Jumping Jack’s New Pen

[JackWabbit13]

Howdy y’all! You might remember me as JumpingJackRabbit13. But I forgot my info, had to use a different email and make a new account.

So, I think I have enough money to move my rabbit Jumping Jack from her old dump into my room for a better enclosure. I know all the requirements and whatnot, but I need some cool ideas for the pen itself, to make it look nice. I bought a crappy PawHut rabbit hutch, and I am taking off the pen and using it as a milking stand for my goats. The bottom of he half left over will be garbage and I will use the leftover hut as a hiding area (after making it look nicer. Seriously, these hutches look like crap, even to a redneck teen boy from Montana).

We also plan to move in 4 years so I want something that won’t be permanent, but will still work. Maybe NIC grids? I dunno, man.

Any ideas? Maybe some pics of your rabbit pen? Is there maybe something unusual rabbits might like?

Thanks y’all!

[pinkiemarie]

Hey! I’m from MT too! I have a 2 story 48 inch condo from Leith petworks with a dog pen on the front, but those houses are expensive and you really don’t have to get anything that costly. The nic cubes are a good option. If you Google it I think they’re are a lot of pictures out there. Or depending on how much space you have even a dog pen with a nice hidey house and soft bed will work.

 

[Moonlightbunny66]

I like x pens (dog play pens) because you can make different shapes and move it around if you rearrange your room. You can also use it as bunny proofing if you ever decide to change the enclosure or free roam in your room. I got mine on Amazon, it said there were used ones available and they were cheaper so I bought those and they work great. 36 inches tall so they can stretch up all the way, used clothespins to clip blankets (or sheets) on top as a roof. I do plan on free roaming them in my room sometime soon, but these were great for bonding and litter training!

[Moonlightbunny66]

Oh you can also make them look pretty with choosing the blankets (mine are from the dollar store), memory foam mats, and/or rugs. Pinterest has some nice ideas on pretty x pens, just make sure whatever you put in there is totally safe and your bunny has comfortable flooring! 🙂

[DanaNM]

I just built my gremlins a mansion out of NIC cubes:

 

. . . 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]

I am a fan of NIC cages, but it is important to get good quality grids, connectors, and add support. Also, I think NIC grid cages should always be accompanied by an Xpen as well (since NIC are grids, it’s easy to just clip on an xpen for larger space). I think it’s a good option, as an NIC cage on its own is likely too small for long enclosure time, but it is a good option if you need to clean your room quickly. The xpen attachment can be for night time or times when you can’t supervise, but still want the rabbit to have a lot of space.

If you do go NIC, I suggest buying the more expensive sets. Cheap brands will have grids slightly warped, so it can be impossible to have a sturdy structure. The more expensive, the better chance all is square. Also, different sets will have slightly different thicknesses and size, so regardless where you buy, you want to keep in mind not all sets are made equal or can be interchanged.

(below) Top of the cage. The two grid pieces actually swing open so I can access from the top to clean. I can actually remove the second floor from the top to clean it, if needed.

(below) Door used if they need to be put away quickly for something.

In addition to grids and connectors, you need to use cable ties/zip ties for extra security. Also, if you plan to make floors at places that don’t meet with a connector/you can’t put a connector, you want to make sure you add support. Below is a picture of how I ziptie each connection on my rabbits’ cages and how the second floor is secured (3 “wonder bars” from the Guinea Pig Cage Store and a Support Bar (also from the GPCS) zip tied across the length of the cage). My heaviest rabbit is a little over 7lbs and it holds her fine. While I bought supplies from a specialized store for this, you can save money by buying wood dowels or cut wood planks as supports across as well.

… Lastly, in terms of you moving, you could technically take apart an NIC cage and re-assemble it to take with you. I purposely did not zip tie the walls together at the cage corners so I could take it apart and have essentially 7 flat pieces for travel (i.e. top, bottom, front, back, two sides, second floor).

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.

[MelM]

@Wick, wow this looks very sturdy and the roof isn’t caving in at all which I often see when looking at online pics of NIC condos (how so?!?). You should post a full-on video demo 😉

[Moonlightbunny66]

I agree with Wick that the NIC condos should be accompanied with an x-pen. Since they are ground animals and wide floor space on the floor is better than floor space going up. Although, it can be a fun little extra and a nice hiding space. My bunnies love to run in and out of their x pen when they have the energy! Sometimes they even run through their hidey house to get to the litter box lol!

