I want to have a long ramble because I've been giving myself periodic anxiety over this. I also don't really have friends and I think those who do talk to me glaze over a bit when I start talking about it.
My current accommodation (two occupants) is this:
1 x 6ft x 4ft double decker shed, handmade.
1 x 5ft x ~3ft aviary on one side, also handmade.
1 x 7ft x 4ft metal run on the front.
A puppy panel enclosure approx 9ft x 6ft that they are only allowed in under supervision (not secure).
The shed spent over a decade as a fence before it spent the last eight years as a shed. It was not designed to be a shed and the floor and bottoms of the walls have seen better days. Unfortunately the damage is only really visible when I do a full clean-out of the bottom floor so I can easily delude myself the rest of the time that “maybe it isn't so bad”. There's also no proper foundation. When I erected it, it was just placed on top of breeze blocks so goodness knows what is underneath it now.
My older rabbit (nearly 8 years old) has chronic nasal infections and if the shed is contributing to that at all, it has to go.
They don't have a large area of ground space- while they have a lot of area in pieces, they can only really run around when they are in the puppy panel enclosure and they clearly enjoy racing around in circles.
If I move house in a few years (has to happen at some point I guess) the current accommodation will not be able to come with me.
As an aside, they usually spend all of their time in the upper level of the shed or in their aviary- they only really come downstairs to use the lower litter tray, to watch people in the garden or to gain access to their panel run, so half of their accommodation seems to be fairly wasted!
So I've been thinking of getting new accommodation.
The area that I've got to work with, largely 'landlocked' by immovable objects, is a maximum of 9ft long (dictated by my mother) and 7ft wide.
My idea is to make an aviary this time, partly because it is easy to rig up but partly because if/when I move house an aviary can be dismantled and panels can in theory be added to it so it is adaptable. Kickboards are a must because we are in cat territory (we also have one of our own who likes to go check the rabbits out) and also have evidence of foxes in the garden.
The current plan that I have (the last bout of optimism actually bore some fruit...) calls for the ground space to be preserved so they have a solid run-around area, with the back third of the aviary being divided horizontally every 2ft- the middle and upper sections will be a double decker hutch. At the front, a 3x3ft tower with three levels. I'm not sure I can explain the idea very well but I do have concept drawings... The side aviary might be salvageable and the puppy panel enclosure can also be saved for future use.
Aside from the skyrocketing price estimate, my anxiety is being stoked by a few issues.
~ Panels come in 3ft wide so deviating from 6ft wide is extremely complicated.
~ I can't find a single seller that sells all of the panels I want.
~ I think the seller who is doing the kickboard panels I want might be somewhat ripping me off on price given that I've found another seller with half-cladded panels for significantly cheaper!
~ The design that I have, at 9ft x 6ft, makes the indoor area two levels of 6x3ft, which I find unsatisfactory. I think part of the reason for this is that their current indoor area is 6x4ft making it a downgrade. 3ft feels too thin. This is a big problem for me right now.
~ I could theoretically make the hutch area 6x4ft but this complicates the rest of the design.
~ I had hoped to save their existing aviary by attaching it to the back of this aviary design. Here's the problem- I'm not sure that I can. If I can put it in, it would be sitting very snugly between a steep mud bank and a tree so much so that the doors would not be openable. I think I can reverse one of the doors to go inwards but gaining access to it would be awkward. The other option would be to put a crawl space through the bottom of the new aviary so I have to wriggle through like an idiot.
~ The whole idea of demolishing their accommodation and rebuilding a new one is very daunting. I get a lot of anxiety simply over big changes.
~ The cost involved is even more significant if one isn't satisfied with what one is creating- if I'm throwing out hundreds for this I want to be happy with what I'm making.
~ I booked time off work in July to do this and suddenly I've hit anxiety again, which is now worse because if I leave it too late things might not arrive in time if the postage is weeks.
~ One of my big fears with my girl in particular is that, in time, her mobility might decline. She hasn't got arthritis or shown any sign of it, but I think this is largely brought about by my first rabbit developing spondylosis and becoming disabled (and the reality that, realistically, it could happen). That said, my current accommodation wouldn't be fantastic for a disabled rabbit either; such a bun would be limited to the bottom level of the shed and the front run, with an awkward step in between.
