Am I doing the wrong thing?

Our bunnies are such loved little things, they are proper members of our family, even our confirmed "non-animal" teenage son. We are thoroughly enjoying having them and they have settled in very well, they are monstrous already weighing in at 1.5 kilos and 1.7 kilos at 10 weeks!

They have such lovely personalities, Gatsby is naughty and mischievous, and always the first to run and nuzzle my hand or explore something new, and Daisy is quieter, but with such a gentle personality, loving to be stroked and petted. They have escaped their enclosure several times and Gatsby now heads straight for my herb garden, and I have to usher him back, smelling of basil and thyme which is lovely! (and herbs haven't upset their stomach so they get a basil leaf as a treat).

Anyway, that was a bit of back story and a gush about the lovely bunnies and my "problem" is this: when it's sunny, there's always someone in the garden so they get lots of attention and running around time. When it's rainy, obviously they don't get as much attention (although dd2 has been sitting in the hutch with them) so I have been bringing them into the house where they free range for the entire afternoon and then go back to their house in the garden in the late evening. They love the attention and clearly are used to coming in the house now, as soon as I get the pet carrier out to transport them across the garden to the house, they leap in and get excited.

Am i doing the wrong thing in bringing them in for a few hours every day? Will this be a problem in the winter when temperature changes might affect them? Much as I'd like to, I really can't house them inside permanently, there's five of us in the family already so I haven't really got any space as our spare room is used as a study for my older two kids and DH can't have them in his office (and I've spent a fortune on a large dog kennel/enclosure and now a massive run, but don't tell DH ) They obviously love being inside and I'm happy to have them in but need to return them to their house outside at night.

Sorry brief reply: I would avoid bringing them in and then putting back outside unless it's very warm. Rabbits don't tolerate changes in temperature very well at all.

In the summer, if your house is a very similar temperature to outdoors, it is fine, however like Babsie said, it's not a good idea in the winter. One of the main risks is triggering 'snuffles', an illness that causes recurring respiratory infections. Once triggered, many rabbits will have this for life, as it's not 'curable' as such. When you are bringing them inside, do make sure they have a water bowl and some hay, as it is important to stay hydrated and rabbits' tummy must never get empty or they can get very ill. Some rabbits will also hold their wee and poo until they go back to their home, so it's best to provide a litter tray or encourage them to toilet in their carrier.

I would put a tarp over the run to provide shade and protection from the rain, and attach it to their kennel so they can get back into shelter when they want. Then they can exercise whatever the weather. They have each other for company, so as long as their needs are met I wouldn't worry about sitting in the rain to give them a fuss.

In the summer it's fine. I would just stop around September time, weather depending. Like the others said, it's the temperature change that affects them.

Most herbs are really good for rabbits (chives or anything in the onion family are toxic). It sounds like you're doing wonderfully with them. :thumb:

Thanks all it's so hard to know if I'm doing the right thing, because what SEEMS like the right thing could be potentially the wrong thing!

Our house was freezing today, they might have been warmer left outdoors! No seriously, in the summer, all the doors and windows are usually open so the temp change isn't huge if at all. And of course if it's sunny they can free range in the garden because there's usually someone out there anyway.

Nessar - I always have hay bowls and water available and they use the litter tray really well, only had one wee accident in the house (and that was today when I left my son bunny sitting while I did a school run).

The run is separate from the kennel, and will be put on grass when their tummies can stand large amounts of grass, they've had a good nibble during one escape so they should be ok! I am thinking about a runaround system but not 100% on this as I'm not sure just how secure they are and it might be a waste of money if I still feel I can't leave them unsupervised as I don't feel it's secure enough. For now I have puppy pen panels which can be arranged on the decking/grass to provide an attached run, but obviously they need to be supervised using this, but they LOVE it!

TBH they aren't that keen on coming out during the rain anyway, they don't like their fur wet, they poke their noses out, have a short run around and then disappear back inside mournfully to groom each other dry again

I just felt a bit sad that they obviously love our company and no one wants to sit outside in the rain, DD2 is happy to go and read in the hutch with them however!

Jenova - thanks for letting me know about chives, I will get rid of mine and repot in a plant pot and put it out of reach.

How about a shed? Both my bunnies have passed on now, but when they were youngsters they lived in a shed with an attached aviary. It was so unbelievably cozy on autumn evenings. There was a light and a heater in there, and my mum would sometimes come and sit with me while I mucked them out and fed them. We'd have an audiobook on and just sit giving bunny snuggles. We even had a carpet down in the winter so it was like being 'indoors' still.

I think being in/out is fine in the summer, but in the winter it really needs to be one or the other.