I Need Your Opinions on Where to Keep a Pet Bunny!

[quailheart]

Hello everyone! I've been wanting a pet bunny as a companion animal for years and I have come very close to a decision. There are a few things I need to figure out before I get one though, and I would love your opinions.
Some people are able to let their rabbits free roam around their house, though I wish I could, I have two dogs that wouldn't exactly see a bunny as a fellow pet. Free roaming is not an option, nor is living outside, so that leaves me with letting them free roam in my bedroom or keeping them in a hutch in my bedroom or the basement. I thought a lot about keeping them in just an x pen, but I didn't feel like that was the safest or most sanitary option considering it would have to be in my small, carpeted bedroom.
I don't want to keep a rabbit in the basement because I feel like it wouldn't get enough attention or exercise time down there, plus the dogs have access to the basement and rabbits can get very stressed with predators in sight.
I feel like the most convenient place for a rabbit to be kept properly in my household is in my bedroom, where it can be free of my dogs and other commotion that goes on, where I can easily play with it and take daily care of it, and where it wouldn't get lonely for the majority of the day. What I would need to find a solution for if I kept a bunny in my room is a way to keep everything sanitary and a way to make hay less dusty and messy so that I'm not breathing in hay dust and rabbit dander all night long. Any other tips and tricks about owning a rabbit as a companion animal would be greatly appreciated!

 

[gimmie birdies]

Bunnys chew- cords, wood furniture, etc. You can have an outside pen, but know they dig. I had a bunny in a large wooden box with a lid, and a wired peep hole. They like to poo and pee in the same area. Let them chose, then you can put a litter box in that area, with a bit of their mess in it.

Bring the bun in the house supervised.

 

[Kiki]

I keep my rabbit indoors and I have zero issues with it being dusty.
I use horse stall pellets for the litter box and I scoop the litter box twice a day so there is no smell whatsoever coming from my rabbit area.

A glimpse of my rabbit area can be seen in this video. If you scroll through my channel you will see other videos that show more of the area.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/calling-all-rabbit-nutters.1491126/post-26095690

 

[Kiki]

A better view:

 

[Kiki]

Last one.

In this video pay attention to the hardware cloth walls I built.
You could easily build two TALL walls to put in a corner of your room to make a "cage/area" for a bun.
Tall because the dummies can jump high.

 

[EverythingDucks]

An xpen in the basement may be the best option. If you're worried about it getting lonely, (provided you have the space) a bonded pair could do well.
You can buy pens like this to keep hay more contained, rather than a wire pen.

Orchard grass is known for being less dusty. And horse stall pellets, like Kiki uses, won't make a mess. As for hair and dander, regular grooming will help. And some breeds, like Rex rabbits, shed much less than others.

As for the carpet, you could put a rug on top of it inside the rabbits pen. Or, if you could lay vinyl floor on top, that would be easy to clean.

I do not recommend using a hutch unless you also provide plenty of floor space too. Hutches are usually very small, and multiple floors don't really add to the space. Not to mention how expensive yet cheaply made they are.

 

[quailheart]

Thank you for the advice! The reason I want a bunny instead of a guinea pig or hamster is because they have more personality and make better companion animals. I feel like if I kept my bunny outside, or even in my basement, I wouldn't be able to have the bond I want to have with it and it would just become like any other small pet that you have to feed and water every day, and play with occasionally, which is why I've ruled out those options. Plus, my dogs frequently visit the basement and I don't have a good way of keeping them from doing so.
As for keeping a rabbit in a hutch in my bedroom, I would surround it with an xpen and always let the bunny have access to it. And I didn't know that about orchard grass, thanks for the info!
I'm still in school and I still live with my parents, so getting a rabbit is a matter of convincing them that I am able to keep a bunny's area sanitary and clean, safe from the dogs and not smelling bad. I'm always open to more tips and opinions on keeping bunnies, thanks for all the help so far!

By the way Kiki, I love your setup! And your bunny is adorable!

 

[quailheart]

How would something like this work so that the bunny wouldn't be directly on top of my carpet? I would put the xpen and hutch on top of it.

 

[EverythingDucks]

View attachment 3238970How would something like this work so that the bunny wouldn't be directly on top of my carpet? I would put the xpen and hutch on top of it.

That would work so long as the bunny couldn't get to the edges and chew it.

 

[Kiki]

Thank you for the advice! The reason I want a bunny instead of a guinea pig or hamster is because they have more personality and make better companion animals. I feel like if I kept my bunny outside, or even in my basement, I wouldn't be able to have the bond I want to have with it and it would just become like any other small pet that you have to feed and water every day, and play with occasionally, which is why I've ruled out those options. Plus, my dogs frequently visit the basement and I don't have a good way of keeping them from doing so.
As for keeping a rabbit in a hutch in my bedroom, I would surround it with an xpen and always let the bunny have access to it. And I didn't know that about orchard grass, thanks for the info!
I'm still in school and I still live with my parents, so getting a rabbit is a matter of convincing them that I am able to keep a bunny's area sanitary and clean, safe from the dogs and not smelling bad. I'm always open to more tips and opinions on keeping bunnies, thanks for all the help so far!

By the way Kiki, I love your setup! And your bunny is adorable!

Litter box training was my number one requirement.
I refuse to deal with rabbit piss smell. When I tell you there is no smell coming from my rabbit area I mean there is none. The pine pellets work perfectly but I scoop the littler box twice a day.
I would use this as a selling point to the parents.