Is 10 degrees too cold?

[Kizza]

Hi guys,

I have recently moved my 2 little boys in the one cage and they are doing really well! It is almost winter in Australia and it gets down to about 10 degrees C on most nights in winter and it can get windy which will drop the temp a bit more. Sometimes it gets colder but not too often.

Their current set up is a large dog kennel and a caged off area at the front of it where the door to the kennel opens. It is set up under my covered area at the back of the house, and the walls of the area are covered with shade cloth, which a little bit of wind and hard rain will get through a little bit. The ground is paved and I put towels over the pavers in the covered area.

I was wondering if this is too cold for them? I cover their cage with light blankets at night time. I'm a bit of a fussy bun mum I just want them to be completely comfortable

 

[bad kelpie]

(he had a heated shelter, never went in it unless it was raining heavily)

My experience has been that rabbits love cold. 10 celsius is 50 fahrenheit, not too cold at all.

 

[Azerane]

10 degrees is fine. If you're worried about it you can give them extra hay to snuggle up in and loosely balled up pieces of newspaper as well to snuggle in. I give it to Bandit, but he usually just pushes it all aside anyway The shadecloth is a good thing, I cover Bandit's hutch with a couple layers of shadecloth on especially cold or windy nights to keep out the breeze, rain and help keep the temp up a bit inside. But yeah, 10 is fine

 

[Kizza]

Thanks guys I feel less paranoid about it now

 

[ladysown]

rabbits have built in fur coats. They do really well in the winter.

 

[Quel bel]

I was just wondering the same thing, I'm in Perth, Australia, in winter it can get down to about 1 degree at night. In the wet and cold I move them to a hutch where the upstairs section is wrapped in tarps to block rain and wind, part of the bottom section is covered too. I can't bring them inside as they make my hubby sneeze.(maybe I should stick him outside and bring the buns in x) day time they are in a chicken coop (no chickens) where they also have grass to play on. Are these temps too cold? Thanks.

 

[majorv]

At that temp they should be fine as long as they're protected from the wind and rain. You could also give them hay to snuggle in

 

[bad kelpie]

Winter where I am usually is in the teens and 20's (farenheit), 15f is -9c. It can drop down to 0 though, which is -17c. My rabbits had no issues last winter. I give them a heated shelter and a thick layer of hay on the ground, they hung out in the snow and on the ice covered ground.

 

[sparkly]

be careful that the forecast says one thing, and then it turns out to be another (you can feel a distinct chill and then you just bring them in)...many nights here in sou west w.a. that happens. my neighbour's bun got pneumonia and died after some real chilly nights last may. many nights it isn't too cold out, but be sure that the cage will not lose covers due to wind or driving rain. i used tarps, and a car cover (still do to cover back and sides right now during the day), secured with bricks. give plenty of hay and boxes to snuggle in. beware also if your kennel is not in a cage, that a predator could take your bun. i have known people to have one outside for 5 years on the back patio, then all of a sudden..disappeared. i'm not meaning to be negative, but i wouldn't want to suffer a loss that way. i feel very chilly here tonight, well it is 6 degrees! and it's not even midnight. 4 is a fridge, so i'm glad my bunny is in the lounge.

 

[Kizza]

Thanks for the tips, I have the kennel with a strong wire cage attached at the front which is a bout 2mx1m it is quite spacious. Sorry i haven't got any photos yet. Because it is on pavers that are quite cold i lay towels down over the pavers and then a fleece blanket or 2 on top of that. At the moment I havent got a proper roof for the run part so I have put some bamboo poles across the top that are fastened with cable ties (it's all I had to use at the time) which I put a sheet over and then a sheet of plastic.

At night i cover the sides of the cage with fleece blankets so drafts cant get through. I actually think it gets down to zero sometimes in winter at night. They snuggle a bit so i guess they keep each other warm also. I am a stress head! lol

 

[pamnock]

A box full of hay or straw for bunns to snuggle into gives excellent insulation on very cold nights.

 

[Zaiya]

I have heat lamps on my rabbits! In cold weather, they are on all the time, in warmer weather but still cold at night, they are on only at night, and they are off when it's warm enough. You have to be careful that they don't cook the rabbits-you have to have it a good height for them. And make sure they always have a place to retreat from the light, too. I'll post a pic of my set-up this afternoon.

 

[Nancy McClelland]

10 celsius is no problem, but what Pam said is what I'd do also. Before we moved here from California it was a lot colder in the winter. We had a Desert Tortoise that wandered into our yard, so I built her a box and stuffed it with hay--she'd spend all winter in there. Once spring came around, when I was in the yard, I'd turn my radio on and she'd come out to get treats and wander around on the lawn.