Housing a German Giant rabbit - help !

HI - I could do with some advice and help please. I would like to buy a 'german giant' rabbit - a Deutche Riesen, and have several lined up to view but im concerned about housing it !

I want to make sure that I have the ultimate bunny palace for my new friend He would be a pet for me and an attraction for my customers - I live in germany now and I sell British animal feeds for horses ( got 2 ) dogs ( got two ) and rabbits ( getting one! ) so I want to make sure I have a great home and I dont get anything wrong in his care..

This is my general plan - could you please check it and make comments if you think i could do something better -

I have plenty of space outside and so would like to build a long run with the rabbit house in the center so bunny can run though and really stretch his/her legs. I would like the ground floor to have doors open both sides - wide ramp up to 1st floor which would have no windows making it a safe dark snuggle area. The roof would be hinged to lift up like a car bonnet for easy cleaning. The enclosure would be about 5ft high and the run approx 12ft long - 4-5ft wide , the ground covered in paving slabs so he wont dig his fway to freedom.....how does this sound ? I want to make this perfect for him so he will be happy - have plenty of room etc. What wood shall i make the house from - i have read pine makes bunnies sick?! is that true ?

my second question..FEED ? .What is the general opinion on Dodson & Horrell rabbit royale ?.

HAY ? I have horses so unlimited hay is no problem but I read that Tomothy grass is ideal for rabbits ( is this instead of hay ? ) and that spillers redigrass is a great ( again stead of hay ?) -- sorry for all the questions but I have never had a bunny before and want to do my best - Im soooo excited THANKYOU !

PS - a lot of websites seem to think outdoor living a big nono but is this cos mostly these are USA based with extreme temps ? its pretty much normal british weather where i am...

Hiya,

If your weather is the same as Britain then indoors/outdoors is a personal choice. Rabbits do make excellent house pets as they can be litter trainned though some do like to nibble so you need to bunny proof. It means lots of space and you can interact with them without having to go out in the cold/wet.

For the house you might like to consider a prebuilt shed or wooden childrens play house. That way your can fit inside too which is nice when the weather isn't as nice. Something like this: http://www.outdoortoysdirect.co.uk/Childrens-Wooden-Playhouse/Waltons-Poppy-Playhouse

Tounge and groove cladding works well for building and then protect it from the weather with petsafe wood stain.

Tam

HIya Tam - thanksa for that info - I would love t have the bunny inside but we have two jack russells and it wouldnt work! :lol: They would smell it and go NuTs :wink:

Woudl I need to line the inside of the hut with metal mesh ? I read these larger bunnies can chewq out oif a house in a few days with no problem if your not vigilant? I just wamnt to make sure he is safe and secure....

Kerryx


ps - any commenst of quality of the feed i mentioned ? Is there a better brand ?

Hiya, welcome to RU

I've got no experience in giant buns but if you have a browse through the housing bits you will see lots of ideas for housing them in playhouses, sheds, etc. Someone recently had a huge hutch built to their specification.

Hiya,

I haven't heard of anyone having problems with chewing out. It's a good idea to provide other bits of wood like willow toys for them to chew on though. And of course hay all the time as they spend alot of time chewing on that.

I'm not sure what brands will be available where you are but the best option is to read the nutrition information on the back of all the packets and pick the one with the highest fibre level. When you get your bunny the breeder should tell you what food they use and you are going to switch from that then you need to do it gradually.

Tam

I believe rabbit royale is a mix, with flakes of peas etc in? It's recommended that rabbits eat a high fibre, extruded pellet food, and I think there's no better than Science Selective, and many people here use Allen and Page. Rabbits shouldn't have a bowl full all the time either, although I guess a baby needs more than 2 feeds a day, which is what I give my adult rabbits. I have a medium sized lop who eats a large handful morning and evening - although she acts as if she's starving, and would eat the sackful if I let her! It's better for them to fill up on hay in between meals. Unlimited pellets for an adult rabbit can cause too much sticky (eating) poops (they don't eat the dry, round ones), which puts them at risk of flies and maggots.

