cage size???

[CookieLopBaby]

Hey everyone.  We are going to be moving into our new house soon!  (I hope) My dad wants to make Cookie a cage that is a replica of our house.  She is a Holland Lop.  The cage is going to be 2 story.

Do any of yall have any suggestions on how big to make her new rabbit house?  As far as length and width.  She’s normally out of her cage all day but I put her in it when we go to bed or have to leave the house.  So I don’t want it to be too small but I definately don’t need it too big either, since she has plenty of out time.  I hope this makes sense.  When the cage is done, I’ll be sure to post some pics.  I can’t wait!!!

Thanks so much, and let me know if I’m starting to be irritating with all my questions! 

[JK]

I would make it as big as you can. They say it should be no smaller than 24″ x 48″ for one bun. Even if it is 2 story I would stick to that size.

[ScooterandAnnette]

I’m assuming that he’s probably planning on making it out of wood? Just keep in mind that she’ll probably chew/gnaw on the wood so I’m thinking it shouldn’t be painted.
– Annette

[rabbitsmba]

If you look under “bunny info” click on “cool habitats” – you will find all kinds of inspiration there!

[Beka27]

yes… as big as possible. a replica of the house sounds super cool… but keep in mind it needs to be able to be wiped down completely and light enough to move (somewhat easily) to clean. NIC cubes are nice because they can be completely wiped down, they’re sturdy, and they don’t pose any danger to a bun. if you make something out of wood, you need to be sure the wood is safe and hasn’t been treated with anything. i would also suggest that the sides are not made out of wood b/c cross-ventilation is very important for buns. you might be able to do a wood frame, but make sure all the sides are made of NIC cubes or wire.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

We’re sooo gonna need pictures!! That sounds totally cool!!

[MarkBun]

One square foot per pound of bun is what I go off of. So if your bun is 6 pounds, you want a cage 3 feet long by two feet wide. That’s the minimum.

[kimberleyanddarren]

yes we want pics when it is finished, make it as big as you can but i would say about 1.5 times the buns height and 3times the buns length at an absolute minimum

[CookieLopBaby]

hey yall.  Yes I will definately post pics!  I don’t know exactly how long it will take him though considering that he is sick.(brown lung disease) Daddy is great with wood work.  He makes just about all my furniture!  Beka, I’ve informed Daddy about the cleaning and he’s watched me do it so much that he has the idea down pat.  LOL< and he's informed me that he's gonna make it as easy as possible for me to keep it nice and clean, just like my new house. LOL.  that was the only way he good get me to agree to let him do it.

Scooterand annett:  he is planning on framing it out of wood.  It will be completely wire all the way around with a pull out drawer etc. But as far as the windows, etc right now he’s planning on using some lil pine pieces and attaching them to the “outside” of the cage and making them look like window panes,  flower boxes for me to put hay in, etc.  The roof will be pine also, but it’s gonna be on some hinges so that I can open it up  for easy cleaning etc.  We haven’t quite worked out all the details but we’re pretty close. 

Does everyone agree that untreated pine will be ok to use on the wood parts?  Thanks for all ur suggestions, and we are definately gonna take ur advice and make it as big as possible.  Daddy made the suggestion to put in on some casters, (lil wheels) so that it could be easily moved etc.  which would only bring it up about 3 inches or so off the floor.  Do you think that would be ok? 

Oh one more ?      How wide should we make the door?  We were thinking about 8-10 inches???? Too big, or do you think it should be smaller?

 

Thanks again yall!

[Beka27]

8-10 inches should be fine for the door. make sure her butt can fit thru easily. the castors are an excellent idea b/c the thing is gonna be HEAVY when it’s all assembled. you might want to get a remnant piece of linoleum for the floor so it cna be easily wiped clean.

[Scarlet_Rose]

Wow that is some kind of neat new house RondaGene! It is going to be super-special! Oh yes, the untreated pine will be just perfect! Cookie may chew on it so be sure it wousl be fairly easy for your dad to replace the pieces if they were chewed all the way down. The door sounds about the right size too. Definately post pics of the beautiful new cage!

[Fiver]

Sounds like the wood cage will work great. I don’t know if you have read some of the other subjects but some of us have used these shelf kits which can be found at Super Target to make our cages or bunny condos. I think someone in another subject referred to them as NIC Cubes. They come in different sizes. I used the 14″ X 14″ squares. They come with plastic connectors. I reinforced the connectors with plastic electrical wire ties but other people say that is not necessary. If you are interested there is a picture of one in “OOhhh MY God I hate my sister” and some discussion under “Cage Question”. For those of us who are not proficient wood workers, this is a nice alternative. However, it sounds like this is not the case with you.

[Fiver]

I just checked what we used to build our condo. They are “Organize-It Cubes”. I was told you can get something similar at Home Depot and Lowes. I am not sure what “NIC” means or where it came from.

[Beka27]

NIC (Neat Idea Cube) is the original brand name made be Fellowes, but they have come to mean every type of cube storage grid (think of how you might call tissue “kleenex” b/c that’s the brand name most people are familiar with.) i have never seen the “real deal” NIC grids by Fellowes… but any other brand works the exact same way.

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