Moving our rabbit outside :(

[SD-rabbit]

Hi, I had posted a few weeks ago about allergies. Unfortunately, I had an allergy test and found out I’m severely allergic to rabbits and grass. The doctor said we have to get rid of the rabbit because it is causing asthma that could turn into a lifelong health problem. My son is so attached to the little guy, he currently freeroams in his room and cuddles with him so as a compromise, we decided to move it outdoors. To be honest, we’re all heartbroken. We live in San Diego so the climate is accommodating. Here are a few questions:

Will the rabbit enjoy being in an outdoor hutch or are we doing it a disservice vs. letting him to get adopted by another family?

We have coyotes in our neighborhood. We will make sure the enclosure is secure but I heard just seeing a predator can kill them. Do we need to worry about that possibility.

Should we get him a companion since he’ll be spending more time alone?

Appreciate the help.

 

[Hermelin]

Build a hutch that off ground and build secure run around it. So during night time when you can’t keep an eye on your bunnies lock them in.

My bunnies love living outdoors, one of them really get stressed indoors. I can see them binky and flopping. They can sleep so deep I need to shout at them before I approach them, so I don’t scare them.

Myself built my hutch 1,1 m off ground, so the foxes can’t get up to my bunnies height. So I’m not worried about my bunnies getting hurt by loose dogs or foxes running into the yard.

It can frightened them seeing a predator but it will be okay as long the bunny can hide somewhere. My bunnies react more to the moose walking around than the foxes.

I know a few people building the bunny run using a normal dog run. Because there no chance for a dog escaping them and biting through the mesh. While the run having a mesh roof to protect the bunnies from birds.

Which will make it a steady and predator safe. Myself would also use a dog run as a base if it wasn’t just a temporary cage outdoors I have.

When he become outdoors make sure he have bonded to a friend. So he won’t be lonely.

 

[Niomi]

We have coyotes in our area, and they can jump up to 7 feet. We see them occasionally during they day and there have been reports of them taking off with cats and small dogs. Putting the hutch inside a dog kennel works for dogs, but for a coyote, the kennel should really have a top on it. There is also the possibility of something digging under the kennel to get in. How much predator proofing you will need to do will depend on what is roaming in your area. If predators don't come around during the day, perhaps you can put a cage in a garage or shed and lock your rabbit up every night.

I had rabbits outside before and had a dog run as Hermelin suggests. It worked great for many years, but eagles and hawks moved into the area and would circle above threatening my rabbits when they were in the run, so I ended up moving my rabbit inside. I do believe that my rabbits enjoyed being outside more than inside. I enjoy spending time outside so they were not neglected, and they liked picking up on the smells in the air, much like dogs enjoys going outside and sniffing.

 

[Cloverhouse]

I've kept rabbits outside for years, though these days I have only indoor buns. I used a dog enclosure as a home base. 12' by12' with chicken wire over the top secured with strong wire. Also reinforced the door with stout cage wire so no possums or ***** could slip into the gap. I put plastic corrugated roof panels around the base of the chain link to keep predators from pestering the rabbits through the fence and kept a tarp over the top. Inside of that the rabbits had hutches they could go into for warmth and safety.

For small breeds, that black corrugated drain pipe can be wired up or left on the ground to make fun runs for them. some of my bunnies had the wired up fun runs and shelves attached to the walls for them to play on.

They WILL burrow out (and other critters might burrow in) if you don't either bury wire, blocks or the like around the perimeter. Domesticated rabbits are from European rabbits that live in warrens of burrows and can dig fast and deep. It's one of the things they love about being outside, but you have to watch that they don't dig out.

Heat will kill rabbits far faster than cold. Make sure they have a shady cool place to retreat in Summer (another thing they love about burrows) and that in the winter they have access to liquid water at least three times a day no matter how cold it gets outside. They get warm winter coats and a box of straw and they should be fine all winter, as long as they have water so they can process their food to stay warm.

 

[Augustus&HazelGrace]

If you have a concrete pad to put underneath of it or get concreate pavers to put under it if you get the dog kennel. I live basically in the middle of the woods and We hear and see coyotes all the time but they never come in the yard. I never lost rabbit to a coyote or any preditors.

 

[SD-rabbit]

Thank you all. We have done more research and have someone coming in tomorrow to give us a quote to build a structure as suggested. We will definitely need a top as it turns out we also have owls in the neighborhood. One last question... we plan to build it on our grass yard. Do we need to worry about him digging and escaping? Having to add a concrete bottom is going to add quite bit of cost to the project

 

[Blue eyes]

Yes, he can dig under a fence. You could use concrete blocks or pavers. Or, you can have hardware mesh buried below the surface to prevent him digging down.

 

[Blue eyes]

There are some photos from another member here who is currently building an outdoor area for her rabbit. It may offer some ideas:
https://www.rabbitsonline.net/threads/new-rabbit-owner.97094/page-3

 

[Eve84]

Thanks [emoji120] blue eyes! You need to think of a few very important things before building it.
They will digg! So better put it on some sort of concrete, also it’s much easier to keep it clean and hygienic.
The mesh needs to be with squares no more than 1.4 - 1.9cm big, it needs to be weld on all for corners and at least a mm thick and it needs to be covered with zinc otherwise it will rust.

It’s good to have a 20cm frame at the bottom so that they won’t run agains the mesh if they get scared of whatever.

They can’t handle any draft, so we will use a frame with Plexiglas or something similar on the mesh which we can take off during the summer once it’s getting really warm.

There should not be any holes bigger as 3.5cm as a marten can get through it and willl kill rabbits.

Good luck [emoji6] u can always ask if u have any questions
Eve

 

[Niomi]

I used wire before to stop my rabbits from digging out. One of my rabbits cut up his feet trying to dig through the wire. That same rabbit scarped up his feet trying to dig through concrete. I ended up covering up the floor with rubber stall mats. It only happened with one of my rabbits, a mini rex. My other rabbits were fine with wire and concrete.

 

[Augustus&HazelGrace]

The thing I would worry about leaving it as grass is if rain can get to it then the ground is bound to become muddy and nasty. We have a chicken coop at school that has an open area with grass and when it rains it gets really muddy and there is no grass there anymore. It's only been there a year.

 

[Eve84]

And that’s why I think it’s better to put concrete or similar down. You can place things on top like a wooden board etc.