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How deep shall i fill the hutch with hay and woodshavings?
- Thread starter Snowy1997
- Start date
There are many things you can do when setting up the inside of a hutch.
I will tell you what I do which may give you an idea of what you could do:
I will tell you what I do which may give you an idea of what you could do:
- I have all the floors of my hutches / sheds lino'd which makes it easy to clean them out.
- In at least one of the corners I have a litter tray, in the bottom of this I put megazorb and then top it with hay. Rabbits tend to poo whilst they are munching which is why I place hay in the tray. Above the litter tray I also hang a large hay rack full of nice hay which they can eat and this will not get dirty and saves any waster.
- Depending on how the rabbit copes with the lino I may put down newspapers, old towels or carpet tiles to help prevent them slipping on it. These are washed / thrown as appropriate.
The Duchess
Wise Old Thumper
I'd avoid shavings/saw dust - they are not recommended for small animals such as guinea pigs or rabbits as they can cause skin, eye, nose and respiratory irritation as it's untreated timber and the phenols in the timber can become acidic when in contact with urine. Apart from that the small particles can get stuck in eyes and noses.
I'd suggest you use litter trays and line them with newspaper and then hay. If you want to use a litter then add something like Megazorb, Carefresh, Yesterdays News and then add the hay.
By doing this it will encourage the rabbits to use the tray and not the corner of their accommodation.
We line our hutches/sheds with lino to prevent damage etc, and then use newspaper to line the area. This gives the rabbits somewhere clear of bedding to lie down.
I'd suggest you use litter trays and line them with newspaper and then hay. If you want to use a litter then add something like Megazorb, Carefresh, Yesterdays News and then add the hay.
By doing this it will encourage the rabbits to use the tray and not the corner of their accommodation.
We line our hutches/sheds with lino to prevent damage etc, and then use newspaper to line the area. This gives the rabbits somewhere clear of bedding to lie down.
i use megazorb rather than shavings. i have been using shavings though for the past few weeks as been unable to get to the farm shop - i have never had problems with shavings just get the megazorb as it is better value for money.
What i do is cover the floor of the whole hutch with a layer of about 2 cm thick megazorb (although this all gets kicked down the ramp to the bottom anyway. Not really sure why i do this as i know a lot of people don't cover the whole floor with it, but it is habit and i like to think it is keeping my rabbits warm. Also ruby eats carpet and towels and fleece - especially fleece!). I fill the bedding area with hay about 2/3 of the way up. I am also mixing a bit of straw in with the hay at the moment to keep them warm. They then have a large under bed tray which is about 2x1 foot which i put about 5cm thick of megazorb and a thick layer of hay nearly to the top for them to use as a litter tray. As my bunnies are so clean and don't poo or pee outside of their tray, i can change the tray every day or two and the rest of the hutch less frequently
As for newspaper. Ruby shreds it and won't leave it alone so i don't use it. My old bunny i had when i was younger (who had woodshavings for 10 years with no probs) i used to line the hutch and bed with paper before putting the shavings on.
What i do is cover the floor of the whole hutch with a layer of about 2 cm thick megazorb (although this all gets kicked down the ramp to the bottom anyway. Not really sure why i do this as i know a lot of people don't cover the whole floor with it, but it is habit and i like to think it is keeping my rabbits warm. Also ruby eats carpet and towels and fleece - especially fleece!). I fill the bedding area with hay about 2/3 of the way up. I am also mixing a bit of straw in with the hay at the moment to keep them warm. They then have a large under bed tray which is about 2x1 foot which i put about 5cm thick of megazorb and a thick layer of hay nearly to the top for them to use as a litter tray. As my bunnies are so clean and don't poo or pee outside of their tray, i can change the tray every day or two and the rest of the hutch less frequently
As for newspaper. Ruby shreds it and won't leave it alone so i don't use it. My old bunny i had when i was younger (who had woodshavings for 10 years with no probs) i used to line the hutch and bed with paper before putting the shavings on.
