Stupid mistake when rebuilding hutch...

I am rebuilding a hutch for my granddaughter's new rabbit.
The rabbits are outdoors here in Colorado and as the hutch had a number of boards that were chewed I have replaced pieces and stained it inside and out with Minwax wood stain.

Of course my wife asked as I just finished the last piece if the stain was safe.... arrgh.
I also used cedar for the replacement pieces and have just read that is not good either.

Any suggestions for correcting this error?...

staminack said:

I am rebuilding a hutch for my granddaughter's new rabbit.
The rabbits are outdoors here in Colorado and as the hutch had a number of boards that were chewed I have replaced pieces and stained it inside and out with Minwax wood stain.

Of course my wife asked as I just finished the last piece if the stain was safe.... arrgh.
I also used cedar for the replacement pieces and have just read that is not good either.

Any suggestions for correcting this error?...

Click to expand...

My guess is... use it for something other than the rabbit hutch - I guess if it's unsafe and they chew it - even if you cover it it's still going into their body. Can you use it for the roof of the run or a nibble proof place on the hutch?

Once the stain is dry it shouldn't be an issue: mine have a petroleum-based stain all over the inside walls of their playhouse and they're fine, but it was aired for a good few weeks before they occupied it!. You can always tack/nail/screw some 'sacrificial' wood over the top like a veneer, as they are chewers (if you didn't know whether they were or not I'd've said don't bother ;P).

I hesitate to use the hutch in that condition, I don't know why it is said that cedar is not good, I had some cedar pickets that were perfect to cut down and use for repairs...
She breeds them and this is her second buck so I may end up using the grates and tray and hardware and just add onto her current hutch to make a "condominium"
Gotta keep her bucks apart... unless there are some others out there with Like Keletkezes that can weigh in with similar input on the cedar and stain...

I built my hutches from old pallets, also the floor grates. To make them last longer I soaked them in vegetable oil and scorched them - they were like french fries for my rabbits. I solved that by painting them with diluted rabbit urine, they never chew on something soiled (when they have more tasty options, like willow twigs or hay).

No matter what wood, once it's sealed and unpalatable it's no harm, especially outside, that "no cedar!" thing is about shavings for litter trays for house bunnies - lots of surface area to fume, no air movement and replaced frequently with fresh shavings.

I need to read about an actual case that cedar is a problem, not those hypothetical "might be dangerous" that turns half the palatable and even healthy vegetation into bunny killers online.