Question for free-range bunny owners

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maherwoman

maherwoman

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Feb 21, 2006
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Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Hey guys!

For those of you who allow your bunnies to run around the house for most of the day, how do you have the house set up to allow for it? Do your bunnies pee anywhere, or do they go to their litterboxes and handle it? Do any of your buns have a preference of peeing on clothing? If so, how do you handle it?

What about the couch? How do your buns react to it? Do they chew it? If so, how do you handle that?

I ask because I would REALLY love for my bunnies to be allowed out more, but cannot for the life of me figure out how. I know I would at least have to bunny-safe the house (right now I have a pen made of NIC panels that I set up), at the very least. I would really love my babies to be out most of the time...I just can't figure out what steps I would have to take.

Can you guys help me determine if I can actually do that?

A little information: I have two kitties (that have Soft Paws, so they aren't able to scratch the buns during play...they get along just fine with the buns), and a 6yr old daughter (whose room they would be blocked from outright because it's always rather messy in general). We have hardwood floors, so we have an easier cleanup in general. We have a lot of cords, but we can get cord covers for them to bunny-safe that.

Thanks guys! :)
 
Our bunns are free range...mostly. (We are switching in and out times so the new bunn gets his free run time too!) But they have been free range pretty much from the time they came home.

We didn't really go out of our way to set up the house for bunns. We hid or taped up all the available electrical cords, missed a phone cord though!:?Made sure they couldn't get into the bottom cabinets, basically got down on our tummies and looked around each room to see what we could see.

The bunns have the bedroom next to ours, so their litterbox is a little far away for my peace of mind. So we set up an extra one in our livingroom just in case. They like to sit there eat hay and watch whatever is going on! They have a tendency to leave a poop trail now and again. Our vet told us as long as they were peeing in the litterbox to count our blessings and buy a handvac (which we did)(the swiffer carpet flick is amazing for poop picking uping especially on carpet!!!):D, but they are usually really good about their bathroom habits!:) Solembum will pee on any clothing that has my scent on it. Only mine.:? So I make sure I keep my clothes up out of reach!!

We have 100 year old pressed-back antique chairs in the diningroom. We just make sure that there are loads of bunn chewies around. Who wants to eat some cruddy old chair when they have grassmats and grapevine wreaths and balls, and paper balls, and our new fav the little red car from the Disney movie!!! (we got it in a happy meal and the kids like to grab it as it rolls by and throw it all over the place!!!) I am a bit of a clean freak(I have my moments) but I found so many things I could add to the house to make it look nice, and that the bunns could chew to their hearts content!! I just decorated in edible bunn decor!! Ours have never chewed the couch, although they were having a hey day trying to pull at the drywall paper while we were renovating!! A spraybottle with water will fix almost any behavioral problem...IF you can catch them doing it!!!

I found my bunns were def not happy with our hardwood floors. They refused to walk on them. So we had to put area rugs in all the rooms they go in for them to walk on.

The easiest way to make sure you have bunn safed a room is to go thru it check everything, and then the first few times your bunns come out to explore...stay with them and watch carefully. If there is something you don't want them in...they'll find it! We just kept watching and adjusting until we were confident we had everything stashed or bunn proofed!!

Hope this helps!

Dani
 
Dani, my brood just read your post, they're packing up their stuff and I think they're catching the next bus to Ontario. :(

Maherwoman, other than owning nothing but junk (especially after the rabbitsgot through withit), and a lot of wireless electronics, my place is decorated in a Modern NIC motif. I've got NIC panels everywhere. (They actually don't look THAT bad). I have two panels at right angleson most of the corners --my wall chewers love corners -- aswell as panels strung across the (remaining) furniturethat's in teeth reach. I also use pillows to stuff the bunny-sized gaps behind the wall unit, computer desk, etc.

Hope this helps!

sas ;)and the gang of fur :bunnydance::bunnydance::bunnydance::bunnydance::bunnydance:
 
ROFL- Oh Pip if you only knew!!:D People around here think I am nuts!! My sis used to call me the crazy cat lady(can't anymore cause Ihave rabbits too now!)cause my kids are always first with me! I buy them tons of toys and chewies and then buy my clothes at Value Village! lol:shock: Tell your bunns they are more than welcome!!! I always have room for more!! lol ;)
 
Great ideas, guys!

