Habitat help!!

[Cass]

Hi everyone!

I am looking for help concerning the C&C cages I built for our boys. We have four buns in total and two cages. Three of our little guys (Nim, Leo, and Blitz) came from the same litter and they’re a mix of Holland Lop, Lionhead, and I’m not sure what their dad is, but he’s a big boy. We’ve had them for two years. We adopted our fourth, Nunu, back in November. He’s a New Zealand white and is more than twice the size oftof other three. They are still cautious of him, so we have the three brothers in one cage, and Nunu has the other to himself.

Anyways, Nunu, Leo, and Nim are all very well behaved and they are really good about only chewing their toys. Blitz, on the other hand, really loves the taste of coroplast for some reason and I’m at my wit’s end on what to do. No matter what I do, he somehow always manages to pull the fleece lining in their cage off so he can eat the coroplast. I’m scared he’s going to make himself sick from eating it, but no matter what I do to hide it, he figures it out! He’s way too smart lol.

I’m currently using a liner I made with two layers of fleece with a Uhaul liner in between. I have it secured with velcro, as well as large binder clips to secure it to the coroplast (which is 6″ up the sides of the cage). I’ve been tucking the top of the fleece behind the CP and then clipping it down, but somehow he has figured out how to undo it. At this point it’s like a game to him; I’ll go in and fix it, and before I’m even done, he’s running over and pulling it down again!

We give them plenty of toys and hay to chew on, but I have watched Blitz take them, throw them out of the cage, and then start trying to get at the CP again. Even when they’re out of the cage, he’ll go back in there just to mess with it. I feel like he enjoys the challenge and the taste of coroplast.

 

What can I do to secure the fleece so that he doesn’t eat the coroplast? Thank you!

[DanaNM]

I use plywood covered with peel and stick vinyl tiles in my CC condo instead of coroplast. I use this double stick adhesive on the underside and then pull the fabric edge tight around the edge (so the bun can’t actually get to the adhesive), plus extra binder clamps along the edge for added security.

Then I usually clamp some grass mats or cardboard on top of the fleece if the bun seems intent on chewing the fabric!

. . . 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.  

[Wick & Fable]

It seems like you will need to put something solid over the cloroplast. While you can fasten fleece liners, at the end of the day, any rabbit could sense that it is something that moves and can be removed (with force). I think cardboard or tiles would be solid top layers that would establish that the C&C floor is truly flooring; not a chew toy, haha. Also ensuring that it goes edge to edge.

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.

[Cass]

Thank you for the responses! The actual floor part isn’t too much of an issue, it’s more the 6″ going up the sides of the cage. I added that in hopes that it will reduce how much fur and poop gets tossed out of the cage, and it works great except for this one spot in the back that he just won’t leave alone. I just replaced the coroplast three days ago and now there’s a big chunk of it missing, which makes it that much harder to secure the fleece and also scares me that he’s going to get sick.

The coroplast floor is attached to a thick piece of plywood and the cage itself is glued to that, so there’s really no way to tuck the sides underneath the actual cage.

[Azerane]

Get some hard plastic capping, it comes in long lengths and can be cut down to size, it’s “U” shaped and comes in different widths. I’ve used that on all the edges of my plywood for their condo and they haven’t ever chewed it. Here it’s called PVC moulding, but it might have a different name where you are.

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