All in all, not feeling good about this right now :?
My current accommodation (two occupants) is this:
1 x 6ft x 4ft double decker shed, handmade.
1 x 5ft x ~3ft aviary on one side, also handmade.
1 x 7ft x 4ft metal run on the front.
A puppy panel enclosure approx 9ft x 6ft that they are only allowed in under supervision (not secure).
The shed spent over a decade as a fence before it spent the last eight years as a shed. It was not designed to be a shed and the floor and bottoms of the walls have seen better days. Unfortunately the damage is only really visible when I do a full clean-out of the bottom floor so I can easily delude myself the rest of the time that “maybe it isn't so bad”. There's also no proper foundation. When I erected it, it was just placed on top of breeze blocks so goodness knows what is underneath it now.
My older rabbit (nearly 8 years old) has chronic nasal infections and if the shed is contributing to that at all, it has to go.
They don't have a large area of ground space- while they have a lot of area in pieces, they can only really run around when they are in the puppy panel enclosure and they clearly enjoy racing around in circles.
If I move house in a few years (has to happen at some point I guess) the current accommodation will not be able to come with me.
As an aside, they usually spend all of their time in the upper level of the shed or in their aviary- they only really come downstairs to use the lower litter tray, to watch people in the garden or to gain access to their panel run, so half of their accommodation seems to be fairly wasted!
So I've been thinking of getting new accommodation.
The area that I've got to work with, largely 'landlocked' by immovable objects, is a maximum of 9ft long (dictated by my mother) and 7ft wide.
My idea is to make an aviary this time, partly because it is easy to rig up but partly because if/when I move house an aviary can be dismantled and panels can in theory be added to it so it is adaptable. Kickboards are a must because we are in cat territory (we also have one of our own who likes to go check the rabbits out) and also have evidence of foxes in the garden.
The current plan that I have (the last bout of optimism actually bore some fruit...) calls for the ground space to be preserved so they have a solid run-around area, with the back third of the aviary being divided horizontally every 2ft- the middle and upper sections will be a double decker hutch. At the front, a 3x3ft tower with three levels. I'm not sure I can explain the idea very well but I do have concept drawings... The side aviary might be salvageable and the puppy panel enclosure can also be saved for future use.
Aside from the skyrocketing price estimate, my anxiety is being stoked by a few issues.
~ Panels come in 3ft wide so deviating from 6ft wide is extremely complicated.
~ I can't find a single seller that sells all of the panels I want.
~ I think the seller who is doing the kickboard panels I want might be somewhat ripping me off on price given that I've found another seller with half-cladded panels for significantly cheaper!
~ The design that I have, at 9ft x 6ft, makes the indoor area two levels of 6x3ft, which I find unsatisfactory. I think part of the reason for this is that their current indoor area is 6x4ft making it a downgrade. 3ft feels too thin. This is a big problem for me right now.
~ I could theoretically make the hutch area 6x4ft but this complicates the rest of the design.
~ I had hoped to save their existing aviary by attaching it to the back of this aviary design. Here's the problem- I'm not sure that I can. If I can put it in, it would be sitting very snugly between a steep mud bank and a tree so much so that the doors would not be openable. I think I can reverse one of the doors to go inwards but gaining access to it would be awkward. The other option would be to put a crawl space through the bottom of the new aviary so I have to wriggle through like an idiot.
~ The whole idea of demolishing their accommodation and rebuilding a new one is very daunting. I get a lot of anxiety simply over big changes.
~ The cost involved is even more significant if one isn't satisfied with what one is creating- if I'm throwing out hundreds for this I want to be happy with what I'm making.
~ I booked time off work in July to do this and suddenly I've hit anxiety again, which is now worse because if I leave it too late things might not arrive in time if the postage is weeks.
~ One of my big fears with my girl in particular is that, in time, her mobility might decline. She hasn't got arthritis or shown any sign of it, but I think this is largely brought about by my first rabbit developing spondylosis and becoming disabled (and the reality that, realistically, it could happen). That said, my current accommodation wouldn't be fantastic for a disabled rabbit either; such a bun would be limited to the bottom level of the shed and the front run, with an awkward step in between.
All in all, not feeling good about this right now :?
