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Safety warning about an enclosure - please read
- Thread starter maziebunny
- Start date
dumblepaws
Mama Doe
Is it any puppy panel that's dangerous ? Or are certain width if bars ok? Or certain bunny sizes that make them safer/less safe?
They seen to be used a lot, particularly for indoor buns so I'm not sure if I'm missing something obvious in terms of a safe/not safe panels distinction , or that they're all risky and I should stick to wood and mesh
Thanks x
They seen to be used a lot, particularly for indoor buns so I'm not sure if I'm missing something obvious in terms of a safe/not safe panels distinction , or that they're all risky and I should stick to wood and mesh
Thanks x
yaretzi
Wise Old Thumper
I think most puppy panels are dangerous due to the bar spacing. If the bar spacing is less than 2cm I think you'd be okay for an adult, average size bunny, but any more I would definitely be wary. I think the other important thing is how far away the 90 degree horizontal cross hatching/struts are - the further apart they are the more the bars can be manipulated. If the spacing is quite far it's easy to accidentally get a bunny head stuck in there if they run into it, but if the spacing is very close you're at less of a risk I would think - but on the other hand, it would probably be harder to get them out if it did occur.
Personally I'd definitely be meshing over any puppy panels just to be on the safe side, or even better like you say sticking to wood and weld mesh
Bunny Buddy
Wise Old Thumper
I think most puppy panels are dangerous due to the bar spacing. If the bar spacing is less than 2cm I think you'd be okay for an adult, average size bunny, but any more I would definitely be wary. I think the other important thing is how far away the 90 degree horizontal cross hatching/struts are - the further apart they are the more the bars can be manipulated. If the spacing is quite far it's easy to accidentally get a bunny head stuck in there if they run into it, but if the spacing is very close you're at less of a risk I would think - but on the other hand, it would probably be harder to get them out if it did occur.
Personally I'd definitely be meshing over any puppy panels just to be on the safe side, or even better like you say sticking to wood and weld mesh
I'd agree with the above. I had some of the panels manufactured by the firm that were highlighted as dangerous. When I compared them with some cheap puppy pen panels I'd bought off ebay the puppy pen had closer spacing of the horizontals and the metal itself was nowhere near as bendy - the flexibility of the structure being the main problem regarding safety. The spacing of puppy panels was only about .3 cm more narrow between the uprights but much safer, so I'm happy to use these and have replaced the orginal pen.
dumblepaws
Mama Doe
Thanks both - will stick to wood and mesh I think!!
keletkezes
Wise Old Thumper
Looking for a replacement for this: Lopsy came with this sort when we adopted him, and at 5'x4' it's too small anyway. Also ludicrously easy to dig under :S Ours appears to have been badly put-together (the end panel appears to be upside-down) and I don't like it. He does stick his nose through but doesn't appear to be able to get his whole head through. Yet. I have some cheap chicken wire I could line it with later today and probably will. Thankyou so much for posting this, and linking it in the Outdoor Housing thread (which I'm reading with intent!). Looking at wood-and-wire as I've experience with those.
I also want to add that children could get their hands stuck too: as a 5' adult (ha!) with tiny hands, I can get my whole hand and 1/3 of my forearm through. Useful for poking things into the hanging hayrack, not so good for bunny heads and normaler-sized hands! I'm not someone who likes children, but my friends have over-adventurous kiddies, so it's something I think more about these days!
I also want to add that children could get their hands stuck too: as a 5' adult (ha!) with tiny hands, I can get my whole hand and 1/3 of my forearm through. Useful for poking things into the hanging hayrack, not so good for bunny heads and normaler-sized hands! I'm not someone who likes children, but my friends have over-adventurous kiddies, so it's something I think more about these days!
serenity087
Young Bun
Just a warning about mesh - make sure it's sturdy!!!
Tarja was messing around one morning and caught the wire between her teeth. She paniced and flipped herself over and was hanging upside down by her teeth. They were twisted round to the side and the roots were damaged causing them to spur. She required her teeth trimming once a fortnight from then onwards (we got to about 2.5 years I think!).
I never use anything big enough for my buns to bite now. Chicken wire is too dangerous!
