Lol your subject line made me laugh. Sometimes I wonder the same thing about my Leroy. And then I just realize that the only reason he’s acting dumb is to outwit me.

First of all, thank you thank you thank you for rescuing those bunnies!

Have you tried a litter box AND the hidey-box/bed? Maybe they’re telling you they want both! Bunnies actually do need a nice secure home to hide in to sleep or to retreat to when they’re feeling scared. I strongly encourage you to use a litter box with them – since there are two, youll probably need to clean the box once a day so that they don’t sit in wet litter and get urine scald on their feet. If they’re in the outside pen, I would think that it would be safer for the buns for the poop and pee to be collected in a litter box rather than falling down underneath the cage to attract predators like cats, owls, dogs, etc….

and on that note… is there ANY way at all you can bring them in and put them in a pen in the corner of a room or something? Even a well ventilated garage would be better than nothing. Domesticated rabbits really aren’t meant to live outside. Sure, wild rabbits do it, but also they only live for a couple years max. A lot of things that wild rabbits do don’t apply to our pet buns since they are really such different animals. Being outside means being exposed to the elements and predators.  This site strongly advocates for house bunnies, and rabbits are just so much fun, you’ll love watching their antics as they’re playing inside with the family!

Also, wire is really not the best type of flooring for bunnies. They don’t have pads on their feet like dogs or cats – all they have is fur on the bottoms of their feet to protect their feetsies.  Sitting on wire can actually create what’s known as “sore hocks” – bare patches of skin on their hocks that can become inflamed and painful and progress into open wounds which can get infected. If it gets to the point of open wounds and infection, it makes it very painful for the rabbit to walk, and once something like that starts, it’s hard to reverse. My rabbit has this condition (rexes like my Leroy are prone to it b/c they have much thinner than normal fur on their feet) – he’s had calluses on his hocks since I adopted him from the shelter, and though the skin is just pink and calloused, our vet doesn’t think the fur will ever grow back, so he has to have soft surfaces to sit on to make sure nothing flares up. If you have to keep them in their current hutch (which honestly, sounds too small for a permanent home for the bunnies) try covering the wire with some cheap linolium tiles you can pick up at your local home improvement store or a low pile carpet or fleece blankets.  However, the carpet can wreak havoc on a bunny’s tummy if swallowed and cause a blockage, so if the buns show any interest in eating the carpet, I’d avoid that. Even the fleece needs to be checked every so often to make sure they’re not ingesting it. And a bunny kept caged all day will start to chew/eat things out of boredom.

yes that title got my attention too.  how funny

They play dumb to outsmart us I think.

I think it would be worth considering making a place for them inside your home, which would resolve the cold issue immediately. They can also be on a floor, carpet, or tiles that can be laid down, possibly inside an x-pen if you don’t want another cage. It’s possible that they would develop regular litter box habits under more comfortable circumstances. Sometimes its as simple as switching to another kind of litter, and making it clear where the food is and where they should go to pee. Usually a bunny picks a spot they go in, and you kind of slip the litter pan into that place so they just continue. But the cold may be adversely effecting them at this stage. Below freezing is hard on them, as well as risky for their water supply to drink.

Check out the Habitats section of the site to see some interesting solutions to indoor spaces.

It’s good that you thought of giving them a solid surface to rest on, but…. One thing to be aware of when housing bunnies in/on wood is that some types of wood give of those delightful aromatics that make those wooden chests smell so good. Those same “delightful” aromatic oils are thought to cause liver and kidney damage in rabbits and small animals, so you want to avoid certain types of wood, especially cedar or any wood that has been chemically treated since the bunnies may chew the wood and since the chemicals wont be healthy for them to be in contact with/inhaling.

I hope you can get something figured out! My opinion is that even if their living space is decreased, they’d still be better off inside, as long as they get an hour or two to run around a room each day.  What about putting them in a bathroom or a spare bedroom or anywhere with a door so you can just keep the dog out of the “bunny room”? Definitely try the litter boxes – believe me, once the bunnies are trained, it’ll make cleaning their cage so much easier than pulling out wooden boards and scraping dried poo off of them… with a litter box all you have to do is take the box outside and dump it in a compost pile or empty the box into a trash bag, refill it with litter and hay, and you’re good to go! As long as you stay on top of the litter box cleaning, they wont smell (ok the unaltered female might – hormones are stinky!) and won’t be too messy inside the house.

Well…. do the best that you can for them under the circumstances. Upstairs, even if it’s uninsulated, might be an ok option if there’s nothing else. As long as there’s nothing that they can hurt themselves on if they’re having playtime up there.

Are you planning on keeping the bunnies or are you going to be trying to rehome them? If the pair have been living together for awhile now and if you haven’t noticed any fighting, they are bonded, and they MUST got as a pair to a new home. When bunnies bond, it’s pretty much for life, so it would be devastating to them both if they were to be separated now.

What type of dog kennel for you have?  Is the top enclosed?  Bunnies can jump very high, and have also been known to climb up the sides of enclosures… A couple BB members have bunnies that do climb. What about the bottom? Does it sit on the grass?  If so, you’ll need to be careful about them digging under the fence.  It’s generally recommended for outdoor bunny pens to have the wire burried beneath the ground so the rabbit cant burrow out.

I did notice they liked to chew the cedar. Nothing is chemically treated thou. Maybe I can use the dog kennel to keep them safe while it’s cold. Our space is so limited inside with the kids, the dog, all of our crap and the up stairs is unfinished and uninsulated. Thought about that also.

I don’t want them inside, but I also have a resposibility to them. (dang it!)

