Anybody bring their rabbits outside?

[Harlowsgirl]

I have two bunnies. They’re indoors and they get free roam of the house. I was watching them sunbathe in the light from the window today and was wondering if they might like to visit the backyard in a pen? I’m nervous though- I don’t want them to escape the pen or like the outdoors too much that they try to bolt outside whenever I open the door. Does anyone have any advice or experience with letting their rabbits outside?

[vanessa]

Been there done that. Fly strike. Never want that to happen again.

[Harlowsgirl]

Oh my gosh- I’m so sorry to hear that! I didn’t even think about that. Maybe it’s best to keep them indoors then…

[vanessa]

Yeah – 3 of my first 4 adults got flystrike. One got it 2 summers in a row. You can’t prevent it except keep your bunnies safely indoors. Even clean bunny butts and clean litter boxes won’t stop it.

[vanessa]

I don’t believe my rabbits are missing out by being soley indoors. Everythign is better for them indoors. Safety, temperature, you name it.

[Harlowsgirl]

Ugh that must have been so frustrating! You’ve convinced me- I’ll let them keep soaking up the sun from the living room! ☺️

[Sleepy]

It doesn’t hurt to let them outdoors if you’re supervising them, I find? We let our buns out when the weather is good and let them run around in an enclosure. They usually only stay outside for an hour and a half or two hours before we bring them in and we generally look over them to make sure they’re in good shape still. But it depends on the weather and your environment, mostly. Buns stay indoors when mosquitos are at a high for us.

[Gina.Jenny]

Mine go out in big runs throughout the year, in spring through to autumn, they get treated to prevent flystrike, there are a range of spot on and spray options available to buy quite cheaply.

[sarahthegemini]

If I had a garden I’d love to let the terrible two outside for a couple of hours a day during nice weather. I’d make sure they are properly treated and they’d be supervised the entire time

[vanessa]

You cant supervise bot flies…

[sarahthegemini]

Posted By vanessa on 5/10/2017 6:48 AM

You cant supervise bot flies…

Oh no, I meant make sure they don’t dig out. For the flies, I’m not sure if there actually is preventative treatment for fly strike? But if so, I’d do that. 

[vanessa]

Yeah they do dig. I ended up using the wire frame “lids” of the X-pens as floors, so mine couldn’t dig out. When I let them loose in the yard, I had chicken wire around the perimeter on the ground. There are two products available in the UK for flystrike. Beaphar Fly Guard doesn’t need a prescription, and kills larvae once they have burrowed into the rabbit – and you still have to remove the dead larvae. It is essentially an ivermectin spray. You spray a number of pumps depending on the rabbits weight, and make sure it gets onto the skin for absorption. Supposed to provide 3 months of protection. But – it doesn’t kill the eggs, and only kills the larvae once they are already in the rabbit. The prescription prevention – which I can’t get hold of – Rearguard. It stops the eggs from hatching. It does not kill maggots. So Rearguard can be used to stop eggs from hatching that are laid directly on the rabbit, and Beaphar can be used to kill maggots that crawl over to the rabbit. But if the maggots crawl over and are killed inside the rabbit, you still need to take your rabbit to the vet ASAP to have the dead maggots removed before they start decomposing and releasing toxins in the rabbits body. I’v ready many good reviews of Rearguard, and the combination of the two. I used Beaphar myself, because I couldn’t get Rearguard. But my bunnies still got flystrike. After experiencing how horrible it is – I’m an inside-only bunny person. I’m sure a mosquito net would work well. There are many on this forum who let their bunnies outside with no flystrike stories. It’s not to say every bunny will get it. But I have horses and cows 1 street over from me – so there are plenty of farm animals in my area to help attract bot flies. They like horses, cows, sheep, and rabbits. Probably the middle of a big city – would have little to no change of a bot fly.

[sarahthegemini]

Oh my goodness I think I’ll keep them inside at all times! It’s not like they’ve ever been outside so they won’t know what they’re missing. Thanks for all that info, it certainly is eye opening!

[Wick & Fable]

Wick only gets carried outside to the balcony so he can be in the outside world every so often, rather than just indoors haha. There are herbs and vegetables on our balcony, so he is surrounded by nice smells too.

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[Vienna Blue in France]

Mine go outside regularly – freeroam, no cage – I’m lucky – nothing dangerous here, nor predators. I’m in town.

If I were to move back to the UK (foxes) I would have to change the set up.
And seeing as I would have just enough money to live in a tiny one room bedsit (South of England is soooooo expensive), I would REALLY have to change the set up !! LOLOL

[Sweetbuns@home]

Wow, vanessa. I had no idea that flystrike was that horrible. I knew about it, and I keep my cage as clean as possible to help prevent it, but… just WOW! I, personally, let my bunnies outside in a pen regularly, and they even LIVE out there, but I bring them in when one of the following occurs:
A neighbor is burning in their fire pit and the smoke is blowing towards the bunny cage
The weather is too hot for bunnies to be outside… dangerously so
The weather is too cold for bunnies to be outside
It’s raining severely and my bunnies risk getting the sniffles, or simply being uncomfortable
And finally, if there’s a tornado or other dangerous weather occurrence that could potentially threaten my bunnies safety, I bring them inside.

Luckily, my bunnies have never gotten flystrike, and I got them last April. I don’t know if I’m just lucky or if flystrike isn’t a huge concern in my area. PLEASE tell me if I’m doing anything wrong in this particular topic, and if I am, what I can do to fix it.
Thanks,
Sweetbuns@home

[vanessa]

I dont think you are doing anything wrong. Not everyone is in a situation to keep their bunnies indoors all the time, and it sounds like you are taking reasonable precations. I think 80 degrees F is too hot for a bunny. I kept mine outdoors for 2 years. Winter, summer, rain, sunshine, snow, you name it. They were comfortable in spring, winter, and fall. Yes in winter. Bot not in summer. The problem with flies is that you can’t predict where they;ll be. I stay in a residential subdivision. But 95% of my county is agriculturally zoned, so there are many agricultural animals. Which I love… but… the flies. And I only saw 1 or 2 flies myself. I never saw the eggs or the maggots. After the first flystrike, I tried to check my rabbits daily for lumps. But they weren’t that easy to handle at that time. So I tried every repellant I coudl think of. Fly traps (they don’t have any effect on Bot flies), all sorts of essential oils, plants, you name it. I used Beaphar Fly Guard every 3 months. THe next summer, 3 bunnies got it, including the original one. He also had EC, so the combination was too much and I had him euthenized. It was a few weeks later that I saw it on the other two and decided I had no choice but to bring them in. I didn’t know how I was going to do i, and I didn’t believe at that rabbits belonged indoors either. After I pulled out one warble myself and had the others removed at the vets office, and had the rabbits on antibiotics for the disgusting mess, I emptied out a bedroom and made it the rabbt room. If you live in the middle of a city, with no agricultural animals, you’ll probably be fine. If you live in an agricultural area, you take a big risk.

[Author]

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