I think I would be pretty much set if I blocked off the kitties' things (litterbox, food, etc.) with NIC panels, and wire protected the various cords. I'll probably have to put a baby gate (or some such) in my daughter's doorway. Can't shut the door because it'll get too hot.

Oh wait...I forgot...neither of my babes are spayed yet, and thus not yet bonded. Does this mean I can't yet let them out free-range in any way? Any ideas about that? (I'm such a dork...lol!)
 
My house set up is perfectly for my three groups of buns, so they never use the same territory, not even at different times -- if they do end up being when another bun has been, it's a pee and poop fest as they're compelled tomark.

I have other litter traysscattered around the house,especially where they've marked before.I just use the cardboard cartons from my cat food cans. I buy it by the caseload, and ifI crack the case carefully enough, theplastic remains intact. If not, no big deal, I just throw out the trayswhen theyget wet or poopy.

I bought a cheap, plastic baby gate which they proceeded to start chewing right through, but a board across the bottom of the door solve that problem. I just climb over the gate.

sas et al
 
My Basil and Max used to have the run of the entire house until Mr. Tumnus came home with us. Now Max and Basil have the bedroom and Tumnus has the living room. He chews more than Basil and Max so Im re-bunny proofing the living room.

Basically, my best advice would be to think like a bunny. Lay on the floor and look around for dangers. Baby gates are a big help for keeping buns separeted from eachother or keeping them out of certain rooms. I cover my cords in this thick plastic stuff thats used to cover cords in trailers etc. I get it at Auto Zone and its fairly cheap. My guys are pretty good about staying away from the couch and chairs and such. They dont chew on that stuff if they have fun toys and such around. Also, as was mentioned, invest in a hand vac. I think I would just die without my dustbuster!

Good Luck!

Haley
 
Pipp wrote:"my place is decorated in a Modern NIC motif. I've got NIC panels everywhere. (They actually don't look THAT bad). I have two panels at right angleson most of the corners --my wall chewers love corners -- aswell as panels strung across the (remaining) furniture "Attachment:Hahaha..."modern NIC motif"...my rabbits' room is NIC chic too!
 
My two girls have the run of the house. They go straight to the cage for potty duties. The only problem I have is Ivory eats dog food. So I just feed the dogs at a certain time of day and put the food up when they are done.
 
At one point my girls were aloud to run around the appartment because they use the cat litter :D (it's a great trick!!)

I found a little "bitter apple" or "stop bite" on the wires will PERMANENTLY deter them from munching on anything they shouldn't!! It doesn't smell, doesn't stain and costs around $10 for a good sized bottle. I HIGHLY recomend it - once they learn something tastes that nasty they don't try it again!!

They are only not allowed to run-free now because abigale hasn't had the stop-bite stuff yet and I'm worried (although she does get supervised meanders around the house & usually is with me on my keyboard :D).

Right now I have an outdoor exersize pen I set up for them in our hall-way area and it's a pretty good size, they get enough exercise that way & I can do my bills instead of worrying about them ;)

Rabbits can be COMPLETLY litter trained - they usually only drop pellets are first to mark their spot & after that may never do it again (at least my girls don't :))

Nes.
 
all my buns go to the litterbox in the cage for potty breaks. they also dont chew on any furnature, but Alex loves to pull up and eat the carpet. i just clap my hands and tell him no. i assume he will grow out of it just like Ryo did.

bothy of my bunnies jump up and sleep on the couch. never had them poop or pee on it before


 
So....let me ask this...your bunnies are able to jump up onto the couch directly from the floor? Or do you have something they can jump onto to jump on the couch?

The only reason I ask is because Maisie has never been much of a jumper, and though Flower is proving to be quite the opposite (she's jumped over a regular-sized NIC panel quite a few times now, which is why I'm considering just free run of the house...the run I had for them was made out of one height of NIC panels). So, does that mean that the average bun is able to jump that height?

I would consider getting her little doggy stairs if they weren't so expensive (not to mention if I weren't so convinced she'd just pee on the couch...lol!).

