Cage issues

[Orchid]

Hey all...



I tried posting about this in a different topic but I didn't have any reponses so I thought I would try here as well.

Simon's cage generally has always been just NIC panels set up any which way we come up with. He is always on carpet so it didn't matter much about a bottom. When he pees we clean it up and move on...

We are moving in two months to a house with all hard wood floors.

I need to come up with a pee safe, walkable, bottom for his cage that is as cheap as can be, because I am rather broke.

I will be looking into large area rugs for the living room and what not so he can run a and play...but I do need to do something for a bottom.



Any ideas and suggestions are most welcome!

 

[Luv-bunniz]

Puppy training pads with a rug/fleece over the top (if fleece, clipped to the cage corners)?

 

[SweetSassy]

Go to home depot or lowes and you can buy a peice of pre cut vinyl for less than $20 dollars. then I put rugs down for traction. :biggrin2:

 

[missyscove]

My cages are on top of a 4' by 8' piece of wallboard from home depot. Works great and it's easy to clean up.

 

[hartleybun]

have you ever tried litter box training him? i used those puppy pads when my choc lab had pups - they saved my rug (whelping box in the lounge:rollseyes) and the pups soon got the hint that they should use them and not the floor

 

[SweetSassy]

True... My Sassy is litter box trained. If you could litter box train your rabbit, that would be great!

 

[kirst3buns]

I have hardwood floors and a litter box trained rabbit but I do put something in his NIC cage area to protect the floor from the over-the-edge oopsies or other mistakes and the water bowl. I use a sheet of coroplast which is basically like plastic cardboard they use for signs. I can get a 4x8 sheet for $10 from a local sign place.

I have a thin rubber backed rug on the floor in his run area so he has some place where he can get better traction. He doesn't seem to mind the wood floors though and runs on them with no problems. However, when he flops in the run area it seems to be on the corner of his rug. I got the rug at WalMart and it is about 4x5 and I've machine washed it even a few times with no problems (hang to dry).

 

[Orchid]

hartleybun wrote:

have you ever tried litter box training him? i used those puppy pads when my choc lab had pups - they saved my rug (whelping box in the lounge:rollseyes) and the pups soon got the hint that they should use them and not the floor

Simon only uses his pan when he feels like it. Which is a lot, but he has a habit of peeing in the corner where is pan is not. If you switch the pan, he pees where the pan was...Mostly he goes fine in the pan....but its like he has to keep marking it all.

 

[jcottonl02]

Litterbox training would be a really good solution to this problem.
You wouldn't have to worry about cleaning anything up, just emptying and scrubbing his litter tray.

V cheap and easy

 

[Orchid]

kirst3buns wrote:

I have hardwood floors and a litter box trained rabbit but I do put something in his NIC cage area to protect the floor from the over-the-edge oopsies or other mistakes and the water bowl. I use a sheet of coroplast which is basically like plastic cardboard they use for signs. I can get a 4x8 sheet for $10 from a local sign place.

I have a thin rubber backed rug on the floor in his run area so he has some place where he can get better traction. He doesn't seem to mind the wood floors though and runs on them with no problems. However, when he flops in the run area it seems to be on the corner of his rug. I got the rug at WalMart and it is about 4x5 and I've machine washed it even a few times with no problems (hang to dry).

Thanks so much to everyone and to you Kirst3buns. I think this might be my best good cheapest bet

 

[SweetSassy]

That was my first choice but I couldn't find it( Coroplast). So i went with the vinyl. As long as you have a sign store close to you, it shouldn't be a problem. good luck.

:apollo:April

 

[Orchid]

I called a local sign store and the guy said to me he would sell me a 4x4 piece for 15 bucks. Not so bad I guess.

How often will I need to replace this? Simon likes to chew on anything he feels confines him...even when the door is open lol...

 

[SweetSassy]

u can get a 9 x6 peice of vinyl for less than 20$. That seems expensive for the coroplast. maybe you should call around.

 

[Flashy]

What about something like linoleum?

 

[tonyshuman]

I use lino. You can get plenty for $20 and curve it up around the edges to keep stuff from spilling out.

 

[sephira]

I have carpet that I need to keep protected from oopsies and water dish spills so I did this:

You know the plastic/vinyl runners you can put in a hallway or under a desk for a chair to roll on? That's what I use! I got a roll that's at least 12' long for under $10. I laid it out on the carpet and extended it under the cage so they wouldn't chew up the ends and taped it down to the carpet. It works like a charm!! Any spills just wipe right up.

I also have some of the cheap rubber-backed rugs from WalMart that another member was talking about. I put those in a couple of corners just in case. If they get soiled I just throw them in the washer. The best thing about them is that I got them on clearance for $1.50 a piece!!!! I got like 4 of them and use 2 when the other 2 are being cleaned! Not to mention my buns love stretching out on them.

Hope this helps some!! :biggrin2:

 

[Orchid]

Awesome ideas everyone...thank you!

How bad would it be chewing Lino? Simon does like to chew everything he shouldn't.

He has even picked at the carpet to eat that lol...

I have a strange boy alright..

I have until June to figure it out...Just wanted to get a jump start on ideas anc costs.

 

[tonyshuman]

My guys chew on it, but they never get enough to cause a problem. The noise of them chewing on it is worse than what happens to their insides, it seems. They do seem to have steel stomachs, though...

 

[SweetSassy]

Linolieum and Vinyl is aboutthesame. Last peice I got was at Menards on Sale for $16.99 for a 6x9 peice. Its just flooring like you'd put in your kitchen or bathroom.Good Luck.

Thanks, April :rabbithop

 

[BethM]

For cage flooring, I use a sheet of 1/4" plywood, then I covered it with linoleum. I actually had to have the plywood cut into pieces to fit it in my car when I bought it, but then I just laid the pieces end to end; I used a full sheet.

Then I got one of the rolls of linoleum sold at Lowe's or Home Depot, it's pre-cut to 6'x9' and they sell them to go in a laundry room or bathroom. I think that was only $16 or $19.

I got a roll of double-sided tape that is meant especially for sticking linoleum down. I don't think it's super sticky, but it's sticky enough. I just put the tape down all along the edges of the plywood, then put the linoleum down and trimmed the edges. There was one seam inside the pen area, but it's in the area where the litter pan goes, and I covered the rest of it up with a little kitchen rug.

Nick and Amelia love to chew edges of things, but the sides of the pen are about an inch inside the edge of the flooring. I put a couple of bricks outside the pen to hold it in place, just in the areas the bunnies are a lot, so they can't push the pen over to get at the edge.

I used to just use the lino, but since it was just on the carpet, it would move and sort of bunch up, then the bunnies would chew through it and start working on the carpet underneath. :X