Cooling A Rabbit

[bunnydude]

It's that time of year again. We're going togo to 87 degrees this weekend. My bunnies are indoors in a house withcentral a/c. Even so, the upstairs (where the bunnies are) hoversaround 80 sometimes in the summer heat. We have this stupid 2-storyfoyer that lets all the heat rise upstairs. Does anyone have any ideason how to better cool the upstairs. This would help both the bunniesand my people family. When it does get hot, we give the bunnies frozenwater bottles, cool tiles to lay on, turn on the ceiling fan, and closethe blinds. Anything else we can do?

 

[labell]

It was 90* today...these tips are all great, thefrozen water bottle works wonders.....my dad refuses to use the AC andmy bun was too warm....but I'm putting frozen water bottles in therefor him everyday now.

 

[naturestee]

Bunnydude, I lived in an upstairs apartment lastyear. I used the ice bottles and I used a lot offans. That apartment had no natural circulation, even withall the windows open! For the buns, while they were in theircages during the dayI had a fan angled to hit only part ofthe cage, so they could choose to be in or out of the draft.They were usually in it. In the evenings and night I putthe fan in the window blowing in, so it pulled cooler air in from theoutside. This worked well, and the only time the buns hadproblems was when it got up to 100 F in a heat wave. Theywere okay at 95 for days on end.

 

[JimD]

It's going to be in the mid 80's today with a lot o humidity.

Got the fan in the buns room blowing all the loose fur around. Made sure not to have the fan blowing directly on them.

Windows are open and the blinds are up since they only get the morning sun.

I got a spray bottle with water in it. I go in and spay a lite mist over the cages ever once in a while.

There's a dozen water bottle in the freezer in case it gets really bad.

The best idea I found on the forum was to use ceramic tiles in thecages for the buns to laty on. I've got some cooling in the fridgeright now. I could only find 4, so I have to go out to the garage tosee if I have some more.

I'll be off to the store for some cold beer and a bag of ice in awhile.:toastingbuns...I hear that drunk bunnies don't complain aboutthe heat so much .

Stay Cool!!!!!!

~Jim

 

[Spring]

I moved Pebbles downstairs for the summer. Thefloor is tiled and is always cool downstairs so it isn't a problem withme . I just have to put a pillowcase over the part of the cage that'sin the sun becausethedodo birdis alwayssitting in the sun until I tell her to move.

 

[canela_2004]

We live in a very hot area but we have AC in our house. It is kept at 78 degrees F. It does not feel hot at all but I am wondering if that is still too warm for a bunny. I have 2 tiles that i put in the freezer for her. SHould I do more?

 

[naturestee]

78 is a good temp for bunnies. They don't start getting uncomfortable until 80 or more, mine usually didn't have problems until over 90.

Check the first few pages of this thread for more info.

 

[bunnydude]

Bumping this because of the massive US heatwave. Even here in the mid-atlantic, we're going up to 99 degrees fahrenheit. With humidity, it's supposed to feel like 106. So please pay attention to how your rabbits are doing, especially if they are outside. Put in some frozen water bottles, make sure they have plenty of fresh water,and stay vigilant for signs of heat stroke.

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

Just a note for those in cooler areas such as Canada. Even if temperatureare much lower than in the US, if it is hotter than usual in your area, a rabbit can suffer heat stroke. For example, instead of being 27*C, it is 34*C. That is still a concern if your rabbit is not used to it. There is no set danger temperature, it varies by area and what your rabbit is used to.

 

[pamnock]

Not sure if I had posted this on the original thread, but it's an article I recently updated:

http://www.geocities.com/pamnock/heatstress.pdf



Pam

 

[pinksalamander]

The frozen cermaic tiles work a tret, but need rotating each hour because they warm up so quickly. If you keep 3 in the freezer you can rotate quickly.

 

[Pipp]

:bunnydance:bumping the thread :bump

and making sure this article is prominent:

http://www.geocities.com/pamnock/heatstress.pdf

 

[TweedBunny]

My mom has some neighbors down the street thatkeep meat bunnies in a hutch in their backyard. (I know, sad but legal) I feel really bad and want to do something, becauseduring the summer, theykeep these rabbits in hutches inthesun.Our area is 90+ from the end of May untilSeptember, and 100+ everyday in the June/July/August months. Itfrequently gets above 110 during the hottest part of the summer! As youcan imagine, a hutch roof over their heads is not enough to keep themcool.

What can I do? Animal control only requires them to have food, water,and a roof over their head. These people don't really care how theirrabbits feel, since they use them for food anyway. Should I even worryabout it? Should I nicely make some suggestions on how to keep the bunscool?

I feel so bad everytime I drive by this house and see them in the sun in the backyard, it breaks my heart!:bigtears:

 

[War_Tepes]

I was on the pet's at home website a few mins ago (~bracon~ gave me a link to show me her new cage) and i noticed that they have even started selling ''Ice pods'' Basically it's an oval of plastic that has a cool gel inside that you leave in the freezer for a few hours and then put into your pet's cage/hutch. They are charging £9.99 for it and i think that it is daylight robbery considering you can just do the old bottle/water/freezer thing and it costs you the price of the bottle (about £1.00) It's horrible how they take advantage of non-bunny people who don't realise that they can do the same thing as the pet's at home people for a LOT cheeper.



War

 

[Phinnsmommy]

I wrote this in another thread too, but I figured it would be more of a use here.

Here are the things I do to keep Phinn safe in the hot weather:
These are for if your buns are outdoors...

-buy a large porch umbrella, and use it to shade the cage (being in the shade makes suucchhh a big difference)

-buy an electrical fan, I use a high power indoors one, but it is NEVER on if no one is home, in case it starts to rain. Also, bring it in at night.

-switch out ice packs, have 3-4 that you rotate. The bunnies love them and always use them.

-keep a fresh supply of water. I use a dish because they drink more. Every couple hours put a few icecubes in, it really freshens it up. Change and wash the bowl a couple times a day.

- have an indoor cage set up, just in case. Its really important that you have a back up plan.

Silvie

 

[maherwoman]

Something I discovered today:

Try giving your bunny a frozen brick, and as you hand her the brick, let it cool your hands, and pet her. It'll cool her off nice and fast, and the brick won't make your hands wet!

 

[maherwoman]

Adding a couple articles I just found:

An HRS article:

http://www.rabbit.org/faq/sections/warm-weather.html

And a Zooh Corner article:

http://www.mybunny.org/info/summer.htm

 

[Maz]

Thanks for this,, very useful

 

[Pipp]

:bump As hot weather approaches, bumping an oldie but goldie!


sas :bunnydance:

 

[Pipp]

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