[JackWabbit13]

I’ll probably stick with one story (though I could make something for her to hop on top of just for fun).

Also, @pinkiemarie, great to meet somebody from Montana! You aren’t near the Gallatin Valley, are you? That’s where I am.

I already have an x pen but it is only 6 panels. Plus, it’d be easier having something the little gal couldn’t push around, seeming as I want a more solid floor in the enclosure (I have carpet in my room, and she isn’t litter box trained yet). I could just buy 8×4 feet (3 grids high, probably. She can’t jump high). Could I make a gate big enough for me to go in out of grids? And what floor should I use? Something non-absorbent please.

I do plan to free roam her in my room, once she’s litter trained. My dad actually got me a metal bed for Christmas just so I don’t have to worry about losing a bed leg! I will also put tape on my dresser and trim so she doesn’t chew that.

Any ways to make it look nicer? Maybe some fun customization for her? Is there any chance I could put a Furbo or PetCube in there?

[DanaNM]

There are a variety of cool examples (using cube grids and otherwise) in the Housing section on this site 🙂 :https://binkybunny.com/infocategory/house-rabbit-habitats/

. . . 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.  

[Moonlightbunny66]

You’ll have to watch and see if she wants to chew the tape lol. I’ve caught mine with pieces of tape in their mouth so I took it all away. There’s wall corner guards you can get to cover the edges things she might chew.

Is she spayed? I think some people use vinyl flooring but someone else could offer better advice on that since I’ve never used it. Having that surface can be easy to clean for litter training though. Then squishy mats and blankets would be good when she won’t pee on them (you probably know lol).

I’m not really familiar with pet cams but as long as it’s not in her reach (idk if I would put it in the enclosure, probably right outside of it) and there’s no exposed wires, you should be good.

I think colour coordination is good factor in making the enclosure look nice. You can make or buy fancy wood hidey houses too (with safe wood). Some safe toys and plushies too! (As long as there’s no buttons or beaded eyes and she doesn’t eat fabrics lol). For a gate, I think there’s some tutorials on YouTube for diy bunny pens, depends on what you’re using.

It’s great that you plan on free roaming! 😀

[pinkiemarie]

Oh no we have to be mortal enemies now 😉 I’m from Missoula but I’ll make an exception because I love bunnies and bunny people.  Show us pictures once you get the enclosure set up!

[JackWabbit13]

I will try tape first, then. I’m hoping it’ll work. Isn’t there a bitter apple spray that works with rabbits?

No, she isn’t spayed. I actually have a forum, “Do I REALLY Need To Spay?” I am debating on it since she is a senior rabbit. I’d have spayed her earlier, but we were poorly miseducated on rabbits and I didn’t know until recently that they need a different enclosure, diet, care, and to be fixed.

I think the PetCube is wireless and battery powered. It actually dispenses treats! Speaking of which, what could I put in there? It’s designed for bits of kibble for dogs and cats, but I might be able to put in freeze-dried berries or something…? Idk

[JackWabbit13]

I’m actually a Griz fan! My mom went to U of M so I kinda caught on the Griz pride.

Do they offer a veterinary degree? Last I checked they didn’t but I might have read wrong. I plan to be a vet as well as have a farm/small animal sanctuary.

[pinkiemarie]

It actually looks like they do have a veterinary program! I don’t see that it says what campus it’s on though so could be Butte but it says it’s under the premed program in the skaggs building which I think is on the main campus. http://health.umt.edu/premed/career%20options/veterinary-medicine.php

 

 

[pinkiemarie]

I think I skimmed too fast. I think it’s ONLY the premed and you have to transfer to a veterinary school after.

[NalaBunny]

Another good flooring option could be puzzle play mats. These are waterproof and soft so they will prevent sore hocks. Im also from Montana and would love to become a vet too.

[JackWabbit13]

Would anything leak through the cracks between the mats?

[pinkiemarie]

Wow there are so many of us from MT here!

[JackWabbit13]

Yeah, it’s kinda funny. Most people from Montana are wire-bottom hutch kind of people (idk why, but that’s what I think of when I think of somebody with a mistreated rabbit) so I’m surprised to find even 3 of the people who don’t think like that on one website, all from the same state.

[NalaBunny]

I do not believe so but if your really worried about that yoga mats can also be a really good option.

