Puppy pens

It will probably be nearer the end of the year when we get round to finding Bud a little friend but planning ahead, has anyone used puppy pens for their indoor buns?

At the moment Bud has free roam of the house and is only locked in his cage while we're at work BUT even though it's an x-large dog crate I'm sure it's just not big enough for 2 buns to share. My thinking is that if we got a puppy pen that the new bun could be housed in there until such time as we were convinced it was safe for them to share and then the pen could be used to create an extension to Bud's crate for when we're out?

Any thoughts? feel free to tell me if it's a rubbish idea lol .......... I have plenty time to come up with a plan B lol

I have used puppy pens, the 8 sided ones so yes it would work. The hay tends to find its way out because the bars are wide :roll:

Hi, this sounds like a great idea but just to let you know we initially started using puppy pens added onto a dog crate but it was only a cheapy one, and being honest I should have either got a better one or go with something else.

The one we had wasn't overly high, about 2.5ft I think and my little tinkers would clear it and if they rattled the bars enough they would un clip and pull away from the dog crate, even with cable ties and again escape!

I don't want to put you off though as I've heard quite a few people use them, but maybe try finding a better one rather than an eBay special like I did if possible! Hope this helps xx

Yeah, they're so very handy too. I have 1 in use at the moment to block the door off so my bun has full use of the bedroom. I used to have a 48 inch dog crate and puppy pen set up for my bridge bun Poppy, but ended up letting her free range but what she had before allowed a lot of space as her just having the crate (which she had to start with) was not enough, even with her second 'level'. I worked the crate out to 4ft x 2t x 3ft high, which is when I ordered a puppy pen!
I cable tied it to the dog crate then just opened the pen door to let her out. We just had a 60cm one for her as she wasn't a jumper but my outdoor rabbits, mainly Donny, have cleared the 4ft one I have so bear that in mind if you have a cheeky bun!

I have 3 others but they're actually being used for their intended purpose of puppy pens to keep my aunties puppy from digging her garden up while she's being trained. Wouldn't mind them back though haha..

I'm not too worried about straw/hay escaping as we have laminate so 5 minutes and it's clean again (plus Bud already just LOVES to drag the stuff all through the house so I'm getting used to my organic carpet lol) Jumping over however would be an issue so would have to try and find one with an optional cover/lid is possible. I'll admit I did start looking at the cheap and cheerfuls BUT I figure I'm going to have it a long time so might as well pay for a really good one to start with so thanks for confirming that the cheapies aren't worth it you've probably saved me money in the long run

Aly&Poppy<3 said:

Yeah, they're so very handy too. I have 1 in use at the moment to block the door off

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lol I bought 4 fireguards from Homebase to block off the no-go areas like under the computer desk, *tough wood* he hasn't jumped over yet but I'm just waiting

A lot of people use CC cubes. Actually it would be much kinder if Bud didn't have to be confined to a dog crate when you are at work, but you attached a run to it. Even the largest crates don't provide enough space for exercise - it is rather like confining a rabbit to a hutch without an attached run. There are lots of pics of indoor set-ups which may give you some ideas.

Babsie said:

A lot of people use CC cubes. Actually it would be much kinder if Bud didn't have to be confined to a dog crate when you are at work, but you attached a run to it. .

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I did look at the CC cubes but I'd prefer something that could be folded up and put out the way while we are home which is why I was thinking of the puppy pen. We'd love to give him free roam while we're out too but he decided that jumping on the tv unit was fun and that put an end to that idea lol, hubby comes home at lunchtime too so he gets an hours run around in th afternoon too so he's not in there all day , having said that it wouldn't do any harm to buy the pen earlier than planned and just start using it .......... least I'll find out quickly if he can jump it!

Yes, I know what you mean about them getting places they shouldn't, it's just that the crates are only intended to be a base - somewhere for litter trays - not something for them to be locked in except for the odd half-hour.