My rabbit hutch is DONE....no more babies in the bathroom!! YAY

[bayyjayy]

So, I posted about using a rabbit hutch...and about what you do with your used wood shavings......I found a rabbit hutch a hour drive from my house....went and got it.... needed new legs and hubby got it done today....so excited! This is their nighttime pen....they are in a pen each day in my yard.

Do you think I need to put down anything for their feet? This is not a slippery surface:

Side view.....a wind block:

 

[kuntrygirl]

Looks very good. Where will the poop and urine fall? Are you planning on cleaning it every day?

 

[bayyjayy]

Oh, definitely cleaning it out every day!!!!! I will spray it out every morning.

 

[kuntrygirl]

Sounds good!

ETA: I just noticed that this was under ducks. So, your ducks will be going in there and not rabbits? Sorry, I didn't notice the thread. So there will just be poop.

That is great !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[bayyjayy]

LOL....yeah, ducks, not rabbits. Been trying to find a better way to house my ducklings instead of in my house. Hopefully this will work....hubby put a lot of thought and effort into it.

 

[kuntrygirl]

He did an awesome job!!!!

 

[crj]

Very nice! Great idea. I use my feed bags to cover the floor and put shavings on top of that. The bags are much easier to wash off then a wooden floor. Besides, getting a wood floor wet everyday can't be good. The bags are great because you can toss them and just get another one. A good way to recycle. The shavings are tossed under the bushes or around the trees.

 

[TLWR]

Quote:
I hose out the wood floor of the duck house every day and haven't had an issue. I did put several coats of exterior latex paint on the floor first though.

 

[FenDruadin]

Awesome!! The only thing I can think of is the potential for a raccoon to reach through that wire. I know it sounds unlikely, but I've lost a half-grown duckling through chain link (raccoon reached in and grabbed it by the head... it was gruesome so I won't go into further detail) and also a quail through 1/4" wire--the raccoon literally grabbed a toe and pulled an entire leg through and... again, gruesome. So I can definitely see a duckling going to sleep by that wire and...

No problem, though. The solution is either plexiglass or other solid material around the bottom three inches or so, or just a finer-gauge wire, again just around the bottom few inches. 1/4" wire is fine for ducklings--there's nothing on the duck small enough to be pulled through that size, so it's not like with quail. (With the quail, I solved the problem by putting a second layer of wire about four inches from the first, so the raccoon couldn't grab anything).

Oh, also--you might want to think about a way to lock it. I know I go on and on about raccoons, but I tell ya they are the world's worst predator (except bears, I suppose, which we thank goodness don't have here) in part because they are SMART. They can figure out how to open a latch. Latches need to be either physically difficult to manipulate (i.e., require strength, not just understanding, in order to operate) or actually locked with a key or combination. You can purchase these rings with a bar that clamps shut (wish I could remember what they're called) and they work well, because you have to have strong fingers to use them (my 7-year-old can do it, but just barely, and he often snaps his fingers in the process), and they're easy to install. Anyone know what they're called and can make this easier? lol

It looks really great, though, and SO much better than having ducklings in the house! I also have rabbit-hutch-like cages outdoors that I use. Mine do have wire bottoms, but I put a layer of straw over the bottom and it works great because the water falls through (not the poop though, alas), and I can just scrape the straw out and put in fresh to clean it. I just tuck the old straw up under the brooder and it catches the moisture and decomposes quietly over time. Of course, mine all have every single opening diminished to 1/4" or less, and the two-layer wire on the bottom to prevent reaching through from the bottom.

Good luck and enjoy!

 

[Going Quackers]

I like it! i to was going to mention about the reach n grab(coons) and the door latches(again coons) Those buggers are a royal pain.. I even chain lock my run at night and the ducks aren't even in there, just to keep them OUT because i know they'll just flip the latch on the dog kennel otherwise.