[NalaBunny]

Ya it’s sorta amazing, before I really began my rabbit care journey I didn’t know much but I knew to not give them a wire bottom cage. I was looking for a cage for the summer and couldn’t find a single cage so I put wood over the wire bottom. But anyways let’s hope that Montana and everywhere start to gain appreciation for rabbit care.

[JackWabbit13]

Let’s hope so. If I do end up being a vet, I want to make sure to tell people how to properly care for their pets. One of our exotic animal vets here knows a crap ton about reptiles, but doesn’t know a damn thing about rodents, rabbits, or birds. They actually advised against spaying our females and said to only neuter our males when we first got rabbits 7-8 years ago and approved all of our care ideas for them. We didn’t know the first thing on proper rabbit care when we first bought our Holland Lops (our last name is actually Holland so we thought it would be funny to get Holland rabbits for the Holland family), and apparently, neither did the vets!

[NalaBunny]

Yes we need to start spreading proper rabbit care to everyone. Just two days ago I got a rabbit and they kept 5 baby bunnies in a small dog kennel outside with just a tarp over it while there was a blizzard happening it was crazy. I hate seeing situations like that.

[JackWabbit13]

When we got our rabbits they were kept in tiny wire cages in a greenhouse. The greenhouse was in the middle of a poultry pen, and my little brother was taunting a turkey who later chose to attack him. He’s still scared of turkeys 6-8 (I forgot) years later.

[NalaBunny]

The turkey part is funny. But ya when I got me new bunny he was living in a small dog cage. The cage was covered with a tarp that was blowing away cause there was a blizzard happening. She bottom of the cage was completely covered in bunny poop and not a piece of hay was in sight. The only thing the bunny was fed was pellets and there wasn’t even water in the cage. There were 5 other bunnies living in these conditions that sadly I couldn’t take.

[JackWabbit13]

Y’know, if you see that place again and there still isn’t water, I think you can report them for animal abuse and have the bunnies taken away and rehomed. Sadly, animal cruelty laws are too loose in the rabbit community, but when you can find that bit to give them a second chance it’s a good opportunity.

 

Jumping Jack (and our other 2, Sam and Hopper) was in the same kind of conditions. A small cage, entirely wire, a small water bottle, no hay, a bit of pellets, a couple big PVC pipes for hiding, and too many bunnies in one cage. It was maybe 4 square feet with 4 bunnies per cage.

[jerseybunnies]

An idea I’d like to share is what I have for my rabbit!

I have a large dog crate with a bed inside of it. The door to this is ALWAYS open. Then, attached to that is an XXL dog pen (literally huge) and I actually attached two of those so that he has tons of room to run around. I have a cardboard piece that covers the baseboards as well as a leakproof and sliproof (underside adhesives) mat. I ziptied the pen and crate together. The crate door is always open to the pen and he is only kept in here during the night — he gets to run around the entire first floor of my house (we don’t want him going upstairs since its 4,000+ sq ft and we want to keep an eye on him since he’s just a baby) during the day. Good luck!!

These are just my suggestions. Please seek an experienced veterinarian if you have medical needs / questions. Thank you! 

[JackWabbit13]

I might need to steal some ideas from that.

So, I wanted to stay away from X-pens since I figured they’d be fairly light and Jumping Jack would push them around, but I found some heavy ones and I use them for outdoor exercise. She doesn’t push them over, so I’m leaning towards those now. A lot easier to use them than NIC grids.

[jerseybunnies]

Yes, mine is made for large dogs so it is very heavy and strong as well as tall! I’m my opinion it is easier than NIC Grids since all you have to do is kind of mold it into your desired shape! Also provides room for the bunny to binky / zoomy and it will let them feel comfortable as there is no roof over their head!

These are just my suggestions. Please seek an experienced veterinarian if you have medical needs / questions. Thank you! 

[Rabby]

I really like this cage. I want for my Mickey

employee time tracking

[Wick & Fable]

Welcome to Binkybunny Rabby! Since this is an older topic and is generally resolved, I’m going to close it– however, I welcome you to create your own topic if you’d like thoughts and feedback regarding the cage you pictured and questions you may have about Mickey and rabbit care in general.

I will note that that cage is very small, so that only is not enough to keep a rabbit if you plan to restrict your rabbit’s space during times you cannot/will not supervise, such as while you’re sleeping or away.

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.

[Author]

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