Cageless?

[rory_rabbit]

So hubs and I were talking about letting Rory go cageless. He has free run of his bunny proofed room pretty much all day – he’s let out when I get up and put away in his cage when we go to bed, but I feel bad when he throws himself at the side of the cage to get out during the night. We’ve tried more toys and more comfortable bedding but I think he really does not enjoy being in a relatively small space after having a big run around space during the day. 

He isn’t due to be neutered until the 2nd Jan, which means I’m not entirely comfortable letting him run around unsupervised at night whilst he still enjoys peeing on the sofa (or me!) and digging and chewing the carpet, but I’m hoping when he gets fixed he will be able to go cageless – do you think this is wise? What are your experiences of going cageless?

I’ve read some posts on the topic but it would be super helpful to hear your advice! 

[Sarita]

It’s a matter of neutering and age. My rabbit Bobby has free reign of the house (except the rabbit room where I keep my 3 senior rabbits) and he’s very good with his litter box. I think Bobby is about 3 or 4 years old – not sure of his age as he was dumped off at a guinea pig rescue and the vet just made some guesses to his age.

Initially I just had him in the cage they dumped him in but once my other free roamer, Pepe, passed away, I decided to give Bobby a chance at free roam. He’s very good – he doesn’t chew on anything (maybe because half of his teeth are gone and he’s older).

I have had some rabbits though that were just too destructive for free roaming and would destroy my house in a second if they had the chance.

So I guess it would just really depend on the rabbit. I guess I would say, get him neutered first and then slowly introduce him to the rest of the house. Not sure how young Rory is, but young rabbits can be a little less disciplined than older rabbits since you mention the peeing on the bed and such which is typical of a young unneutered rabbit.

[Beka27]

I always say to wait until the rabbit is altered and is at least one year of age. Age does make a huge difference!

[rory_rabbit]

Sounds like a good idea! I think we will try it out sometime next year and see how he goes! How do you set up “private space” for a cageless bunny?

[mocha200]

Make sure you have a space like you mentioned above so they can have a space to call there own. If you take that space away they can actually become aggressive because they are scared and don’t feel protected without their “burrow”. What type of cage setup do you have for him now? I would just keep that but always leave the door open.

[LoveChaCha]

I would wait until he is neutered and is nearing the age of 1.

My Chacha bun is an almost 3 year old free range house bunny. My dad and I would leave the apartment for a few hours at a time (the place is rabbit proofed) and come back to Chacha sleeping. During the night, she just relaxes and does bunny 500’s. It all depends on the rabbit’s personality, but it is definitely possible

[Elrohwen]

How big is his cage? It might just be a matter of giving him a bigger area at night so he’s not as upset about being shut in there.

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