Rabbitry Cage Design

[Me and Bun-uccino]

Hey! I first want to thank everyone who helped with convincing my parents in my previous post my parents were pretty open minded about it which surprised me a bit. Anyway my dad had a small(ish) plastic shed that he was trying to get out of the garage which was great for my rabbit cages to be in! So for the overall dementions the shed is around 48" L x 24" W, I don't know what the shed's height is but we measured the shelves and each of them measured between 16 1/2 and 20 inches tall so it should be ok. Now the shed has 4 shelves and each of the shelves are 8 sq feet, and since I'm raising going to be Havanas they need at least 3 sq feet for adults and 5 sq feet for does with litters. So keeping that in mind this is what I came up with for a model of what I'm going to want to do. Do you think this is fine?
Image

 

[Blue eyes]

Can't open image.

 

[helena]

Since it's in your google drive, we need access to open it. Anytime anyone clicks that link, they have to ask for permission to view. Also, 3 sq feet for a rabbit is so small. Did you find that info online? So long as they get 3-4 hours run around time that is fine . I think minimum for rabbits is 27 sq feet.

 

[Me and Bun-uccino]

Oh sorry I forgot google drive does that! Here is the image:

 

[Me and Bun-uccino]

ah shoot it did it twice!

 

[helena]

How big is each column (box/cage)? Each rabbit should have 27 sq feet. Also, they should have a area to pay a few hours a day. It should be big enough for them to run in.

 

[majorv]

You may be underestimating the space you’ll need. Keep in mind that each rabbit in each litter will eventually need separate cages if you keep them. Where are your herd bucks going to be? You don’t want them next to a doe with a litter.

 

[SableSteel]

I can't picture how you're going to turn a shed into cages. The sizes of the cages seem fine, but I would be worried about them getting enough airflow

 

[Eve84]

Sheds can get very warm, be careful with that!
I had my four bunny’s in the shed recently to bond them and I had to take them out there when it got 16 degrees outside because it got 23 degrees in the shed and the air was very thick.

 

[LopLover89]

I have small breed rabbits and all of my does are in cages that are 2ft x 4ft , lots of room for when they have babies with them. My bucks are in cages 2ft x 3ft. And I have multiple exercise runs that I rotate the rabbits into daily so that they get some stretching and exercise.
Mine are stacked shelf-style as well, with solid floors. So my rabbits have litter boxes in their cages as well. You will need to think about your waste system.

My other concern with a tiny shed like that would be airflow . If it’s closed it , that would be an awful ammonia buildup very fast .

 

[Me and Bun-uccino]

Ok thanks for all your replies! Me and my dad were thinking about cutting holes on the sides and installing little windows for airflow, so that will be ok. Also we want to put the shed on the side of the house were it only gets sun in the very first part of the morning. Just wondering if that would be a problem in the winter were I am that there would be cold wind getting in?
And for the space I will most likely have the buck in one of the adult cages probably in the bottom leftmost corner so that I can put a divider easily and clean up the spraying. And also for the litters I'm probably going to have maybe a 4 week old litter at the same time when a litter of 8 week olds move out and since the 4 week olds don't exactly need them yet we can just house them in the other grow out cage. Sorry if that doesn't make sense!

 

[LopLover89]

Are these rabbits for pets or for meat?

Either way - if this is only 4feet wide and divided into 2 and 3 cages, that is not enough space . Those poor rabbits will have a terrible quality of life .

I feel like unless you’re prepared to breed and raise these rabbits in the most ethical way possible, you shouldn’t be doing it at all .

The only way i could see it is if you only have one large cage per each shelf. That’s 3 does and 1 buck. Breed 1 die every 4 weeks - then you will have a good rotation and everyone will have enough room. The babies stay with their mom until 8 weeks, then they will leave to new homes or to market , and you’ll renters the doe.

 

[LopLover89]

How cold is winter where you are?
Lots of rabbits live outside - if you keep it out of the wind and provide lots of straw , they should be ok

 

[LopLover89]

Sorry that was supposed to be rebreed the doe **

 

[Me and Bun-uccino]

Are these rabbits for pets or for meat?

Either way - if this is only 4feet wide and divided into 2 and 3 cages, that is not enough space . Those poor rabbits will have a terrible quality of life .

I feel like unless you’re prepared to breed and raise these rabbits in the most ethical way possible, you shouldn’t be doing it at all .

The only way i could see it is if you only have one large cage per each shelf. That’s 3 does and 1 buck. Breed 1 die every 4 weeks - then you will have a good rotation and everyone will have enough room. The babies stay with their mom until 8 weeks, then they will leave to new homes or to market , and you’ll renters the doe.

They are mostly show animals but some of the babies will become pets if they don't have the right conformation. I don't have meat rabbits so I won't need as much space for them.

 

[LopLover89]

They still deserve a decent life with a decent sized cage. I breed Holland lops which are small - and they live in 2ft x 4ft cages.
If they live in a shoebox with no room to move, they won’t be in good body condition and probably won’t show well OR breed well TBH.

 

[Me and Bun-uccino]

They still deserve a decent life with a decent sized cage. I breed Holland lops which are small - and they live in 2ft x 4ft cages.
If they live in a shoebox with no room to move, they won’t be in good body condition and probably won’t show well OR breed well TBH.

Well I don't know what to say I guess but ok. Rabbits in the wild spend 80% of there lives underground just sleeping, sitting and going to the bathroom. I follow the arba's care recommendations for rabbits and cavies, but I guess we will just agree to disagree.

 

[Eve84]

Draft wind is a problem for bunny’s and you will have draft (draught wind) if you just cut wholes in. Also if the wholes are bigger as 3,5 cm you get problems with predators coming in like martens.

You can never put a male into a females hutch for breeding you already need to put the female to the males.

Problem is you won’t make any money with breeding. And the bunny’s just live in small cages. Also u can’t breed them as often as every 8 weeks only up to 4 times a year Or so.

 

[Eve84]

Always

 

[sunflowerdbb123]

Are these rabbits for pets or for meat?

Either way - if this is only 4feet wide and divided into 2 and 3 cages, that is not enough space . Those poor rabbits will have a terrible quality of life .

I feel like unless you’re prepared to breed and raise these rabbits in the most ethical way possible, you shouldn’t be doing it at all .

The only way i could see it is if you only have one large cage per each shelf. That’s 3 does and 1 buck. Breed 1 die every 4 weeks - then you will have a good rotation and everyone will have enough room. The babies stay with their mom until 8 weeks, then they will leave to new homes or to market , and you’ll renters the doe.