I really really really suggest brining them in-so much better; not only is it safer and warmer-but you will discover how cool they are and they will become a member of teh family
Check out these NIC condos-you can build them ‘up’ instead of out and actually fit them into a relatively small space!

https://binkybunny.com/BUNNYINFO/CoolHabitats/tabid/71/Default.aspx

One thing you should also note is that bunnies will poop on things to mark the territory. It actually sounds like they will be easy to litter train based on how they adapted to using the side room as their potty room.

Is there a particular reason you do not want them inside? I know that several of my friends that have dogs didn’t really consider rabbits pets in the same way that they did dogs, until they realized that rabbits are just as intelligent and have just as much personality. Bunnies aren’t meant to stay in a hutch or cage all the time, they really need time to be outside and run around and get exercise just like any other pet.

If you put the flooring back in their cage, which I think is a good idea, it will be a good opportunity for you to also litter train them. This requires some discipline, but when they poop on the floor and not in the litterbox, move their poops into the litterbox, and clean the floor a couple times a day. This will begin to teach them that the poops belong in the litterbox.

I am so glad you are looking for ways to keep them warm as 20 F is much too cold. Bunnies can do okay in 50F if they have a warm refuge, but once it gets colder than that you have to find other ways to keep them warm.

As far as why they are doing what they are doing – Though these bunnies are domestic, they can still carry many of the wild instincts – For example, their wild cousins dig out a section of their burrow that is used for the bathroom and so this little hideout may be their new indoor loo! LOL. The other thing about hideout boxes is some bunnies will not feel safe unless there are two exit/entrances. Being prey animals, feeling trapped is not good and one exit/entrance can make many bunnies feel like that. If you say it already has two exit/entrances, then….shut my mouth, I do not know why they wouldn’t want to huddle inside out of the elements.

But at this point, with the temps that you have said, it a mute point anyway, as it just too dang cold for them to be outside right now. Do you have a heated garage? Or at least one that is warm enough? You might have already answered that – it’s getting late, and I’m a bit boggled eyed right now.

When you settle things down and have a little money, you may want to look into getting the female rabbit spayed. Domestic rabbits have an 85% chance of contracting uterine cancer by the time they’re 3-5 years old.

You’ll be amazed at how much personality they have now that they are inside, and now that you’ll see more of them. Trust me, they get addictive…

You will be impressed how fun rabbits truely are as inside animals. My husband has always been a dog guy and grew up w/ an outside dog. we got a rabbit almost 7yrs ago because im so allergic to cats & dogs. But my husband was so impressed w/ our first bun Carrera. She loves attention, loves to play chase, plays w/ all her toys and has such an amazing personality (as does the other 3 we have). Not to mention that ALL of our 4 buns littertrained themselves! Just give them a cat litter box filled w/ litter and topped with hay- buns poop while they eat and ours taught themselves w/o our help.

My husband always says people are crazy not to consider rabbits as pets. When you have buns outside your buns are just “surviving.” You dont get to see their fun and happy side. You will begin seeing them jump up in the air and twisting their bodies called binkies (showing off and showing how happy they are), you will see them flop over on their sides for naps and they look half dead but this just shows how happy and safe they feel.

My husband has never, ever been one for cats or small furry animals. But our first bun won his heart quickly so we got a second, and a third, and a fourth… Our one bun follows my husband around when he is out of his pen. He thinks my husband is his hero and he will just come and sit beside him happy as a clam.

You might be surprised…these buns just might turn you to the dark side of rabbits! lol

And..does it help to know Clint Eastwood and as well as a lot of other “famous” people also have bunnies?!

You will be impressed how fun rabbits truely are as inside animals. My husband has always been a dog guy and grew up w/ an outside dog. we got a rabbit almost 7yrs ago because im so allergic to cats & dogs. But my husband was so impressed w/ our first bun Carrera. She loves attention, loves to play chase, plays w/ all her toys and has such an amazing personality (as does the other 3 we have). Not to mention that ALL of our 4 buns littertrained themselves! Just give them a cat litter box filled w/ litter and topped with hay- buns poop while they eat and ours taught themselves w/o our help.

My husband always says people are crazy not to consider rabbits as pets. When you have buns outside your buns are just “surviving.” You dont get to see their fun and happy side. You will begin seeing them jump up in the air and twisting their bodies called binkies (showing off and showing how happy they are), you will see them flop over on their sides for naps and they look half dead but this just shows how happy and safe they feel.

My husband has never, ever been one for cats or small furry animals. But our first bun won his heart quickly so we got a second, and a third, and a fourth… Our one bun follows my husband around when he is out of his pen. He thinks my husband is his hero and he will just come and sit beside him happy as a clam.

You might be surprised…these buns just might turn you to the dark side of rabbits! lol

And..does it help to know Clint Eastwood and as well as a lot of other “famous” people also have bunnies?!

Hedi, I loved your post! My hubby wasn’t into the rabbit idea at first either, but he knew we weren’t ready for a dog and I needed to get something furry. He somewhat grudging agreed to get Otto, and now he’s as in love with him as I am! He says we can never be without a bun again (even after we get a dog or two) and when we have a house of our own he’d be ok with up to 4 buns. They really do steal your heart if you let them.

Same with my hubby, he never thought of bunnies as pets. He adores Monkey even though she totally ignores him, and now he is just smitten with Max, is always hanging out by Max’s pen in the evenings. It’s cute He gets all excited when Max does a total flop or stands up trying to sniff my hubby over the top of the pen

My bunnies are outside as well… and I have the same type of set up for the hutch… my female took to the new sleeping area the best except she would eat the hay. so I just filled it, she now has about 3 inch think of hay in the room and dosent eat it much anymore. my male on the other hand didnt eat the hay but used the room as his bathroom.. I moved the room to the other side of the hutch. come to find out that just where he wanted to go and now that the bedroom isnt there any more there are no issues.. My advise is to put more hay and move it to the other side see if they learn its a bed not a potty.