• Forum/Server Upgrade If you are reading this you have made it to the upgraded forum. Posts made on the old forum after 26th October 2023 have not been transfered. Everything else should be here. If you find any issues please let us know.

How long is too long to keep the boys inside?

zarathustra

Warren Scout
So the boys are currently house rabbits, the original plan was for it to only be 2 or 3 nights following their ops so we could keep a close eye on them.

But with the weather we’ve decided to keep them in until it has passed, hopefully by Sunday/Monday.

I know that if they’re inside too long then putting them back out in the cold would not only be very dangerous but cruel.

We’ve done everything we can to try and stop them getting too warm, ie not near any radiators, next to the open utility room which is cooler than the rest of the house etc.

But, how do we know if/when we’ve crossed the point of no return?

Incidentally we are looking at making them indoor bunnies in the future, but there is planning etc to be done. They look so much more relaxed and happy in doors


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I think you are doing the right thing by keeping the boys in for a bit longer. It's far too cold to put them back outside just after surgery. See how the weather goes - even if they are inside for another week or so, they will be better off at the moment. You can also keep a better eye on input and output when they are inside.

I've never had water bowls freeze over in the hutches before yesterday - and that was with doubled up heat pads, extra hay and multiple covers where there is normally only one layer. I certainly would not be putting recently post-op rabbits back out until the weather is back to 'normal'.
 
Yeah, it was the fact that their water bottle froze up during the day whilst under a thermal cover that sealed the deal.

The only real issue is the cage they’re in at the moment was bought to be used for short periods of time such as bonfire night and New Year’s Eve to save them from the fireworks so they don’t have much space. And as we had never planned on house rabbits the house is in no way prepped for mischievous little bunnies who aren’t litter trained yet


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Maybe get a puppy pen round the hutch to give them some more space while you can't supervise them? I agree that it's far too cold to put them out if they've been inside.
 
Well they boys went back outside in Saturday.

They seem happy enough, but I do miss not having them in the house.

The seem to be friendlier since they’ve stayed inside for a bit. Maybe just having us about making noise and talking to them allowed them to get used to us a bit more


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Back
Top