Bunny proofing in room

Hi there,
Hoping to get a bunny soon! Just a few questions about bunny proofing for a free roam bunny in my room. One - Would clear duck/packing tape on the skirting boards be a good idea to stop bunny chewing on the boards? I had heard somewhere that because of the smooth texture, bunnies would be less inclined to chew. Does this have any truth? Two - Do bunny's chew on blankets/sheets on your bed/floor etc or is it not a preferable chewing option? (lots of chew toys will be provided) Three - How do you guys protect your valuable wooden furniture? Would the tape option be good there on the corners or should I just put a puppy pen up? I understand the furniture would get a bit of a battering, just thinking about detering the bunny.(Thinking for a desk and chair). The does and chair cannot be temoved from the room.

Unfortunately it will depend on your bunnies, one of ours is a chewer and will start nibbling on furniture/skirting/curtains after a few moments of free ranging, her previous partner and current partner just don't touch anything.
We have set up a 8'x8' puppy pen to save our house, any free range time has to be closely monitored

Good luck

Richard

Sent from my Moto E (4) Plus using Tapatalk

First of all I’m so happy you’re free roaming your bunny, it’s truly the best option for most cases in my opinion. I agree with what others have said in that it depends on the rabbit. Most rabbits like chewing wooden furniture so you’re almost definitely going to have to protect that. I’ve not heard of using duck tape for this, and whilst it may work, I’d be careful as if ingested this could be very harmful for your bunny. The best alternatives I’ve heard are using corner protectors on wooden tables or skirting, which you can get from appliance stores or amazon, as these are made of thick plastic and I doubt would be appetising your bunnies for chewing. Also, pet safe anti-chew Apple cider spray which we have bought from amazon also tends to deter rabbits from chewing wooden furniture etc., but not all rabbits respond to this however it is a great option if they do! As for chewing blankets etc, some bunnies will and some won’t, one of mine likes to dig and chew and has put holes in many blankets and clothes, but doesn’t tend to invent them and so I can give her blankets for comfort and a part of her free roam set up. I’d just say you should pay close attention to what your bunny does with blankets and remove them if you see them chewing/ingesting them as opposed to digging and making a bed with them as this tends to be okay, whereas ingesting can obviously cause problems like GI stasis. To prevent your bunny chewing also make sure that they have lots of toys, especially chew toys to distract and deter them from chewing your things. Apple sticks, sisal and seagrass mats, as well as cardboard and a variety of other pet safe chew toys are great from this, most can be bought from amazon or other pet retailers such as small pet select.

Hope it helps!

Thank you all for the help! I had thought about the corner protectors and that is what I will probably use, but was just wondering if there was anything less bulky, bringing up the tape idea. If the bunny really likes chewing the skirting, I will probably use pexi-glass just to cover the boards. To start, I may try the tape idea, just to see if it works!

You mention getting a bunny. They are very much happier in pairs.

Best of luck with chew proofing, you have been given some good advice.

The rescue where my two indoor rabbits came from warned me that one of them was a chewer, he sure is!!! His friend just isnt bothered. She sits quietly by whilst he chomps away. He likes wooden shelving and his wooden box. Luckily the skirting boards are fine.