've never had hock problems, and they're dutchies.

Lol, if I put bricks in their water bowls they'd just sit on them :lol::lol::lol:
 
Dont let them tell my lot :lol: 1.5L of water indoors would make an awful mess!!


You don't need to tell me, I brought their bowl in once when they came in for grooming and playtime, luckily I had loads of blankets down at the time, but we had to replace a couple of the flooring pannels, and they're solid wood :roll::roll: Now I bring their carrier in and put a bottle on it, with a bowl underneath, because they like to rub their noses on it just to make it drip... They're really not that eco-friendly haha!


But I do prefer bowls because they're easier to clean and my girls always drink more :)


I might just go for a washing-up bowl, I'd like to see them tip that :lol::lol::lol: plus they can have bath-time whenever they want lol!
 
Have you looked at coop cups? They come in different sizes (hamster to large dog). They are metal bowls that fit inside a metal hoop which either clamps /screws permanently through eg mesh, or just hooks on - depending which version you get. I use the hook on ones in the rabbit runs and put them at ground level. None of mine have managed to tip the bowls up yet, and it is easy to take out just the bowl to refill.

Examples here:
http://www.pet-supermarket.co.uk/Search/coop cup
 
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