Moving the hutch indoors!

[wabbit118]

Hello!!
This will be my first winter with my two bunnies and also their first winter so i'm a bit worried. I have found lots of tips such as putting bubble wrap around the hutch to insulate it but i still have snow in my mind and the bottle freezing... I have been thinking about moving them into the passageway, which is indoors, not very warm but warmer than outside and the hutch won't get snowed on... The only problem is this is were we keep the cats at night, i have two cats... The bunnies always tell the cats who is boss but there was one incident when one cat (oscar) decided to hit Lulu with his claws in so Lulu didn't get hurt but will they be ok in a hutch throughout the night with the cats in the same room? it is a big room as its the side of the house were we keep the washing machine etc... Would it be safe to move them or shall i just keep them outside and keep my fingers crossed that their ok...
Thanks
Emily x

 

[Tiabrac]

I would move them in. I have two cats and 3 indoor buns and it's usually the cats who back off. My buns have dog crates which they sleep in over night. If you are moving the hutch in as well I wouldn't have thought you would have a problem as they wouldn't be with the cats directly.

One thing though buns can cope with big changes in temp. so don't make it too warm or they may find going back outside a problem. HTH.

 

[vicky206]

Moving them in cannot hurt just to give them a little extra shelter from the cold if you worried about your water bottle freezing check this link, the also do proper hutch covers that may fit your hutch;

http://www.scratchandnewton.com

:wave:

 

[linzi1loveanimals]

They'll be fine indoors-our cats find the rabbits quite annoying and do all they can to avoid them-we have 4 housebuns. Even outside the cats avoid the 3 outdoors and the outdoor buns ignore the cats if your buns are quite jumpy then put something on top of the hutch like some bales of hay, straw or empty cardboard boxes-this will stop the cats from jumping onto the hutch. They only jump where they can see a suitable landing spot. Anything awkward or obscured they tend to avoid. Also cover the hutch with a blanket perhaps-so any nervous buns don't feel like they are being eye balled all night not sure about anyone else but our cats spend most of the night running round like nutters, chasing imaginary things that only they can see, with a mischievous kink in their tails ha ha. I'm sure after a night or two your buns will have adjusted. You could even section off an area for your buns to play inside during the day time

 

[Tamsin]

They'll be fine as long as they aren't actually lose together. Standard hutch mesh should be small enough to stop a cat arm but you could double it if you're worried... although the cats may not try twice as most buns will take a chunk out of a paw if it's stuck into their space.