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wood??

D

Dobbin

Mama Doe
As some of you may know my OH and i plan on building Dobbin some luxury accomadation this weekend!! We are converting a shed with an attached run, anyhow i just wanted to check if there is any wood we should not use. It will be for shelves for him to climb on and and extra layer round the inside of the shed with something in between layers, wire? wood? for insulation and nibbling safety!! Chris has suggested plywood or chip board, but i said i would like to check first.

We plan on lining the shed and hutch on the floor with lino - hopefully make for easier cleaning. We plan to put a thermastate heater in their for the winter and hopefully some kind of cooling system - any suggestions greatly appreciated!

Sorry to be a pain.

Sue
xx
 
Oooo I would like to know this too. I would say Ply wood will be fine - thats what the floor of my hutch is made from.

Can you let me know how you will be attaching your shelves? Are you going to use brackets to hold them up?

Cheers

Shiv

p.s. Glad Dobbin is on the mend ;)
 
to be honest i am leaving all that to Chris but i am sure that he plans on using brackets - i am just worried about what wood to use!

Sue
xx
 
Well I would say thick Ply would be fine.

Well when he does it can you let me know what he uses :)

Thanks!
 
that is lovely thank you - i have just emailed Chris at work with that info cos he is looking in homebase on his way home!

Bit worried about keeping it cool now and then heated in the winter - can anyone suggest please? Specially when we are both out at work all day!

Sue
xx
 
I have the same problem, Dougal has a run attached to the shed so he can be outside if it's too warm. I also wedge open the cat flap to get some cool air inside.

As for keeping it warm in winter I dont know what I'll do.
I was thinking about having a smaller hiding place put in si if it's cold they can snuggle up in there to keep warm.

I also thought about lining the shed walls with carpet!!!
But will it keep the shed too hot in summer?
 
we did think about mounting a thermastat heater high on the wall for the winter - as long as it keeps the shed above abou 10-15 i figured it would be ok - he wil have a snugglesafe pad and lots of hay as well as his vet bed. I am hoping that will be ok - what u think?

The summer is what worries me - as i know we have foxes around here so i wouldnt want him out in the run when we are not around, so i need to keep the shed cool all day but i dont have a clue how.

I wouldof thought carpet would keep in the heat but i am not sure!

Sue
xx
 
Here is a piccy of my run, I belive it is fox proof.
Use welded mesh and the smallest size mesh you can find.
DSCF1036.jpg


I'm going to get a snuggle safe too. But knowing Dougal he wont use it. When it was really warm I froze bottles of water for him and he never used it.
 
wow that looks nice - do u mind if i ask what its like inside?

I am just so worried that the foxes might get him during the day - whats the base of that run?

Sorry i hope u dont mind me asking so many questions!

Sue
xx
 
we were going to mount them high on the wall in the shed. you think that would be ok? Or high up on shelves secured to the shelf somehow!

Wow that looks lovely - i was wondering about that becasue Dobbin does not like going on grass and i wondered about just putting it on paving slabs but i was not sure. We wonderered about having just one small area grassed in case he wanted it or maybe some in a seed tray. Do you mind if i ask what in the shed is like?

I love that tent- where did that come from?

Sue
xx

P.S i have just found a heater - air cooler which has climate control - maybe that will be the one to go for.
 
I wouldn't use a heater like that in a standard shed - it would be too easy for something to catch fire when you consider how much hay, straw and wood there is in there!

My pairs are each in a shed and I don't heat it at all in the winter - if they are outdoors all year they cope perfectly well with the cold, as long as they have somewhere dry and draught free to retreat to. Mine both have smaller areas which are crammed with straw and hay to snuggle into if they wish, but more often than not they will still sit outdoors in sub-zero temperatures (my nethies do go into their box and snuggle together at night in winter though). If you want to use anything, I'd use something like a snugglesafe in a cosy box or similar, so Dobbin has somewhere to snuggle.
 
thank you - i bring him in for a few hours most evenings - would he cope with the temperature change ok? He will have lots of places to hide away into. Do you think he would be ok then? The hidey places will be based with a snugglesafe or vetbed. So its just the heat i am worried about, how to keep him cool!

http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/0521046.htm

This is the one which i wondered if would be better - do you think this would still be dangerous - i only thought this one cos it has climate control.

I am very very grateful for all help and advice.

Sue
xx
 
To be honest I wouldn't bring an outdoor bun inside in the middle of winter unless it was going to be staying inside. They don't have a coat to put on or off so it would be a bit like you getting adjusted to the temperature and then being popped back outside without being able to put a coat on. It's not quite as extreme as that, as they are more likely to be hot indoors rather than cold outdoors, but you get the gist! The joy of a shed is that you can sit out there with them (!)

I don't think I'd put any kind of heater with an exposed element in a shed because there is always a risk that a piece of hay/straw/dust could be free in the air and catch fire. As heat rises, to be much use it would have to be fairly low down and obviously the risk is then much greater, as well as it being easier for bunnies to access the cables!

Would be interested to hear how everyone else heats their outdoor accommodation (or otherwise as the case may be!)
 
yes i do see your point and you are right - i think i will miss bringing him in in the winter. :cry: :cry: That is what i was worried about which is why i thought if he had a heater he might cope with going from one to the other better.

What about if it was into the conservatory where there will be no heat for an hour or two with me?

I do appreciate your help

I to would love to hear how others cope.

Sue
xx
 
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