Warm enough?

[MrBilboBagginsMammy]

 Hiya, it’s starting to be alot colder now in the UK and I’m concious that my bun might be feeling colder too maybe? I feel his ears now and then and they definitely feel less warm / cold-ish compared to in the summer so does that mean he’s too cold? Does anyone have any ideas of how to keep him warmer as I don’t really want to leave my heating on as I’m not in the house many hours of the day but Bilbo has free roam still He’s got a rug on the carpet to lay on, a fleecey blanket in his cage to lie on and the sofa… should I maybe buy him a bed (either a dog’s or cat’s type) to see if that keeps him more snug or am I just over worrying? I dread to think how bunnies outside in a hutch cope, I couldn’t ever do that to him!! 

[Elrohwen]

Most rabbits are ok down to 40F at least, and colder if they have built up a winter coat and have access to a draft free nest area. They tolerate cold temperatures much better than hot. If he’s in the house and you’re able to live there too, you have nothing to worry about. My house gets down to 55F while we’re gone and the bunnies are fine. I would really only worry about an outdoor rabbit in a climate that gets below freezing.

Rabbits regulate their body temperature with blood vessels in their ears. When the ears are warm, it means your bunny is warm and trying to cool off. If the ears are cold, it just means that your bunny isn’t overly warm, and is conserving heat. So it’s totally normal for the ears to get cold when the bunny has no reason to cool off.

You can get a bed if you want, but it’s really not necessary. Some bunnies like them, some ignore them, some chew them up, and some pee on them 😛

[MrBilboBagginsMammy]

 ahh thankyou so much for all that really useful information,  you’ve really helped put my mind to rest but what is 40f in degrees celcius? Haha btw your bunny looks gorgeous, similar colouring to Bilbo so obviously beautiful!! 

[Roberta]

40F = approx 4.5C
http://www.metric-conversions.org/temperature/fahrenheit-to-celsius.htm

[MrBilboBagginsMammy]

It gets below freezing in UK.

[Dobby]

You have to remember, though, that it probably doesn’t get that cold in your house. If it did, you’d be having all sorts of problems with freezing pipes and such. And it would take forever for the house to warm up when you got home.

If you have an adjustable thermostat you can set it for something low while you’re out, like between 4.5C and 10C. Then it would only kick on when it was getting really cold in your house. This is what I do when I’m at work and it seems to work well.

[MrBilboBagginsMammy]

 I’ve currently only got storage heaters that I’m reluctant to put on due to A.not really knowing how to usethem andB. Not wanting theheat to be released during the day when I’m not there, then effectively not being on when I am there so I think I will have to just hope my little bunny will be alright. We are in an upstairs flat so hoping we get some of the heat that’s risen from under us  

[bpash89]

As long as it doesn’t get that cold (freezing temps) in your actual house it shouldn’t be a problem. If he has free roam then he shouldn’t have any trouble avoiding drafty areas and as you described, he has tons of warm things for him to snuggle with if he gets chilly.

[Eepster]

I’ve kept rabbits outdoors in New Jersey where it gets down to about –5 F. –5 F would be around –20 C. They were fine. Anything in you house is going to be completely within their comfort range.

[Tessie]

Yes and they have fur! They cope far better with cold temperatures than with warm ones!
Also it’s not nearly below freezing in the UK yet! (Luckily for us!)

[Author]

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