House questions and problems

[Ana]

So, when I adopted her I didn’t know much about bunnies.  She’s in a bunny cage, but apparently too small as most bunny cages are way too small.  I plan to get her a pen and all, but the setup is not something I had monetarily planned for, so I can’t do it immediately.  In the meantime, I think she’s getting that the cage is too small, because she’ll thump at me when it’s time for her to come out and play. :/

 

So, I’m planning to build her a pen.  Has anyone built their own?  Any suggestions on wood/chicken wire? Coroplast bottom for whole pen, or just a rug?

Thanks!

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

I’d say go with cubes and make a condo or pen. VERY easy to do!

[rabbitsmba]

See the green bar at the top of the screen? Click on “Bunyy info”, then “Cool habitats” and see all of the really neat and simple set ups all of us have built. Many of us use Neat Idea Cubes to build condos (NIC condos) – they are very inexpensive and can be custom made to fit any space you have – and your bunny is guaranteed to love it!

[Sarita]

If you are going to build I agree the NIC cubes are the best – don’t use chicken wire and wood – bad.

[TARM]

Someone posted a picture of a really nice indoor enclosure made of chicken wire and wood. What’s wrong with chicken wire and wood?

[kimberleyanddarren]

There is nothing wrong with chicken wire and wood but the NIC cubes will be much easier, if you are going to use wood and wire you must make sure there is nothing sticking out anywhere, no nails, wood or sharp edging as this can be dangerous. Plus the NIC cubes can be made into whatever you want, ie you can change it often and keep it clean easily.

[PeppersMama]

yes, i was the one who made the indoor pen of “chicken wire” and wood. lol its actually cage wire, because i was afraid he would try to stick his nose through the chicken wire and scrape his fur off or something. but we basically made it so no raw edges of wire were anywhere. the wire is actually screwed between two peices of wood, so the raw edge is between the wood. its a very good and sturdy pen though! and not at all expensive. and we coated the floor in a plastic flooring so that his pee wouldnt soak into the wood.

Edit: i wanted to add that i researched all types of pens before this, and although this was the cheapest route to take, it was much easier because i had a father who has years and years of building and woodshop experience, and has all the tools and knowlege to help me make this the safest and best pen possible. I gave him and idea of what i wanted and he built it amazingly. There are no raw edges, no screws sticking out, no splinters in the wood, nothing at all that pepper could hurt himself on. So even if it is the cheapest option for the largest amount of space (its 4’x3′), its a lot more work than NIC cubes. But it was the best option for me and its a great pen! you can look at my pen in the lounge, its under “Pics of Pepper and his New Pen” Just throwing out my input

[kimberleyanddarren]

^ I second that, i have an area which is wood because my grandad is a builder and had all the tools, it is cheaper but alot more work and can be dangerous, if you know someone who can do it well though thats awesome

[BunnyLiz]

I also made my buns cage out of wood and wire. its made very similar to peppers cage, covered in some cheap tile stuff so no pee can be soaked up and no wood is exposed to my bunny. the wire is between two pieces of wood so it cant hurt him. no nails or screws sticking out. But i knew someone that had all the tools and the know how so that was a huge plus. its super easy to clean to, takes about two min. to sweep up stray poops and hay etc.

[PeppersMama]

yes that is another advantage, mine is super easy to clean too!

[kimberleyanddarren]

yeah thats a disadvantage with NIC cubes, they can be quite time consuming to take the whole thing apart to clean it properly which i do every other week, takes me about 90mins.

[Alicia Conklin]

Mine is a NIC pen.  I have plywood on the bottom with tiles and then the NIC panels around it like a pen.  I did this instead of the chicken wire/wood route because for me it was easier and I can customize it as we go along if I want to.  It wasn’t very costly either….the plywood is like 12.00,  the tiles were .33 each and I needed 24 of them, then the NIC cubes were 12.99 a box, I needed 2 but could have gone with just 1 if it was done without his shelf.  I think either way is doable and a great home for a bun

[PeppersMama]

wow! you cant get NIC cubes here for less than 25 dollars, and thats if you can even find any! 12.99 is cheap!

[Alicia Conklin]

There were from Target..but I know alot of targets don’t have them anymore. Costco has them for 19.99 for these HUGE boxes of them

[Cassi&Charlie]

I went down the cage wire (similar to chicken wire but without the scary bits) path with wood between. I’m not a really handy sort of person but I managed to do okay with it. I think the secret to taking that path is to make sure everything you buy is as close to what you want as possible. So my wire was already the size I wanted and didn’t have sharp scary bits, the wood was cut by the place I bought it off and they also drilled the holes for a bit of money. The result for me was a large pen (1.5mx3m) for Aus$70, which I never could have done with NIC cubes.
I also have a NIC condo attached to the pen and the pen is way easier to clean! And you can sit in with your bun and bug them

[PeppersMama]

good to hear that you got it done the way you wanted! yes i really like having a cage wire and wood pen, i can sit in it with him and clean it very easily! im sure you have some very happy buns!

[Ruffles&Daisy]

Would one box of the cubes from Costco be enough for a decent sized house? We are currently using a puppy pen, which is decent sized, but I’m thinking of upgrading.

[TARM]

I wish my costco carried cubes! The shelf systems we have are opaque plastic.

[Alicia Conklin]

That was made with two boxes.  I think I maybe had two or three squares left.  And these were the big boxes from costco…one thing to remember though with the costco ones..some are not reg. grids like this.  Some look like…  (Don’t mind my son in there..he thinks he’s a bunny sometimes!)

Those grids still work for some parts..I used mine for the roof, the shelves and the floor.  Because I cover the floor and shelves and the roof I like it because things don’t fall through.  But the four corners into one would make a danger spot for little feet if they’re not covered, and I don’t believe it’d be good to look out of so I wouldn’t make that for the walls.  If you have to use them for any of the walls maybe one that faces the room’s wall would work ok since there’s nothing to look at tehre anyway….

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