Cleaning hutch

Hey all,

Hutch due to arrive on Wednesday or Thursday this week... Then the rabbits will follow...

Just wondering how often you all clean their hutches? My current plan is to do the litter tray once a day (once they start using it), and a full clean once a week on the weekend.

In terms of a full clean, what products do you usually use? Do you have a good guide I can use?

I keep the main litter tray separate to the hutch - indoor bunny, so he free-ranges throughout the flat - and clean it every couple of days. I have a cardboard box filled with hay in the hutch to catch waste, and I'll use the hay from that and recycle it into the litter tray, but change out the cardboard as soon as it's been "used" (I've had them last over a week, so I only change them when I need to). Because the hay is in a box, the hutch floor just has newspapers on it, and I change them only when they're dirtied or starting to become tatty - otherwise, just a sweep out every couple of days to get any food/poo/etc lying around. I have a disinfectant (Wilkinson's own brand - it's the only handy shop, and it does what it needs to) and I use that on any urine stains in the hutch wood, but again, the box usually absorbs any urine and so protects the hutch.

We don't have access to any free newspapers, so we have to minimise the need for them as much as possible; the box is really useful for keeping everything clean and being able to just throw it all away once it's stained. The litter tray is plastic, so it usually stays clean, but I'll use the disinfectant if the newspaper hasn't managed to absorb it all. I hope some of that helps a bit!

Paint any wood to make it easier to clean and more hygienic. Bare wood can't be effectively cleaned and will absorb urine, etc.
A bucket with a couple of litres of warm water, a squirt of washing up liquid and a squirt of bleach is as effective as anything else for cleaning and disinfecting a hutch.

I see a lot about white vinegar to clean the hutch... do any of you use that?

Yes, I buy mine in 5L 'jerry cans' from the wholesaler down the road! The mild acid breaks up the urine stains caused by calcium excreted as such, like putting vinegar on limestone or chalk