Anyway, just a question that jumped (hehe...excuse the pun) to mind. :)

P.S. I don't think mine would have the problem of not using their litterboxes in their cages, either. The times they're out, they just hop back into their cages, do their thing, and come back out. I didn't even have to do anything to littertrain Flower...that was nice! :)
 
Jumping up onto a normal couch shouldn't be much problem for the average bun. :) Once they get started jumping, it's sometimes more difficult to stop them.
 
Really?! Wow...Maisie must just not be too interested in jumping then. She's never even tried to get out of the 14" high run I made for them out of NIC panels. Even when we didn't have that, she wouldn't really jump up very high in general. She's more of a walker, I guess. Is that just how some bunnies are?
 
My buns dont have free range, they only get half of the living room,but for the couch question. My unspayed bun likes to dig on it and make a nest of sorts. luckly I hate the couch and I got it for free so i dont care. but I have had to put back the stuffing she pulled out. So I guess just watch what they do for a lil bit.

What do you do if your buns could care less if you spray them with water?? My bun lance just seems a lil annnoyed if he even notices ,then just thinks..." ohh look she is giving me water to clean myself with" then procedes to maybe lick the extra water off, or just look at me funny.:huh
 
Tiny has free range privileges when he's in the house and he's pretty good. I've seen him come dashing out of Eric's room and down the hall to get to his litter box....sometimes he misses it (sits in it but his rear is outside...then again - as a flemish he has a BIG rear).

He does great - he did go through a chewing phase but he's pretty good now. Of course - that was AFTER he gave me "air conditioning" vents in some of my Sunday dresses...

Free range isn't for everyone - I've noticed that some of my does that have partial free range in the rabbitry - feel more secure in cages. Shortly before I left on my trip in June - Miss Bea opened an empty cage door - went in and shut the door behind her. I was in shock - those who may have followed her escapades last year will remember that she would let herself OUT of cages....not put herself IN a cage.

She eventually let herself back out after about 2 weeks....and now she plays with the other does. But every once in a while - she will go back in the cage and shut the door for a day or so and just have some "alone" time.

I guess the key is knowing your rabbit and what is best for it.

Peg
 
That's true, TinysMom...I think Maisie is more comfortable in general inside her cage, whereas I can see Flower enjoying more time outside her cage. It's funny, their preferences, isn't it? When Maisie was younger, we would leave the cage door open ALL THE TIME, from the moment we awoke, until we went to bed, and she just wouldn't come out (this was before Flower arrived). It was the funniest thing.

I thought it was originally that she didn't like the hardwood floors, but ultimately that wound up not being the case, either, because she's currently in a phase where she'll come out for about fifteen minutes, but then go back in and lay down to let me know she's done. It's really cute. I think the only reason she comes out at all is because she wants to have some time with me...because she only started coming out when we brought Flower home. LOL!! My little jealous, hormonal baby! :)

This is as opposed to Flower, who is ECSTATIC when she's outside her cage, and races around like crazy, and there have been times that I've had to scoot her butt back into her cage because it's about midnight, and she's been out for three hours, and showing NO possibility of going back in anytime soon! LOL!!

Funny little bunnies!! :D
 
Maherwoman- of our bunns 3 of them are part monkey. They can jump and climb onto darn near anything. When Dandelion got his ear bitten it was because he got a running start at a 30" gate we had up,:shock:and made it over. Our one bunn Skittles wasn't much of a jumper when we brought her home. (The girls had been caged for 5-6 months without being let out to run or exercise so they had weak leg muscles.) We brought them home at the end of October...and in February Skittles finally learned to jump(up to this point she had only bothered with stuff within bunny reach) and now we can't keep her off things! My vet also told me about a rabbit he sees at the clinic. His owners came home one day and couldn't find him. After a panicked search they finally found him on top of a 6 foot high book shelf!:shock:There was nothing around it for him to climb up on to get there! To this day they have no idea how he got on top of it!:D I know this probably didn't make you feel any better did it! LOL ;)
 
yeah both of my buns jump up there from the floor. They both are jumpers. i remember when i first got Ryo i ranto the store real quick to get some milk, and Ryo was ontop of the coffee table and ate ciggeratte butts AND some of a plastic bag.

Alex is a jumper and can jump over 28inches of nic cubes nearly effortlessly. and i know i have seen him to a 4 foot binkie!
 
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