keeping two rabbits with chickens?

[stumble_n_mumble]

so i have a pen that is 9x14 and 6 feet high that has 3 houses in it for my 4 ducks and 4 chickens and this is mainly for when the sun comes down. during the day all the birds are left out and free range the whole yard and i recently rescued my 2nd rabbit and they are both now living inside the cage during the day. they love burrowing running etc. yesterday i fell in one of their holes! lol i didnt mind but was worried about a bird falling in and didn't think it was very safe. so i am building a seperate pen just for the bunnies and it will be about 8x8 with a tented roof. the only concern is should i give them a foot under the cage to burrow and cover it with wire so they can't leave or wire the entire bottom with a small area to burrow??? if i dont let them burrow is it worse off for the bunnies? i dont feel like falling in a hole when i go in their to clean everyday lol. any advice???

 

[IcarusSomnio]

Rabbits don't HAVE to burrow, but females usually like too. Usually it's a sign that their pregnant and trying to build their nest. Are either of your rabbits female? Firm, plump bellies?

 

[stumble_n_mumble]

lol......... funny thing is this rabbit is a domestic but was thrown over into our backyard and it was running lose for about 3 weeks un known to us that she was living under our shed.... well my male is fixed so i know he couldn't knock her up but.... she has a pretty big belly and im hoping she is just fat but 3 weeks and was only living on grass ... i seem to think otherwise... :?

 

[stumble_n_mumble]

she always never lets him mount her and i have never seen him completely do anything because she moves and moves and moves and never sub-misses.

 

[IcarusSomnio]

Quote:
Yep, I'd be on bunny watch!

You may want to separate her into a nice sized cage, with a nest box, stray, paper to shred, etc. Rabbits can have young underground, but you do run the risk of them dying (domestic rabbits don't seem to be the greatest underground mothers) and when they do come up, their liable to be wild as a feral rabbit

My guess would be that her previous owners had an un-neutered male and didn't want baby bunnies to take care of, or just didn't like the female bunny to begin with. I know of a guy who lets his rabbits run willy-nilly around his yard, breed, and dig burrows. He doesn't have a very high success rate with keeping them alive though

 

[stumble_n_mumble]

Any way of telling when she gets really close?? I won't be caging her and just let nature take its course if I need to step in and bottle feed I will. I have my wildlife licensing.

 

[Akane]

Rabbits will dig whether pregnant or not. It's suggested that all pens either be wire bottomed or to bury water several feet deep all the way around. We were given a female once who definitely was not pregnant and she ate through several inches thick of stall mats, dug through compacted ag lime floor, and in to the gravel base in a 12' long 2' wide trench. I watched a vid on youtube of a bored male rabbit staked out in the yard with a harness and leash who started digging in the early afternoon and by night fall had a tunnel at least 8' long. European rabbits (which our domestics are descended from) just like to dig more than most of the native US species. Irregardless of whether they are pregnant or not.

Not being allowed to tunnel probably wouldn't bother a rabbit too much. Most rabbits are kept in either wire or solid bottom cages and never get a chance to dig. They don't seem to suffer any for it. However if you have a pregnant one you will need to provide somewhere to nest. Rabbits cannot move their kits after birth and they do not lay with their kits to keep them warm. The nest keeps the kits confined and warm for them. Rabbits will pull fur to add to an existing nesting site but usually not until right before they give birth. If you don't provide a nesting box (usually filled with hay) it will be hit or miss whether she has the time and ability to dig out a nest for them.

 

[stumble_n_mumble]

since i have fallen in the hole she was digging, she has started a new one... is this for her babies?

 

[La Mike]

Might be for babies might be just to cool down
When she gets close to dropping bunnies she will start pulling hair for a nest
Just watch for hair to be laying around or missing from her
Mainly around the legs first in my exp
All rabbits will dig on any non wire floor