Kitty proof cage?

[Gizmo_Fluffybutt]

Hi everyone! I’m new to the house rabbit world – I adopted my adorable Gizmo (a tri-colored Holland Lop) in August and brought him into a home already occupied by two kitties. I feel we’ve been pretty successful at making Gizmo and his feline house-mates comfortable with one another (though not quiet best friends yet!)

Gizmo has a four level NIC home that he hangs out in when we aren’t home. The kitties pay hardly any attention to him when he’s out running around, aside from the occasional sniff, but they are enthralled with his cage. The moment the door opens they try to rush in and try to eat the hay or curl up in Gizmo’s cardboard house. Needless to say, Gizmo’s not very excited by this. I get so frustrated trying to keep the kitties out and have been trying for months to come up with a way to design an entrance/exit that Gizmo can use but the kitties can’t, maybe a tunnel or something, but so far have been unable to come up with anything.

So, long story short, my question is – Does anyone have any ideas for a kitty-proof bunny entrance for a cube cage?

 

[JK]

Wow that is too funny!  What a problem to have! A tunnel of sorts may work but could the cats get through that? That’s really a tough one!

[Scarlet_Rose]

Hi and welcome a_grim!  I have a few ideas and one of them you have thought of already, using a tunnel as door or make the door in the bottom of the cage by elevating it on a cart.  I am also wondering if it would help if you built the cats their own NIC palace because it just might either make them bored so they will leave Gizmo’s alone or they will love it and have their own cool little special hang out.  As for eating the hay have you tried givein them their own wheat grass plant or catnip toys?  I am also wondering if you’ve tried the squirt bottle on them?

I admit when I saw the title I thought it was a case where they are not getting along, but it turns out they are and that’s great! But I can see where Gizmo does not like the intrusion and it may get to where he would chase the cat.  Bunnies really need a special place where they feel safe and that is usually their home.  I hope these ideas help and let us know how it goes!

[Gizmo_Fluffybutt]

The kitties are a good bit larger them Gizmo, though they seem to be masters at squeezing themselves into tiny spaces (like the bunny house!). I considered building the kitties their own play condo, but I’m sure they wouldn’t be satisfied with something they were supposed to play in! I have tried the squirt bottle to no avail and they do have catnip toys, though I probably will buy them their own grass to nibble on.

Most of the time Gizmo is out running around when they attempt the home invasion, but this morning he was in the little box and one of the cats decided he wanted in also. It only took a moment for a disagreement to break out. Fortunately we were right there to stop it before anything bad happened. I’ve taken to keeping that room closed to the kitties, but I’m really hoping that we can solve this so Gizmo can truly be a house rabbit and not just a one-room rabbit!

[Lisa_43]

Try rubbing something that smells on the doors and floor in front of the cage.

Something with a strong smell that the cats don’t like but the rabbit does.

I am not sure what, maybe mint or something like that.

[Gizmo_Fluffybutt]

That’s something I hadn’t considered! I would hate to put something on bunny’s cage that he hated so I may have to play around with some scents on other items first. I’m sure my boyfriend’s going to think I’m crazy, rubbing random objects with different scents and making the pets smell them

[Deleted User]

Hi a-grim. That is so funny and I am going through that as well. Sammy (the fat fuzzy yammy) squeezes his 15 pounds into bunny tunnels, bunny castles, cat cubes that he did not look twice at until the bunny decided he liked them. He loves oxbow timothy pellets, hay and bunny toys, which are all his cat toys he never looked twice at until the buns started playing with them. I have given up trying to stop it, I just referee and break it up if it gets intense. The biggest issue I have is the one corner by the kitchen door where everyone insist on hanging out. The poop war is intense, cause the cats like that spot, the dog likes that spot and Shadow likes that spot. I put a bunny litter box there when he is out but of course the cat likes to lay in it, So Shadow marks around it. Of course the cats and dog don’t get it.

I will be having Shadow neutered in February, but I have a feeling that one spot will be the one place he will still spritz to make his point.

[Gizmo_Fluffybutt]

Holy cow, I’m so glad that we don’t have a poop war!!! That’s sounds like a handful. It is funny how cats seem to like anything they shouldn’t have, huh? I’ve got one that leats the rabbit pellet mix, one that eats the hay. They even stole lettuce and carrots from the cage after seeing Gizmo eat some, but both decided it wasn’t very good. They have a basket full of kitty toys, but as soon as Gizmo gets a new toy they steal it! Drives me nuts!

Well, at least we’re never lacking for excitement around here.

 

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

I’ve heard that cat’s HATE tinfoil…Try wrapping some around the door of the cage maybe?

[skunklionshow]

I’ve had a few instances where the cats have gone into the bunny condo…but it doesn’t seem to be a regular occurance.  Phoebe mostly tries to enter their domain when they have live grass or fresh leaves and/or hay.  I think those scents get her really excited.  One way that we have limited the cats from accessing rooms or spaces that they are not allowed or when one cat has a special diet that the others shouldn’t eat….using hand made barriers that are custom made according to the allowed cat’s size. 

Max & Phoebe are about 20 lbs, Wolfy a more normal 12 lbs, and Katie about 4-5 lbs.  Katie is allowed in the bedroom so we keep the door open at about 4 inches wide.  The others can’t get in and she can.  We use latches to keep the door at that width.  We’ve also used box created door ways w/ small holes for spaces that bunnies can go but cats can’t.  Depending on your cats girth, you may be able to make a cardboard doorway that is just the right size for the bunnies, but too small for the cats.  For a more permanent fixture you could make a doorway using the NIC cube pieces in overlap to accommodate the size you need.  Its a lot easier than I’m making it sound.  Good Luck!

[Gizmo_Fluffybutt]

Thanks for all the ideas everyone. I have some cardboard laying around, so I may experiment with cutting various sized openings and fixing in the doorway to see if I can come up with something only Gizmo fits through. I bought the one kitty some grass of her own, so maybe that will cut down on the desire for hay. As for the other one, well, he’ll just have to get over the desire to eat rabbit pellets! I’ll let you know if I find anything that works well!

[BinkyBunny]

Welcome a grim!!

I would get some rosemary, dill, and mint and hold one at a time out to your cat and see if your cat is offended at all by it. I know catnip is a part of the mint family, but regular old mint, our cat doesn’t like. Then if you happen to find something that they don’t like rub the herb everywhere on the cage entrance, bars, hay rack. You may find your bunny licking it off though.

[skunklionshow]

I think that my cats get excited by the smell of pellets & hay is b/c it has that "planty/farmy" smell like catnip.  Even though it doesn’t quite smell like catnip I believe its got a similar dry plant kinda smell like the dried catnip. 

As far as your cats eating pellets or hay, you might want to discuss that w/ your vet.  I think the pellets would be ok, as long as they don’t forgo their regular food for bunny pellets, they need the aminos from meat as part of their diet.  I’d be a bit concerned about the hay b/c the string like nature may get caught up in their intestine system.  Hay is a bit drier than cat grass so it would likely absorb more water in their intestines than the grass.  These can diminish motility in cats.  However I think in both cases, that’s if they’re eating a lot of it.  A few here and there will likely do little to their system.  Cats are carnivores, therefore their intenstinal system is much shorter than humans, so things don’t within the waste process.

Even when I give Phoebe her own cat grass, she still prefers the bunnies grass.  I guess cuz pets use much more instinct than us, they tend to be naughtier.

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