To treat or not to treat newly built outdoor hutch

Hi There,

We have just finished building a new hutch for my bunnies (totally untreated wood). I am worried about treating it with anything as one of my bunnies has a tendency to chew, even at seemingly awkward spots, even if I just do the outside I think he could possible reach the edges, the mesh is attach on the outside.

(he has plenty of toy etc to distract him BTW, just likes the odd nibble, but tends to really go for it when he does.)

I was wondering if anyone has been in the same situation, how long did your hutch last? / Can anyone recommend a good solution?

(We don't have a lot of the brands of stain etc available where I live, I also have read that animal safe and safe to chew are two different things)

I realize the hutch wont last forever but was hoping to get 2-3 years out of it if left untreated, is this realistic? Photo below.

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whereabouts are you based? cuprinol is the make that i have heard most people use, and is what we use and as far as i know it is pet/chew safe. i'd worry that it wouldn't last very long without any treatment - depending on the weather i suppose!

I'd also suggest Cuprinol - http://www.cuprinol.co.uk/

Your setup is lovely by the way!

Thanks for all the input! Its much appreciated. And thanks im really chuffed with how its turned out and so are the bunnies

Im based in NZ, I can only find one place that you can buy the cuprinol garden shades from but shipping is about four times what the paint costs! Im sure there is a suitable eqivalent though.

Have people treated their hutches inside and outside or just the outside?

I treated inside and out with 3 coats of cuprinol. And they better all last at least 10 years!
Sometimes 1 of them has a little chew but it has never done them any harm.

Ahh, I suppose taking the mesh off and putting it on the inside doesn't at all sound like a fun idea?

If you have a look in a DIY/hardware store you should be able to find some edge protectors, although they might not be sold as such - things like the the edge supports for plastering walls work well - they are L shape strips of metal/mesh and you can pop them over the edges that are accessible.

For protection what you want is something that's waterbased (not solvent) and low VOC, there are some more here but I don't know if the brands will be the same as you'd have available: http://www.therabbithouse.com/outdoor/petsafewoodstain.asp

The other thing would be to see if you can find what's used on stables/chicken coops etc. in NZ as they'll often be the sort of thing that's safe to use around other animals too.

It looks like a lovely big/sturdy construction so I imagine even without treating you'd get a few good years out of it. The overhang on the roof will help too.