In any case a rabbit should be changed slowly to a new food, as they are very prone to tummy upsets, sometimes fatal, especially when young and stressed by a move to a new home, leaving their litter mates etc. If you mix in new food with old and change over the course of a week or 2, it should be fine, although all mine went straight onto Science Selective and had no problems, maybe because it contains a probiotic (friendly bacteria like yakult provides for humans). Veg should be very cautiously introduced, just a tiny piece at first, and they don't need lots of it even when used to it.

Timmy hay is the best hay for them as it's very tough and stalky, which is good for their teeth and digestion. Grass is richer in protein, and as it's fresh and moist, it should be slowly introduced like any new vegetable.

Not sure about housing - some rabbits chew more than others - I believe someone here used the zinc corner mesh that plasterers use, to cover the wooden struts in their shed?

HI Elve - thanks for the info The dodson and horrell food is actually the Chudleys brand rabbit royale - heres the info :
protein - 12%
oil - 2,5%
fibre 14%
ash - 6%
vit A - 10,000 iu/kg
vit Ds - 1,000 iu/kg
Vit E - 75mg iu/kg
Copper 20mg iu/kg

CONTENTS :
grass
wheat
oats
straw
barley
peas
maize
soya
herbs
carrots
minerals
fruits

Hi Kerry,
I used to feed Rabbit Royale but found it can be quite rich for sensitive tummies, also like any mix rabbits can just pick out their favourite bits which can lead to them not getting the correct level of nutrients.
After alot of research i now feed pellets. My personal choice is `Allen & Page Natural Rabbit Pellets` as they have the highest fibre content, but these can be quite hard to get hold of. :? I think the other 2 pelletted feeds are `Science Selective` or `Excel` though excel has also been known to be a bit rich for those with sensitive tums. Hope this helps.
I have 2 french lops, which are a large breed & they share a shed & like all bunnies they do chew the wood a little but nothing to be concerned about, just the odd indent here & there.

Su.x

I would recommend either Science Selectives or Allan &Page (which is highest in fibre I believe and also excellent value for money)
The dimentions you are talking about for the enclosure sound excellent!! The more space you can offer the better
As it will be in a public space I would be inclined to have it so that people can SEE but not TOUCH and also make sure there is a sign up to tell people not to feed the bunny as he could ending being fed all sorts of rubbish. Rabbits have really delicate tummies and being given "tit-bits" is a definite no no!
Also, have you considered getting a speyed girlie bunny to keep him company? Rabbits are really social creatures and love to have another bun to groom, play with and snuggle up next to

HIya - I would LOVE a pair - that would be much nicer- in this area in Germany there seem to be a lot of breeders so i would expect to be able to find him a mate asap. I dont want him to be lonely I will see if I can get the allan and page food - that sounds great. Thanksyou for the hints! The local pet home has some ferrets that need rehoming and I am hoping to go and see them this week as well - I can see me falling for them too...im reliving my childhood LOL - I never had any pets of my own as a kid and now we have this lovely farm and space i can get what i want...I am even toying with the idea of some mini pigs and mini goats! How cool would that be LOL

As for letting bunnies have some fresh grass - we have a big enlcosure with chickens in - would it be safe to pop them in their for an hour or two on a nice day so they can get some fresh roots n stuff - would chickens attack them - or would bunny attack the chucks ? LOL

Kx

Just a mention on the chickens thing, I'd be more concerned about the possible spread of any infection/disease/contamination through letting the rabbits out on grass that has been used by the chickens. My knowledge on the two together is very limited, however I would be cautious about the possibility of the rabbit eating grass that may be partly contaminated with chicken faeces and I don't know what that may result in. I must stress that I do not know if it would be a problem, but that it first crossed my mind when I read it!

YEs - its something i was wondering about too - we have plenty of room so i can find another clean place for bunny Thanks