Help me figure out a ramp!

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BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

This topic has 14sd replies, 5 voices, and was last updated 10 years, 11 months ago by Whobott.

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- 05/30/2014 at 10:01 PM
  KytKattin
  Participant
  1195 posts
  I have pictured here Eclipse’s cage. I have devised a plan to give her a little more space, while also not sticking out like a sore thumb in my living room. I have a lot of NICs, but they look so weird when I try to build something with them when connected with the ex-pen. Keep in mind that Eclipse is a senior bunny, so her ex-pen is not very tall except in the back (and if this works I will remove the short panels). I don’t really have to worry about her jumping out, but it also means that I have to be mindful of what I build so that it is not too steep. Also, please ignore where the hay and water bowl is, as I will be rearranging things more if this does work. The door is to the left of the litter box, so if I can move the litter box as well that would be just peachy.
  
  So, what you see here is an ex-pen with laminate flooring for the base, which is curled up the sides and covered with pine wood for her chewing pleasure. The sea-foam green thing is what was the base of a Superpet or other undersized cage. As you can see, she has chewed it to her liking, but it also takes up a large amount of her cage space. Making the cage larger is not an option at this point, as a square is too difficult to clean, and space doesn’t permit me making it go further to either side (it’s a really small house. )
  
  At first I was trying to come up with a plan where I built a second story out of wood and stilts and other things, but there are a few problems with that. While I technically could build something like that, I do not have a lot of tools at my disposal and you know, money. So instead I have this plastic shelf (that is part of a much larger system) that she actually had before she moved in with me. She never jumped on it, but she used it like she uses the Olive Oil box, basically as a den/shelter, and there were plants kept on top. It is nice and stable though, and as you can see, raises the green base up nicely. So it is just a matter of making something so she can get her bunny butt up there. Back before I got her, when she was living in a Superpet cage that was even smaller than the base you see here, she did have a second level that she used, so I have no doubt that she would use it. If I can avoid it, I do not want to cut the legs of the shelf, but I will if a ramp would just be too steep.
  
  I plan on having my math minded boyfriend figure out the slope of the ramp, but I would like some input on where the ramp should go. My first thought is to have it on the right side (there is a little more than 6 inches to work with, more than enough), but I could also have it start where the water dish is and go up the front. I could also move the ex-pen door to the left front spot, so don’t worry about that. Thanks for reading if you made it through my rambling!
- 05/30/2014 at 10:16 PM
  JackRabbit
  Participant
  5451 posts
  What about parallel to the green box — up the ramp, turn right, hop in green box? Or, same concept but yo the right of the box? You dont want the ramp too steep so it will need to be somewhat long (maybe with carpet and rumble strips).
  
  When we built our first condo, my husband made ramps, attached hay mats and rumble strips for traction. We’re getting ready to build our 2nd condo, and I ordered ramps from leithpetwerks.com. They were something like $16 and some change each, but came with carpet and rumble strips already attached.
- 05/30/2014 at 11:06 PM
  KytKattin
  Participant
  1195 posts
  I do like the idea of putting it on the right side more than the front, just because it is chewed down more on that side, and also so it would not obstruct the lower part of the cage as much. I really like those ramps from Leith! Too bad shipping is so much, but I think I will definitely build something similar. I think also I need to have a little landing at the top so she can more easily turn into the green box. Hopefully she doesn’t want to just sleep on the landing!
  
  What about stairs instead of a ramp? Is there any benefit to that/would I be able to make it steeper?
- 05/30/2014 at 11:23 PM
  JackRabbit
  Participant
  5451 posts
  You might want to stick with a ramp since you have a senior bunny, same with not making it too steep. My buns are young, but I’ve heard that mobility can become an issue with senior buns and having to hop up stairs may become too much. A landing is a good idea. You might also consider cutting a lower opening where the landing meets the green box to make it easy to get in and out of and to encourage use of that “doorway”. Make sure to sand the cut edges of the green box if you do cut a doorway. Underneath the ramp will provide an additional hidey place (litterbox privacy or bed maybe?)
  
  I would have thought shipping from leith wouldn’t have been so bad since you are west coast. All the good bunny stuff seems to be out your way. I’m in Virginia so I just have to accept high bunny stuff shipping as a fact of life (sad face).
- 05/30/2014 at 11:30 PM
  JackRabbit
  Participant
  5451 posts
  Have you ever considered putting the hay rack at the litterbox? That would open up the area in the green box more and utilize the otherwise unusable space above the litterbox. It seems that most buns like to eat hay in their litterboxes so that might help you with open space. Just a thought.
- 05/30/2014 at 11:36 PM
  JackRabbit
  Participant
  5451 posts
  One last idea.. . . Can you attach the green box to the shelf it will sit on or attach the shelf to the xpen and attach the box to the xpen as well (zip ties?)? The plastic box on top of the plastic shelf might slip if bunny exits the box a little fast (or with a kick) if startled or excited.
  
  Good luck with your project!
- 05/31/2014 at 3:33 AM
  KytKattin
  Participant
  1195 posts
  You can’t see it too well in the picture, but she has really chewed down the green box on the right side, so I think it is down enough for her to easily get in. Though I have thought about cutting off the end completely. I think it will be a “wait and see” thing once I actually have a ramp in. I agree, I think a ramp would be easier for her, and it would definitely be easier for me to make. If I could make it so it flips up so I can easily get to the litter box then that would be a good place to put it!
  
