Garden exercise pen covers- ideas?

[Beau Bunny]

Hi everyone, I have an outside playpen so Beau can get some fresh air and enjoy nice weather. I live in a fairly urban environment and there are really no daytime predators to speak of- Beau has two trusty guard dogs to chase off any stray cats- but I’m concerned about hawks. If I need to use the restroom or distracted with yard work I’ll close pin sheets over the top. Anybody have an outdoor Play set up with  a more permanent cover that’s not a cage or hutch? Ideas? Thanks!

[Wilburbunny]

How big is it? Is it a dog exercise pen? What shape is it or what shape do you like to keep it in if it’s rearrangeable?

[Beau Bunny]

It’s currently 16 square feet. The description said 30, so I’m using what I have now as part of a vegetable garden fence, and I got another xpen today about the same size for half the price, which I will  eventually connect with another, so I’ll have about 32 square feet of play yard. I’m thinking maybe a 20 square foot beach canopy or shade sail I could connect to some sand oak trees in the back yard, for now?

[Wilburbunny]

Hmm that’s a good idea. I was kind of trying to do the same thing as you but I did it for a travel carrier. I was trying to turn a plastic crate into a travel carrier but I didn’t have a top so I ended up making one with fabric. What you could do is cut out a piece about a foot longer than it on all sides. I then cut two strings on each corner and cut off the excess fabric. You could then tie each corner onto the xpen so it would be covered without the hassle of clothespins. Plus if you want the top to be off, you can untie two corners, bring all the fabric over to the other side, and tie the strings around the fabric. You could even get nicer outdoor fabric that is maybe even waterproof. If your sheet if large enough you can use that instead. This option is slightly more permanent and easier than clothespins, but there’s probably a better solution out there so let us know what you end up doing!

[DanaNM]

Not sure what your budget is or how permanent you are thinking, but if you want something solid you could possibly do something with a carport.

There are also lots of (super awesome) outdoor run ideas in the housing section of the bunny info tab at the top of the page. 🙂

I was also thinking you could connect a bunch of NIC cube grids together to fit the size area the pen will be, then connect them to the pen with clips. Then you could fold it up and put it away with the pen when not in use. Wouldn’t protect from sun but would be safer protection from predators.

. . . 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.  

[Beau Bunny]

Nothing too permanent as I will have to take it down to mow and probably move it around the yard depending on where I’m working. I also want something tall enough I can walk in as the pen has a little gate and I use outside play time to also allow my daughter to feed and pet him under supervision.  I found a pop up party tent on wish for 34 bucks which I think will do the trick. I don’t think a hawk would be a threat unless it can see him from above. He’s not out there for long periods of time…just mornings and evenings while it’s cool enough. We are in Florida and it’s a thousand degrees and muggy most of the time.

I have the cubes from Tepo (Amazon) which i use for an indoor enclosure…I love these things.. It’s really more like an out-closure to keep my young kiddo from trying to grab or chase him…but she can still see him and pet him or hand him a treat.

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