Oh, and Had another "brain storm" today. We have the end of the barn that is nothing more than a big run-in area for any horses that may be in the barn yard (because they're sick, going to get ridden, etc). Anyway, it's 60' by 20'. There's a stone wall on the one long side and the short back side, and the other has a huge cement trough with the cattle head things in front of it (which is the only reason we didn't turn it into "real" stalls). I'm going to clean all the sawdust out of it, and move all the does cages in there. That'll give me a LOT more space (currently working with 14'x12', and out of room). And because there's a slight slope to it, I can hose the entire thing out daily, too. The front leads directly out to the manure spreader area, water handy, etc. And I'll have room to set up a permanent exercise area for the buns.
The major drawback to turning the milk house into the rabbitry was lack of water. Which would mean lugging all the drop pans down steps, over to the barn, just to clean them out. Plus no way to really hose it down without creating a mess inside. And carrying water to the buns.
The major drawback to the end of the horse barn is in the winter, it's going to be cold! The one long side is pretty much open, except for the metal pipes for the cattle things. I can hang Dad's big trucking tarp along there, but there will be NO way to make it completely air tight. How much air can a bun tolerate? The barn stays fairly warm, but there is air movement, for sure (need it, for horses' health).