  Yes, shipping would be like $14. I think it is just the size of it that makes it so expensive to ship. So $16+$14 and I can definitely make it cheaper than that unfortunately. Plus I wasn’t sure of the width, so now I can make everything custom just how I need it! I think that there are so many house bunny things out here because it is where the main HRS is, so maybe the idea of house rabbits is a little more commonplace.
  
  Not sure where I really want to put the hay… I have thought about putting it over the litter box, but I don’t know if she spends enough time in it. I also really don’t like that box, I think it is hard for her to get into even though she doesn’t have accidents. I will either modify the box to make it easier for her to get into, or find another one, but until then I don’t want to limit her access to the hay.
  
  The green thing on the shelf is pretty secure. There is a little lip on the bottom of the green box to keep it on the shelf, and the way I have the shelf positioned underneath it (towards the outside corner) should make it pretty secure. That is a really good idea with the zip ties. I think there are 4 holes along the back that I could use to at least attach it to the ex-pen, and it would be more than enough to withstand a bunny earthquake!
- 06/01/2014 at 8:49 AM
  Whobott
  Participant
  168 posts
  Well this probably isn’t much help but if you were to do a ramp here’s how I would make it. Take a piece of wood 1 inch wider than it needs to be, wrap carpet around it then take very short staples and staple it on. Then take square dowels and use nails or what you think would be better to attach them make sure you leave on inch on an end. On that one inch space attach a railing. Do this for multiple reasons. One being safety in case you rabbit unlikely falls or something. And two the ramp will need support or it will bend and bow if that still isn’t enough support try screwing in support beams. Hope this helped and good luck!
- 06/01/2014 at 9:44 AM
  tanlover14
  Participant
  3617 posts
  I made a ramp like Whobott said and used indoor/outdoor carpeting. However, my buns ended up ignoring the ramp because every time they would get on it, the carpet made them slide backwards! Something to keep in mind with carpeting. I thought it was good traction but had the exact opposite problem!
  
  Just curious, but why would a square be harder to clean? I would think it would be easier than an L shape? Just ignore me if I’m being too nosy, was just curious!
- 06/01/2014 at 8:05 PM
  Sarita
  Participant
  18851 posts
  That looks like that might be very high for a ramp to me – it would need to be long so it wouldn’t be steep.
  
  This is a good way to make the ramp – see link with these “rumble” strips:
  
  http://www.leithpetwerks.com/prodpage.cfm?prod_code=CP200
- 06/01/2014 at 8:12 PM
  KytKattin
  Participant
  1195 posts
  Thanks for the ideas Whobott! I am probably going to have my boyfriend do it, as he is a physicist and he should know how to do that stuff if I highlight what I need.
  
  Good to know tanlover on the slippery carpet! It being L shape lets me stand on that brown rug and reach all parts of the cage. If it was square it would be like me having to reach over the section from the litter box to the back of the cage for the entire thing. I have a similar setup for my gardens, it makes it very easy! If I had more wall space I would make it a rectangle, but we have a pretty small house and it is squished between two things. Definitely not nosey! I just want to protect my back.
- 06/01/2014 at 9:04 PM
  JackRabbit
  Participant
  5451 posts
  We have carpet on one set of ramps and hay mats on the other, rumble strip on both.
  
  The ramp needs to be pretty long. The leith ones are 32 inches to go with a height of 21 inches (your BF can figure out the angle.) Our original condo had 29 inch ramps for an 18+- space heighth. Ramps are 9″ wide. None of our buns have had any problems slipping, so far.
- 06/01/2014 at 9:05 PM
  JackRabbit
  Participant
  5451 posts
  Sorry. Double post. New phone, grrrr
- 06/02/2014 at 1:19 AM
  KytKattin
  Participant
  1195 posts
  I think the ramp might be pretty much identical to the leith ones, just a little narrower. I know she used the narrow 5″ Superpet ones before without issue, so 6″ should be fine. The height is about 18″ so the ramp will need to be about 30. But I will have him check that. I’m sure he can do that calculation in his sleep!
  Not sure if I do want to do carpet anyway as she has a degree in chewing things and I worry about her trying to eat it. I do like the idea of the grass mats though. With the rumble strips I’m not worried about slipping with or without carpet, but splinters could be a concern if I put nothing. Maybe I will think for a while about what is the best and most cost effective flooring.
- 06/02/2014 at 8:00 AM
  Whobott
  Participant
  168 posts
  Well as far as material goes here’s my suggestion. My rabbit doesn’t even try to eat the carpet because the only bits he can are beneath it. To prevent that this sounds dumb but it works. On the ramp the carpet should wrap around to the back of It then try duct taping the edges. Some other suggestions for material (I have no idea how good any of these are just some ideas) Rubber like a rubber shower curtain, you can try painting it with sand paint which is kind of gritty (it might not be so nice for her feet), you can cut up old t shirts and attach them, and if you wanna get crazy, you can loosely wrap fabric around it then put stuffing in it to make a squishy ramp (have no idea if it would help use your proper judgement I guess lol) ok hope this helped sorry it’s a bit long good luck though!
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