Yerr i dont have a run. And i have started giving them wayyyy moreeeeee hay so hopefully its all good in the hood. THANKYOU SO MUCH FOR ALL THE ADVICE, i really needed it.
Yerr i dont have a run. And i have started giving them wayyyy moreeeeee hay so hopefully its all good in the hood. THANKYOU SO MUCH FOR ALL THE ADVICE, i really needed it.
Ruby and Willow
That's really good, hay is so important for their health and happiness, make sure they have unlimited and top up with fresh hay at least every day, more often if you can.Originally Posted by ellie5
Are they indoor or outdoor? If they are indoors then they dont really need a run, as you can just let them run about the room, providing you bunny-proof or tuck away any electrical wires first.
Servant to... Annabella and Barney.
they are indoor rabbits and i do let them out. once one of the rabbits opened the cage herself and started biting a wire but we caught her before she could get hurt luckily, she is a very cheeky and clever rabbit.
Ruby and Willow
My rabbits have bitten through all sorts of wires and not once have been hurt, so dont worry too much about that, its more that you'll have to keep replacing wires. Obviously ones like extension cables are more of a risk. You can bunny proof the room, it should be fairly easy to do. I found it easier to just move electrical items to places the rabbits couldnt get to the wires, but you can also use NIC panels (like people use to make c&c cages) or puppy pen panels to block areas of the room off. Here is an example where I blocked off the printer, the cables are all behind a second set of panels as well, in case a bun gets over the first set.
Its important to let the buns out for a good few hours a day, I'd say an absolute minimum of 6, more if you have one of the commercial cages, as the commercial cages (the ones that look like giant hamster cages) dont meet the welfare guidlines by the RWAF and RSPCA if used on their own, so rabbits shouldnt really be shut in them at all. If you have one of these it would be best to get them a pen to use as a run, like this:
You can see the blue base of the 120cm commercial cage in that one.
Or even just use a pen on its own:
Or you can even have them free-range 24/7, which of course is preferable
Servant to... Annabella and Barney.
my rabbits have a double decker cage and they do have a LOT of the time outside (they never stop biting the cage bars) they probs reach about 6-7 hours oustide of the cage each day. When i am out sometimes it goes down to about 3 hours a day. what happens if they dont get out enough?My rabbits have bitten through all sorts of wires and not once have been hurt, so dont worry too much about that, its more that you'll have to keep replacing wires. Obviously ones like extension cables are more of a risk. You can bunny proof the room, it should be fairly easy to do. I found it easier to just move electrical items to places the rabbits couldnt get to the wires, but you can also use NIC panels (like people use to make c&c cages) or puppy pen panels to block areas of the room off. Here is an example where I blocked off the printer, the cables are all behind a second set of panels as well, in case a bun gets over the first set.
Its important to let the buns out for a good few hours a day, I'd say an absolute minimum of 6, more if you have one of the commercial cages, as the commercial cages (the ones that look like giant hamster cages) dont meet the welfare guidlines by the RWAF and RSPCA if used on their own, so rabbits shouldnt really be shut in them at all. If you have one of these it would be best to get them a pen to use as a run, like this:
You can see the blue base of the 120cm commercial cage in that one.
Or even just use a pen on its own:
Or you can even have them free-range 24/7, which of course is preferable
Ruby and Willow
If rabbits don't get enough exercise they can get overweight (which comes with a whole raft of other dangers), can get joint and muscle problems, behavioural problems (they get bored, frustrated, depressed and can become aggressive), etc.
http://www.rabbitwelfare.co.uk/ahutchisnotenough.htm <-- this website has things that explain why rabbits shouldn't be shut in small cages
Last edited by Pebblesetc; 06-08-2012 at 05:01 PM.
Ollie. Buckley. Missy.
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kk thx, I'll get them out as much as possible ever day. thankyou.
Ruby and Willow
Your bunnies are very lucky to have an owner so willing to give them the best life possible
Ollie. Buckley. Missy.
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(='.'=) This is bunny. Copy him into your signature to help him dominate the world
(")_(")
Marshmallows In My Tea: http://sophiaelizabetta.blogspot.com/
Those double cages are deceiving. They look to give more room but the hole for the ramp take up a lot of the space. It would be fine to have them in longer in the day if there was a metal puppy pen attached
Sounds good
The cage-biting is a sign that they are frustrated and are bored, so I'd see if you can give them more space and maybe more enrichment too, things like digging boxes, tunnels, boxes to jump on and hide under etc, and that should help.
3 hours out means they are spending 21 hours in their cage, that is a long long time, a bit like you being stuck in the cupboard under the stairs all day. The good news is that once you have bunnyproofed a bit they should be able to stay out when you are not home, meaning they will get more exercise. Alternatively you could give them a bigger permenant area, a pen for instance, and then you wouldnt have to worry about having them out as much.
edit: once they eat more hay they will be less bored too, so thats good.
Last edited by nessar; 06-08-2012 at 05:15 PM.
Servant to... Annabella and Barney.
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