Where should I put the pen?
Rabbits are curious and need social interaction with their family. Placing their enclosure in an
active or busy room of your home, like a kitchen or living room, will allow them to interact with
you and really become a member of your family.
What about keeping my bunny outside?
Did you know a rabbit who stays outside in a hutch lives an average of two years, but an inside
rabbit who is a member of the family lives 7-10 years? Outside rabits can easily get sick
without anyone noticing. The wind and rain can penetrate their hutch or their water bottle might
freeze in the winter. They can be attacked by predators from raccoons to neighborhood dogs
and cats. They can even be scared to death by the presence of a predator outside their hutch!
Worse, an outside rabbit never gets to be a member of the family. It’s easy to forget him or get
bored with him if you never learn how much he likes hanging out on the couch with you or if you never see him doing the Bunny 500--running laps in the hallway!
Have other pets? Many rabbits get along fine with dogs and cats. It’s important to supervise
interactions and train your other pets; pretty soon, bunny and kitty could be snuggling together!
Rabbits succumb very easily to heat. For this reason, you will need to keep their environment
below 80°F. Clearly, this means that you should never keep your rabbit outdoors for long
periods of time. If you do not have an air conditioned home, you can create “bunny air
conditioners” for hot days. Freeze water in plastic pop bottles and place them in the rabbit’s
room. The rabbit will lie next to them to cool off and even use them as toys.
Playtime!
Rabbits need plenty of exercise time outside of their enclosures: 30-40 hours of run time a
week. This will help your rabbit keep in shape as well as provide him lots of areas to explore.
Try to provide 3-6 hours of playtime a day. Rabbits are usually active in the morning and in the
evening, but mostly sleep during the daylight and nighttime hours. Do remember that all
activities should be supervised – especially if you take your rabbit outdoors for activity.
Bunnyproofing
Before you allow your rabbit to run loose in any part of your home, you should “bunnyproof.”
Bunnyproofing will protect your rabbit from harm (like electrical shock from chewing lamp cords)
as well as prevent the destruction of your property. You can also ensure that your rabbit has
fun and safe chewing alternatives that will distract him from chewing on your wood tables and
furniture.
Electrical cords are very attractive to rabbits. You MUST protect your
rabbit from wires so they don’t get hurt! Products such as ‘spiral cable wrap’ and cord channels
can be placed around your cords to provide an extra layer of protection from chewing. You can
also run your wires behind, under, or above furniture to ensure that your rabbit cannot get to
them.
Toxic and poisonous plants are dangerous too. Several houseplants, while pretty, are very
dangerous for rabbits to consume. The best bet is to hang your plants from the ceiling – but
remember to watch for fallen leaves and flowers. Remember that some rabbits will jump on
chairs and other furniture and be able to reach plants (or remote controls, nice coffee table
books, etc!) that shouldn’t be chewed!
Housing Ideas
Traditional cage:
Minimum size 30”x30”x24” for a 5-6 lb. adult bunny. Include litterbox, food bowl, water bowl or bottle, and toys. If the cage has a wire bottom, protect bunny’s feet by placing a
doormat or other solid flooring item on part of the floor area. Look for a cage with a side/front opening
door so bunny can hop in and out at playtime. An additional top opening panel is helpful for cleaning.
Our minimum enclousure size for adopting a bunny from Indiana House Rabbit Societ is 4'x4'. We recommend
an exercise pen.
Exercise pen:
Sold for dogs, a collapsible metal pen usually consisting of eight panels two feet
wide by varying heights. A 30-36” high pen is good for a rabbit (they jump over short ones,
especially smaller breeds!). Some pens have a door in the side of one panel, and tops and
extensions can be purchased for many models. A very simple setup for a rabbit is to put down
a waterproof barrier such as a tarp or shower curtain, and then a carpet or vinyl flooring
remnant. Place the pen on top (4’ x 4’ square shape is great). Ex-pens are nice because they
are portable, configurable to many uses (blocking off a large play area as well as a closed pen),
and easy to clean. These pens are easy to let bunny out for playtime by opening the door or
detaching clips between two panels.
Dog crate:
Try to choose a large or x-large size for plenty of floor space for bunny. You can
add a shelf to the back portion of the crate so bunny can climb on top or hide underneath. The
very large door makes it easy to clean these homes and bunny can hop in and out during
playtime. Dog crates are also very sturdy to help keep out kids or other pets, and many people
have an extra from training their dog!
Build your own grid cage:
Online cage instructions will help you make
this inexpensive and highly configurable type of cage. Use the 14-15” square grids sold as
shelving cubes at stores like Kmart, Target, Meijer, office supply stores (brands like Neat Idea
Cubes, Organize It). A good basic grid condo is a 3-grid wide by 2-grid deep by 2-grid tall
arrangement with a 2-grid shelf on one end, but these condos can be made in all kinds of sizes
and heights. Included fasteners can be strengthened by using cable ties on the grids. Put a
vinyl remnant under the condo and have a “door” by allowing one bottom front grid to swing on
cable tie hinges on one side and clip shut on the other side. A simple condo costs about $20-30
for supplies.
Section an area of your home:
A kitchen nook, sunroom, or bathroom might be a great place for bunny to stay. Use a baby gate or puppy exercise pen to block the area from the rest of the
house, and open the gate during playtime.