can I use this dog crate?

[olliebun]

hi everyone! I’m getting a holland lop bunny in 2 months and I can’t wait! for the past several months I have been catching up on rabbit care, my relatives had rabbits when I was younger and I loved learning about them. I have a dog crate that is 42x28x30 inches 
(LxHxW) that was used by my previous dog. I was wondering if this can house a bunny. I also plan on getting a X-pen for play time and allowing free roam when I am home and supervising. any advise is welcome . thank you !

[DanaNM]

Hi there, welcome!

Great job doing your homework first!

Dog crates can make good cages for buns. You’ll want to check to make sure the bars aren’t so big that the bun can squeeze his head through. The size you have is decent, but is a bit small unless he is going to get many many hours a day to roam. If you could add in a shelf inside the crate so bun has another level to hop up on that would help. It would be ideal if you could set it up so the x-pen attaches to the crate and is like a “front yard” that bun would have access to 24/7. I think many people have set-ups similar this and their buns are quite happy with them.

. . . 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.  

[olliebun]

thank you for replying! 

A shelf sounds like a great idea! I will ask my dad If he can help me with that( I’m kinda bad with tools ). As for the x-pen, i plan on attaching it to the crate when the bunny mostly litter trained, since I heard smaller areas will be help the process. 

I was wondering if there is a specific type of wood I would use to build the shelf? I plan on adding fleece so its nice and soft but want to make sure if the bunny does get to the wood, it would safe to chew. 

thank you! 

[DanaNM]

Untreated pine is safe to use.

In my bunny condo I have thin plywood levels supported by dowels. The wood is covered by peel and stick vinyl tiles (recommended in case they pee on them, which they often will to mark at first), and then fleece over top.

. . . 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.  

[Gina.Jenny]

my buns love a dog crate, it feels nice and safe , though it is left permanently open in a larger run. btw, a fleece can make litter training harder, as buns love to pee on soft things, you might do better to leave the fleece out! buns dont really need a fleece.

[olliebun]

I will keep that in mind! thank you

I was also wondering how high the shelf should be? since the crate is 28 inches high, would having the self 14 inches off the ground be ok? would It be too high? too low?

[Gina.Jenny]

my buns love their hammocks, whick are seven inches off the ground. this leaves a nice burrow height hiding place underneath and a low base leaves space high enough for a bun to stand up on and ‘periscope’ on to look around for danger!

[DanaNM]

I have my levels about 14 inches up. I would try that first, and then if your bun is reluctant to jump up (or down), you can lower it (I fostered one bunny that would jump up and then was scared to jump down… he would get stuck on the top level so I had to put in ramps for him). It does depend on how big your bun is though! My girl Bertha is 9 lbs and tall, so 14 inches barely clears her ears when she’s sitting up proper.

. . . 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.  

[olliebun]

I will do that then! thank you!

[Author]

Messages