Making a DIY rabbit hutch

Magenta

Well Bugs Bunny's hutch & run are getting old and I want to make him a new one.
The run is no problem, just a frame and wire but it's the hutch that will be harder.
I'm looking at this site and they have rabbit hutches made of plastic.
I am wondering if I could convert a plastic storage bin or similar into a hutch for the little chap? I made a cat house out of a plastic storage bin before and it worked very well.
The pro's of plastic over wood is that plastic is easier to clean, can be towel-dried and is lightweight. I am worrying if bunny would chew plastic.
He has never chewed the wood or wire in his hutch & run so he doesn't seem to be a chewer but at the same time if he did and swallowed any it could be very dangerous.
Has anyone done anything like this for a rabbit hutch before?

m5ex9oqjawdg2i

They like to chew and gnaw on the wooden frames , I am not sure if plastic would be the best material to use for bunnies. We made ours from wood, it wasn't difficult at all.

Magenta

At the same time I have kept rodents in cages with plastic and they chewed them and they were fine, but even still.
I have always used wood with rabbits hutches but it's so heavy and awkward to move round the garden when he's finished grazing the area he is on, so I am trying to think outside the box for this one, no pun intended haha!

morganafay

They have indoor rabbit cages with plastic bases, so it should be fine. Though I know that hamsters and other rodents sometimes chew their way out of plastic cages.

I think wood might be warmer, but I'm not sure? Is it outdoors? It'd probably be ok though.

Btw, zooplus.ie have really cheap hutches. Am I allowed to post that? I just got hutches with runs underneath for 70 euro each and that's really cheap compared to pet shops.

Magenta

Yeah it is for outdoors. It would be on bricks rather than straight on the ground (because the ground can be very cold) and filled with straw.

Sigma Force

Straw can be pokey and hay is warmer.
Plastic wouldn't be suitable, if the edges were rounded and the rabbit couldn't get at them then he couldn't chew it but the biggest concern would be condensation. Plastic will get wet inside pretty quickly and at this time of year could affect the rabbits health if there's any wet bedding while it's freezing like this your rabbit won't be able to keep himself warm.

Pine is cheap enough or if you have reclaimed pine that can be sanded till smooth and a safe woodstain on it might work.

Sometimes small potting sheds are cheaper than shop bought hutches, seen some before (argos or B&Q can't remember which) for only 70 quid and it means you can get into it and stand up while cleaning it.

Haven't heard anything bad about omlets but they are pricey for the size of them, a small potting shed would be cheaper and more spacious plus you can put a flap in it and attach the run to it very easily the rabbit would have space and you wouldn't be drowned while cleaning him out, few shelves can be popped onto the walls for storing the rabbits food and stuff.

Rabbitandcavy

Here is a big 6x2 ft one we made for our rabbits recently. It isn't something like this your after though is it?

Magenta

Rabbitandcavy wrote: »

Here is a big 6x2 ft one we made for our rabbits recently. It isn't something like this your after though is it?

Something like that but with a (hopefully) plastic hutch.
His run at the moment is about 5 ft x 3 ft.

Timmi

Plastic will do nothing to keep out the cold - as said there will be condensation and freezing. It's really only useful for indoors. Plus one on the potting shed. Mine live in a hutch (wooden but really very light, the latest shop hutches are not too expensive and easy to lift) which is in a wooden shed with a window. In this weather I let them run about in the shed or indoors rather than out on the grass.

Magenta

OK so plastic mightn't be a good option then... so maybe I will stick with wood.

Rabbitandcavy wrote: »

Here is a big 6x2 ft one we made for our rabbits recently. It isn't something like this your after though is it?

How long did it take ya to build this and how much did it cost in materials?

It's so cold out that I'm tempted to just buy one, there are some lovely designs on Zooplus.ie but for most of them, the measurements are just too small. The little fella is used to his space.
There is one that would be perfect, it's a 2 storey hutch-over-run but the run doesn't actually go on the ground, it's on legs, and himself likes laying on the grass.

Rabbitandcavy

It was relatively cheap. We already had the wood for making it. The wire cost like 20 or 30 and we have enough left to make two or three more if we want to. The latch for the door was like 3 euro. I'm not sure how much the wood would cost ya, maybe 30 euro. Altogether that is only around 65 quid for a nice big hutch It took two weeks to make, just working on it at weekends mostly

Sigma Force

Those kind of runs are ok for some of the time as long as the rabbit has time to run free either in a pen or in the house. The problem with shop bought runs (not hutches some are grand and they're improving all the time) is that they aren't high enough. Rabbits need to jump and sumersault and generally leap about, so they need a high run more like a cat/dog run than a low run that's commonly used.

Some rabbits are the size or bigger than a cat and they like to climb and jump high like a cat but you wouldn't leave a cat in a low run.

I've spent a fortune over the years trying out various rabbit housing and the best in the end (could of saved myself a fortune if I'd used my block) was the cill dara run. We just cut off the legs so small rabbits can't squeeze under and attached some chicken wire to the roof so no birds or prey or cats could get in and it was the most practical thing we ever did and the rabbits loved it. They could pop in and out as they wanted to.

At the time it cost about €350 the run lasts a lifetime and it was so handy because you didn't have to stoop to go into it.

Magenta

Guineapigrescue wrote: »

Rabbits need to jump and sumersault and generally leap about, so they need a high run more like a cat/dog run than a low run that's commonly used.

Oh yeah, definitely. Some runs aren't even tall enough for them to stand on their hind legs.

morganafay

Magenta wrote: »

It's so cold out that I'm tempted to just buy one, there are some lovely designs on Zooplus.ie but for most of them, the measurements are just too small. The little fella is used to his space.
There is one that would be perfect, it's a 2 storey hutch-over-run but the run doesn't actually go on the ground, it's on legs, and himself likes laying on the grass.

I don't know if it's big enough for you, but the ones I got from zooplus are 2 storey and the run goes on the ground so he can eat grass. I think they're big enough, especially if you attach a run at the front maybe? They're €70 which is very good compared to most places.

Magenta

morganafay wrote: »

I don't know if it's big enough for you, but the ones I got from zooplus are 2 storey and the run goes on the ground so he can eat grass. I think they're big enough, especially if you attach a run at the front maybe? They're €70 which is very good compared to most places.

Yeah I was looking at them. The price is great and as you say I could add a run onto it. I'm going to Maxi Zoo in Tallaght tomorrow for a look at some hutches in person, apparently it's a German chain and they are meant to be good. I wonder do they carry the same brands as Zooplus, I think Zooplus are German as well.