How often do you clean your bunnies' hutch/cage/living area and what do you use?

[MightyMax]

I am a very clean person, bordering on obsessive, I can handle dirt as long as I know where it has come from, so I can handle bunny poo and wee because I know it's come from my bunny. I empty and disinfect his litter tray once a day, sweep up various bits of hay/dirt once a day depending how much of a mess Winston makes, and I disinfect his cage tray/food bowl/various bits and pieces anywhere between one and three times a week. The rest of the kitchen (where he lives) gets a sweep a few times a week and the floor is disinfected once a week. I am interested to hear other people's routines? It would be good to know whether my routine is fairly normal or if I need to do less or more of something!

I am moving Winston to the living room after he has been neutered and his litter training is re-established, so I would be interested to hear how others clean carpets? Do you steam clean it? I think I will need to invest in a dust buster/mini hoover when he is relocated to the living room and i've always wanted an excuse to buy a steam cleaner

I know some of you might be thinking 'why did you get a rabbit if you can't handle mess/dirt' but I used to have a horse so I know I can deal with it, and the pros of animal ownership far outweigh the cons of testing my ability to handle dirt!

For me a steam cleaner is a Godsend :thumb: You need a fair bit of strength to move it around (mine's a professional one that I share with a friend - we both paid half). But it does all the house, and I need that as all my buns are totally free range :shock:

I tend to clean the hard floors (kitchen, bathroom etc) every day (I wash them) as otherwise bits of hay tread out onto the carpets and look a mess. Litter trays get cleaned thoroughly every day, and blankets for my elderly buns changed daily too.

I think your own routine is your own, and I don't compare myself to anyone else! I keep the place as clean as I like it - other bits get left though, like the dreaded dusting :lol:

 

[ImoT]

I get my Megazorb from a local pet store and it costs £9.20. So it is a good price but The Hay Experts will charge delivery - it is £4.99 for my area.

Amazon has it for £15.99 with free delivery, GJW Titmuss has it for £7.92 plus a £6.95 per bulk item delivery charge.

Oooo thanks you for letting me know I currently have enough wood pellet litter to last the next 4 months or so but I think I shall try out some megazorb when it's time for me to get some more litter!

For me a steam cleaner is a Godsend :thumb: You need a fair bit of strength to move it around (mine's a professional one that I share with a friend - we both paid half). But it does all the house, and I need that as all my buns are totally free range :shock:

I tend to clean the hard floors (kitchen, bathroom etc) every day (I wash them) as otherwise bits of hay tread out onto the carpets and look a mess. Litter trays get cleaned thoroughly every day, and blankets for my elderly buns changed daily too.

I think your own routine is your own, and I don't compare myself to anyone else! I keep the place as clean as I like it - other bits get left though, like the dreaded dusting :lol:

Thanks for the advice re the steam cleaner I think I shall be trying to persuade my OH to let me get one this evening I don't think I need a professional one as such as it will mainly be just for the bunny room (i.e. kitchen at the moment and then living room) and maybe a couple of times a year i'll use it on all the carpets/windows.

I wasn't trying to compare people's routines in a negative way, I just am just interested that's all

 

[FloLo]

I clean Flo's hutch out maybe once every two weeks, maybe longer if I'm really busy! But she has never pooed or peed in her hutch, she always does it in the same spot outside! She also spends the majority of her time outside, she often sleeps out too. I do check to make sure it is clean, dry, she has enough straw etc every day though.

 

[mabels mum]

I clean Mabel and Arthur's litter tray out every other day. I sweep their pen out once a day and hoover every other day in their room and any other rooms with hay trails. I wipe the pen down with vinegar/water solution once every couple of weeks. I have a dust buster for stray bits of hay and currently use megazob in the litter tray. Water bowls get changed every time the dishwasher goes on so about three times a week. I also dust the bunny room one a week as the fur and hay needs to be kept on top of.

 

[Ruthyjones89]

Well as my buns have a cage as a base, they get completely cleaned & their pens hoovered weekly. But I do poop sweeps every morning and night!

As they are in the lounge, I also dust & Hoover this every other day & the bunnies love running round chasing the cable!

 

[Lea-Anne]

Mine get cleaned out every day. I'm obsessive about cleanliness/ paranoid they smell.

