Rabbit basics. Help please :)

[Tiggerandfriends]

I have two male rabbits that live in a wooden hutch. I use straw and shavings. Don’t put wire down, the wire does damage to their feet. I highly recommend giving them lots of different toys. Some toys help with their nails, others help with their teeth.

 

[llombardo]

I have 4 in individual hutches with small runs. I'm extending the runs this year. They will be a year old. Once they go through the grass I add sod. Chicken wire is under thd hutches and extend out. They each have a wood toy clipped to the hutch to chew--one decided to chew thd ramp. They all have beds, but tore them up to get the fluff out to keep warm--one flipped the bed and sleeps under it(now I know) next winter I am getting the fluff they sell at the store, so they can make it cozy. I filled the hutches with straw and they made their own little thing for the winter. They also have heated water bottles and I got these discs you put in the microwave and they stay warm for 10 hours--worked well. They have baskets for hay that they can actually nibble on and they each have a dried grass ball they play with and nibble on. it's hard to feed greens in the winter because they freeze. Mine did not rally eat any hay, but chose to eat the pellets(over the winter)

 

[BantamLover21]

If you train your rabbits to use a litter box, any bedding would work (shavings, etc.). However, a wire floor would be just fine and it would potentially keep them cleaner. Wire does not hurt the feet of most rabbits--basically all the breeders I know and myself raise rabbits on wire with no problems. Only heavy rabbits or those that are prone to bare foot pads (like some strains of Rex/Mini Rex) require solid floors.

 

[Hazelbunny]

Ok and as far as footing goes? What do you think for a space that big. Just shavings?

Do not use cedar or pine shavings! They can cause respiratory problems. Any other shavings are fine.

 

[Wyandottes7]

Do not use cedar or pine shavings! They can cause respiratory problems. Any other shavings are fine.

I have used pine shavings in the litter trays/dropping trays of my rabbits before, with no ill effects. Right now I'm actually using pine pellets (sold as horse bedding) which are very efficient and work great. I also use pine shavings for my poultry and have had no respiratory issues with them.

I'm sure there is potential for there to be a problem (and I would never use cedar shavings), but I simply haven't experienced any issues with pine shavings or pine materials. If you can find aspen or some other non-pine/cedar shavings, that may be safest, but I don't expect you would have a problem using pine.

 

[mike1970]

I would use a good strong gauge screening around the stall so they don't chew up the wood also have a sleeping box (nesting box) for them to sleep

 

[Tale of Tails Rabbitry]

Not that you will need to put down wire in your situation, but I beg to differ about wire damaging rabbits' feet as was suggested above. Much depends on the wire, but I had a rabbit come to me with sore hocks and she healed up very nicely in my wire cage. We use a heavy gauge ½”x1” galvanized after weld. Never have had a problem with sore hocks.

 

[GracieJ]

Half of my lovely rabbits are free range outdoors and half are indoors free range. The amount of space you're going to give them sounds fine. They LOVE to dig, make sure they can't dig out because they will. Give them lots of hay, vegetables...fruit to be given sparingly and as a treat. High quality pellets are a must as well.

Litter trays can be used, my indoor ones use them and it's adorable lol. Find the corner they litter in the most and put a tray in that spot that they can easily jump in and out of and fill it with newspaper and hay.

Mine LOVE cardboard boxes to sit in, chew, rip up, throw around, it's so much fun watching them play in them as well. Whenever/ if ever you get something delivered from Amazon, keep the box and give it to them, they'll love you for it. They like wooden toys, balls with a bell in. As another poster also said, I have chairs outside that my rabbits love to sit on.

Water - they can drink from a bottle or a bowl, although bowls can get knocked over and tipped if not ceramic/heavy, they can also become dirty fast.

As for bedding, use Straw - shavings and saw dust are dangerous if inhaled. Put newspaper down first then straw, that will provide extra insulation if needed. If you have no grass, you can grow it in tubs/pots/large dog baskets and let them feed on it. If no soil, do the same thing with that.

As for pairing - two is always best. Rabbits can fight and it is always nasty when they do. Best pairings are boy and girl or two girls. Get them spayed and neutered although getting the boys done is a safer option - they do better under anaesthetic and its a quicker operation therefore lessening the time under.

Check for any fighting and if you see it immediately separate them.

Predators - foxes (as well as other predators) can and will choose your rabbits for their dinner so ensure cage and run are completely predator proof. Rabbits are sturdy and fast but 95% of the time they cannot win against a fox. You may go years without having an issue and then one night it happens (trust me). If you think it's might not safe, or 'it looks alright' - it's not safe at all.

Cold/Warm weather - Rabbits grow an extra layer of fur in the winter which provides them with excellent insulation. They then lose this layer come spring/summer. They do better in the cold rather than the warm so when weather is hot, ensure extra ventilation and use ice treats/ice cubes with veggies in to help them cool down.

Routinely groom and check their bottoms for any mess and their feet for any sores etc. ONLY bath your rabbit if his/her bottom is messy and it won't come off with a cloth/paper towel - if you need to bath your rabbit only bathe their bottoms.

And PLEASE watch out for anything that doesn't look dangerous but can be e.g. drains/gutters with no coverings on, pools, ponds, large areas of deep water, unstable concrete slabs, bricks etc. I know it sounds silly and common sense but some people don't think of these things and have lost rabbits to them.

Hope this helps, any more questions feel free to ask, rabbits are wonderful animals, they each have their own characters/personalities and love human company as well as their own

 

[WildCHILD400]

You can use straw it's nice and warm for cooler days. Wood shavings can cause respiratory problems. Good luck!

 

[RatchetRev]

No I appreciate it. I am trying to do my research but it seems most people keep them in hutches and I’m having trouble finding out how to keep them in a space that big that’s not outside/grass. I don’t want to do it wrong lol I’m a perfectionist when it comes to my animals.
The biggest hang up for me was what bedding/footing since I have no experience with rabbits yet.

I appreciate your feedback

If your using a stall that is a good size I would either use Aspen shavings (I don't use pine for smaller animals) or you can stick with the concrete floor (or even tile it or whatever to make it easy to clean). If you do the bare floor thing I would set up litter boxes and try to litter train but also have soft fleece spots for the bunny to snuggle up into.

Oh and keep hay in or right above litter box, rabbits poop as they eat so it will help with clean up. Oh and yes rabbits do sometimes eat there own pop to get what they could absorbed the first time.