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Is this ok for an indoor rabbit?

O

Olly1990

New Kit
Hi everyone. I'm new to the forum and have recently bought a pet rabbit for the first time two weeks ago. At the moment he is in a indoor rabbit cage as a base and then he is allowed out to free range when we are in the house (which is most of the time as I'm on holiday from work)

The longer term plan is for him to have his own bunny proofed room in the spare room. He will use the cage as a base and will roam in the room 24 7. I work full time but when I return from house he can have roam of other rooms in the house with supervision. We are also going to buy an outdoor run so in the warmer months he can have an hour or so in the garden each day when I return from work. Also after he is neutered we plan to adopt a female to keep him company when I am at work. Is this ok? Is there any other advice anyone can give because I'm new to this! :)
 
Sounds really good :) A spare room is the best option, as you don't have to bunny-proof much because there's no electrical items or non-bunny furniture in there.

He can be neutered as soon as his balls drop, which should be about 12 weeks old.
 
Thanks :) when we get our second it will be from a rescue so I imagine they will come and inspect the premesis/ offer advice. What is the maximum time you would let a rabbit free roam in a room before they need to move to other areas of house/ have more space??
I'm a bit concerned about them becoming bored. The room is approx 10ft by 10 ft they will have it to themselves all day while I'm at work
 
Olly1990 said:
Thanks :) when we get our second it will be from a rescue so I imagine they will come and inspect the premesis/ offer advice. What is the maximum time you would let a rabbit free roam in a room before they need to move to other areas of house/ have more space??
I'm a bit concerned about them becoming bored. The room is approx 10ft by 10 ft they will have it to themselves all day while I'm at work
Click to expand...

Yes most rescues will home check :) That's a good size, is there any furniture taking up floor space?
 
nessar said:
He can be neutered as soon as his balls drop, which should be about 12 weeks old.
Click to expand...

Yes I've arranged this with the vet and then he will need time to heal before I get the female. I figured he will not become bored as easily if he has a companion.
 
Hector has the kitchen which is, well, the kitchen but contains two large tubes; a dog crate; a large box house; and a dog bed! (He is a giant!)

He gets out and about in the evening for a few hours at least and a bit in the morning during the week if I'm at work. If I'm in, he free-ranges although I know he sleeps much of the day. At the weekend, mainly free-range although again, he sleeps much of the day on the spare bed...
 
We have a wardrobe in there which will take up a corner. We were considering getting a bed ( one with a wood or metal frame they can hide under) so maybe we could occasionally have a guest in there but Not so sure about that yet as there's another room we could use for that. I was wondering whether a bed would be good fr them to hide under? Or is it best to keep an open space???
 
SJH said:
Hector has the kitchen which is, well, the kitchen but contains two large tubes; a dog crate; a large box house; and a dog bed! (He is a giant!)

He gets out and about in the evening for a few hours at least and a bit in the morning during the week if I'm at work. If I'm in, he free-ranges although I know he sleeps much of the day. At the weekend, mainly free-range although again, he sleeps much of the day on the spare bed...
Click to expand...

Good so sounds like a similar set up? Free range of a room in the daytime while you work and then other rooms on eve with supervision? Does your rabbit have another to play with??
 
Olly1990 said:
We have a wardrobe in there which will take up a corner. We were considering getting a bed ( one with a wood or metal frame they can hide under) so maybe we could occasionally have a guest in there but Not so sure about that yet as there's another room we could use for that. I was wondering whether a bed would be good fr them to hide under? Or is it best to keep an open space???
Click to expand...

Well my rabbits do like hiding under the bed but they also chew wooden beds. And them going under the bed is actually a huge pain because it is a nightmare getting them to come out because you can't reach them and they can out-maneuver you really easily - so I'd recommend against getting one in there. You can get much smaller things that they will enjoy hiding under. Your guests will probably not like to sleep in there anyway- free range bunnies can be a bit of a pain at night in a bedroom, unless you like to wake up at 4.30am and don't mind them jumping on you in the night :lol:

As long as it is just the wardrobe taking up floor space then the room sounds big enough to have them in there 24/7, although I am sure they will enjoy some free-ranging too.
 
nessar said:
Well my rabbits do like hiding under the bed but they also chew wooden beds. And them going under the bed is actually a huge pain because it is a nightmare getting them to come out because you can't reach them and they can out-maneuver you really easily - so I'd recommend against getting one in there. You can get much smaller things that they will enjoy hiding under. Your guests will probably not like to sleep in there anyway- free range bunnies can be a bit of a pain at night in a bedroom, unless you like to wake up at 4.30am and don't mind them jumping on you in the night :lol: .
Click to expand...

Lol thats a good point. Yes the wardrobe is pretty much stuck there I've nowhere else for it to go but as for the bed.. That can be changed haven't got it yet anyway.

It's a relief to think that provided they have enough toys that will be enough for them :) I will have to post pics when set up is complete :) thanks for advice.
 
Olly1990 said:
Good so sounds like a similar set up? Free range of a room in the daytime while you work and then other rooms on eve with supervision? Does your rabbit have another to play with??
Click to expand...

Similar indeed. :)

Hector is a single bunny. I know people have mixed views on this but his predecessor was too by his own choice - he bit the front leg of his companion leading to amputation which is why I took him in to find he was the most docile animal in the world....

Anyhow, I got Hector as a baby and he's effectively glued to me. I'm also not sure my house would stand up to two giants in it!

I did, once upon a time, have two bonded girls (mother and daughter). Seeing the daughter after her mother died put me off a little. It was awful. So, no, Hector is on his own which is, of course, why he is an indoor bun.
 
Yes I spoke to the vet about companions and she said that its personal choice but that single buns need a bit more human attention.
 
My single bun is loose in my room all day: he has a little hutch that he is never confined to, my bed that he likes to sleep on, a cardboard barn, and two bins of hay for him to jump into. When I home and my pair are not out he free roams around the house. I have found that he does not like to be confined to the room for more than a day, so it's very important to let your rabbit out of his room as often as possible because otherwise it will become confining and boring.

Your setup sounds great, just remember to have lots of boxes, tunnels, and other toys :thumb:
 
Olly1990 said:
Yes I spoke to the vet about companions and she said that its personal choice but that single buns need a bit more human attention.
Click to expand...

Yes, as rabbits have evolved to live in groups for safety, lone rabbits experience higher levels of stress and rabbits do need to socialize a lot. If you don't have another rabbit, this has to be provided by yourself, but as rabbits need constant company, not just for a few hours a day, it is rather impractical what with working or going out, so the best thing is to get them a friend of their own kind. Of course a rabbit friend is also able to talk with and understand them a lot better, so that is better in many ways for the rabbit.

Here is a leaflet produced by the Rabbit Welfare Association on rabbits having company: http://www.rabbitwelfare.co.uk/resources/content/leaflet_pdfs/b_buds_jul_04.pdf

They have loads of useful advice and add to it often, you can find it here:
http://www.rabbitwelfare.co.uk/resources/index.php?section=leaflets.html
 
It sounds like a lovely big space for them, even on it's own that would be fine, but I expect you'll enjoy having them freerange and interact with you and they'll enjoy the extra space to explore. Have a look through some of the pictures on the indoor housing sticky for inspiration. You can make the room more interesting with boxes and tunnels and toys etc.
 
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