 

[Angie65]

I'm considering doing this as well, turning his cage tray base into one big litter tray with litter and hay. How often do you take out all the remaining litter and hay and clean the whole tray?

a couple of times a week - When I was on holiday for 3 weeks the whole thing was only done once a week & wasn't in that bad a state when I got back

 

[Kipper]

I have 5 buns all indoors. I have 3 together in 1 cage & a pair in another. I sweep their floors a minimum of twice a day & spray with johnsons clean & fresh once a day (more if they have an accident.) I have several litter trays one in each of their cages with megazorb & they're cleaned daily. I then have several in my living room which they all use when having free run of room. I normally allow each set of buns 2 hours free range before swapping them over & I will sweep & replenish hay at the same time. The communal trays are normally cleaned every couple of days

 

[Alison Marie]

Jasper once to twice a week in the winter, in the summer every other day. He's quite a clean bun and he's indoors

Buttons and nibbles, twice to three times a week at the moment. inthe summer it's every other day, sometimes every day depending on what they're like. I do a proper clean up once a week, just spot cleaning during the week.

 

[Fee]

I clean mine every day.. I must cinfess I only do that because I hate the smell of rabbit pee...

I hate if the shed has an odour.. My husband says it never smells vile but I must have a very keen nose,... I prefer it as I dont want the bunnies getting sore hocks from wet hay ...

That said, my car smells like a bunny toilet as i transport the used hay to the tip in my car!!

 

[Rupert & Tia]

We do a full shed clean once a week (all hay and straw out, thoroughtly hoover the entire shed) and in winter, do the litter trays another one time thru the week (they have three and one in the house), in summer, we play it by ear sorta thing, it depends whats in them, but tends to be every day. the shed floor gets sweeped every morning too.
We use Aldi wipes, boiling water from the kettle and steam cleaner

 

[Elena]

I change their two litter trays every other day and then other day I swap them round as they do the majority in the tray in my bedroom. Once or twice a day I hoover up stray poops and hay and spot clean any wees, which have greatly reduced since we lost Nutmeg. Then once a week I do a big clean, one week it will be my bedroom, then the next week the other room. I'll hoover really thoroughly then mop the room and wash the blankets if they need it.

As for food bowls I don't really bother cleaning them that much as I don't use them for pellets, only dried forage/fresh veg. Dried forage doesn't make a mess and when they have fresh veg I just wipe it round with toilet or kitchen roll. I rinse their bowl every day and put fresh water in then once a week I'll clean it with hot water before I mop.

I noticed when I swapped to using F10 for mopping and wiping the litter trays that it smelt more, since going back to vinegar the smell has gone completely. F10 must disinfect well but not actually lift wee residue.

 

[Scrappy's Little Helper]

You make me seem laid back about cleanliness! Is Scrappy an indoor bun?

Yes, she is - she has 24/7 free range in the flat. To be honest I'm not usually obsessive about cleaning but Scrappy is the first bun I've ever owned and I didn't really know what was a "normal" cleaning routine.

 

[TheBee]

I empty litter trays do a quick sweep up 3-4 times a week. I don't disinfect their trays, they get wiped out with tissue every time, wet wipes if a lot of pee has got through to the plastic and maybe once every few months I might take it out and give it a scrub with soap and water.

I do a proper clean once a week, sometimes just with a dustpan but very thoroughly and sometimes with the Hoover. I wash their mats when they have pee or other mess on but very rarely as they are very clean. I steam clean occasionally which I suppose is disinfecting the area but only since a steam mop is sooo easy to use :lol:

Bowls get washed in soapy water and rinsed well every now and then (maybe once a week ish) I don't really have a routine but just do it when i think to!

I own pet safe disinfectant for the hamster (bought for new hammy before he got anything old hammies had) and I do use it as it is the easiest way to keep his huge unwieldy cage clean.

I see no reason to disinfect for the buns though. I don't disinfect the stuff the humans eat off, let alone the rabbits! Soap and water is cheap, has less chemicals and works perfectly well! I do have an antibacterial spray for the kitchen surfaces but it think that's the only antibacterial cleaning thing I use!

This. I really think that being overly clean can be more detrimental than anything else. Mine are indoors and I dont disinfect anything.

 

[Gem]

The outdoor bunnies get cleaned out every other week fully. I disinfect every six months if that

Free range bunny has her cage tray done once a week. Never disinfect

The upstairs two have their puppy pads changed every other day and litter trays and room vacuumed once a week. Also don't disinfect

 

[ImoT]

Yes, she is - she has 24/7 free range in the flat. To be honest I'm not usually obsessive about cleaning but Scrappy is the first bun I've ever owned and I didn't really know what was a "normal" cleaning routine.

Winston's the first bun i've owned too, hence why I started this thread to try and find out what the average was….although I have now learned that there isn't much of an average as everyone seems to do different things, which makes me feel better