Tarja was messing around one morning and caught the wire between her teeth. She paniced and flipped herself over and was hanging upside down by her teeth. They were twisted round to the side and the roots were damaged causing them to spur. She required her teeth trimming once a fortnight from then onwards (we got to about 2.5 years I think!).
I never use anything big enough for my buns to bite now. Chicken wire is too dangerous!
MandyLouise
Young Bun
OMG... I have one of these, switching to wood now!
I have one of these, switching to wood now!Lib_n_bunny
Wise Old Thumper
Could we put a picture of the type of run in the thread. I just clicked on the thread to find out what type it was, and clicked on 1 star reviews (rather than customer photos) not realising it would show the photo, I really didn't want to see it. Others may avoid clicking through in case they see the pic, and I think people really need to know about this. Well done for bringing it to our attention!
~ILoveMyBunny~
Alpha Buck
Oh goodness... I realize this is an older thread, but I am so grateful that people have kept it bumped up.
I came across one of these (or something very similar if not) on ebay and was seriously considering getting one when we moved. I didn't know the gap was so big.
That poor little rabbit
It's terrible to hear that these have been causing so many deaths! Especially since they're still available and still marketed to rabbits.
I am extremely grateful that people have warned about these and that I happened to stumble onto this thread this morning. I was very tempted to order one!
I came across one of these (or something very similar if not) on ebay and was seriously considering getting one when we moved. I didn't know the gap was so big.
That poor little rabbit
It's terrible to hear that these have been causing so many deaths! Especially since they're still available and still marketed to rabbits.
I am extremely grateful that people have warned about these and that I happened to stumble onto this thread this morning. I was very tempted to order one!
o-Chloe-o
Mama Doe
Agreed, please can we have a pic in the thread as I really do not want to see the distressing image
but really want to see the type of run!!!!and now I have seen it... oh no
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o-Chloe-o
Mama Doe
Ok I saved it to my flickr account... here it is:
DO NOT BUY ONE OF THESE!!!!! by o_chloe_o, on Flickr
DO NOT BUY ONE OF THESE!!!!! by o_chloe_o, on Flickr
o-Chloe-o
Mama Doe
I think so too, but should this be a sticky in the Housing thread, for people to look at when they are considering which housing / run to buy?? I only came across this by chance today, I have a couple of those panels at home (although I am going to double check as I think the ones I have are not the flimsy flexible type so maybe be OK)... xx
Sarah1989
Warren Veteran
I have two of them, one I use folded down a little indoors and the other I leave outside full time. I'm not sure about the issue of the bars being flexible as I struggle to force my hand between them at times... so how on earth a rabbit could do it would be beyond me.
Great runs that's why I bought a second one.
a few pics when we got it...
Great runs that's why I bought a second one.
a few pics when we got it...
Aly&Poppy<3
Wise Old Thumper
I thought the same Jonm, I thought the bars were way too strong for a rabbit to go through. Then my nearly 4kg rabbit Donny got spooked by something he was usually fine with and started bouncing off the sides. His head went straight through the bars, no problem whatsoever. I looked at it afterwards and they were all bent and we couldn't even bend them back, that's how much force he went at it with. They're still bent now actually, I just can't get them back.
The noises he made were horrible.. He managed to get himself out, got him to the vets and he was on metacam for a few days as his face had swollen up. I never thought it would happen even after reading horror stories but it did, I planned on meshing the runs to make sure it didn't happen again but just bought a wooden run instead.
Edit- found a photo, I used to love this photo of them but it reminds me of what happened. It probably wouldn't be that bad but where Donny (brown bun) is shoving his nose through is around where his head went through so I don't like it so much anymore.
The noises he made were horrible.. He managed to get himself out, got him to the vets and he was on metacam for a few days as his face had swollen up. I never thought it would happen even after reading horror stories but it did, I planned on meshing the runs to make sure it didn't happen again but just bought a wooden run instead.
Edit- found a photo, I used to love this photo of them but it reminds me of what happened. It probably wouldn't be that bad but where Donny (brown bun) is shoving his nose through is around where his head went through so I don't like it so much anymore.
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