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Want a Wooden Rabbit Cage?
A wooden rabbit cage is an iconic American symbol. But, we think there are several better ways to house rabbits than in a wooden hutch.
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Here are the reasons why, from our own experiences with wooden rabbit cages, we prefer NOT using wood, and then we’ll offer you several other of our ideas on rabbit hutch building plans.
Our first rabbit cages were wood rabbit hutches
As a teenager with my very first pet rabbits, I built some fine rabbit hutches with the various boards and hardware my parents had on hand and some wire I purchased with my allowance.
By "fine," we mean, not too shabby for a fairly handy teenager studying auto mechanics but not carpentry... No matter, I was quite proud of what I had built all by myself!
It wasn’t long before the design flaws began sticking out like so many sore thumbs:
Wood = Ammonia! Rabbits pee, and soon the wooden hutches began to smell of ammonia.
Wood = Edible! Bunnies think wood is delicious, even if it is peed on. So they chewed on the wood they could reach until the wood rabbit cage needed repairs.
Cheap Mesh = Holes! Thin wire mesh began pulling away easily from any areas that were not very securely anchored.
Wood edges in the floor = Smelly poo build-up! Since each wooden rabbit cage had a wooden lip around the bottom to which I attached the floor wire, the poo immediately began to pile in the back corners of the cage. I was no slouch when it came to cleaning, but as hard as one tries, there’s no eliminating all the poo in those corners, especially when it gets dampened by pee and then stomped into the wood and wire.
It doesn't matter HOW fancy the wooden rabbit cage is - if it is made of wood, you're likely to run into at least some of these problems.
We think there are healthier ways to house a rabbit.
Now Available: Pet Rabbit Living Spaces and DIY Livestock Rabbit Housing Exclusively from Raising-Rabbits.com
Pet Rabbit Living Spaces
Are you concerned about the cleanliness or healthiness of your wooden rabbit cage?
Do the cheap or tiny store-bought cages and hutches seem inadequate for the needs of your rabbit?
Are you interested in NOT spending the big bucks on rabbit cages?
Many years and 4 kids later, we got back into the rabbit hobby. We still used wood, but this time we made all-wire cages and hung them on very sturdy hutch frames built out of 2x4’s. They were single-tier and held a bank of 3 large cages each.
Goodness! They were a huge improvement over those first hutches I had made, proud as I was of them at the time. But the wood was still prone to minor odors, especially as the animals ‘water-bombed’ the wooden legs of the hutches with their urine. Plus it looked like the 2x4 feet were starting to get soft or rot from the moisture in the ground. The other flaw in this new design was that we could not remove the cages for thorough cleaning.
A few years passed before we discovered the possibilities of PVC.
PVC is strong, durable, light-weight, and nearly ideal for supporting rabbit cages. The main problem with PVC is that it can become brittle in sunlight. Nevertheless, if the hutch frame is housed out of the sunlight, there is no reason it cannot last for a great many years.
All-wire cages hung on PVC rabbit hutch frames, either indoors or outdoors, were a magical combination that solved ALL the issues common to wood. No more odors. No more ammonia build-up. No more rotting. Oh-so-easy to dismantle, clean, and reassemble!
I am one happy rabbit-raiser!
That's why Raising-Rabbits wants to share with you all the cage and hutch plans we use for our rabbits....
1. If you own one or a few pet rabbits, Pet Rabbit Living Spaces was written and photographed for you (see info above).
2. If you own a few or a lot of meat rabbits and/or show rabbits, we wrote tons of plans (lots of experience!), took copious pictures and put them in DIY Livestock Rabbit Housing for Meat & Show Rabbits.
If we could build 'em, so can you!
DIY Livestock Rabbit Housing
DIY Livestock Rabbit Housing provides ideas, plans and extensively illustrated directions for housing methods well-suited to livestock rabbits. These are the methods used at Aurora Rex Rabbit Ranch.
Plus we offer reviews of other rabbit housing options. The e-book is available for immediate download...it is a HUGE file - 15 chapters and lots of high-resolution pictures. Be patient while it downloads!
HUGE SAVINGS Building just ONE project in either Pet Rabbit Living Spaces or DIY Livestock Rabbit Housing will save you double, triple, or even quadruple the cost of either e-book. That's PER PROJECT, no doubt about it.
Get your no-risk copy today!
The World of Raising Rabbits e-books are fully covered by our Double-Value Guarantee, since it is our policy to always OVER-deliver on value.
So, take 'em out for a test drive. Build a project. If you aren't completely satisfied that the instant-download e-books are worth at least double, or maybe even triple or quadruple the price you paid, just drop us a note within 45 days, and we'll refund you the entire cost. That's our Double-Value Guarantee.
We're not meaning to diss wooden rabbit cages! We just think there's a better way. But, if you prefer a wooden rabbit cage and can work around the drawbacks, great! Find some truly amazing wooden rabbit cages here.
Have your say about what you just read! Leave me a comment in the box below.
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Many thanks to our visitors for these kind remarks...
From Tammy in Texas: "This has been the most useful, friendly and informational website I have ever used. Thank you so very much. We found our pet rabbit Sunday night. People in the neighborhood where we found her say she was loose for about 2 weeks before she hopped up to me to be picked up. Your website helped us find out what kind of rabbit we found (Himalayan), what sex our rabbit is (female), how to house it, feed it and handle it (she was launching herself at us and smacking us with her front feet! - I am now the BIG BUNNY or a Hawk, whichever is needed!)."
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From Jeanie in Florida: "Hello, I really enjoy reading your web site."
From Marco in Spain: "Thank you again for your advice, it really helped put our minds at ease... Keep up the good work with the website!"
Pet Rabbit Living Spaces
PVC is strong, durable, light-weight, and nearly ideal for supporting rabbit cages. The main problem with PVC is that it can become brittle in sunlight. Nevertheless, if the hutch frame is housed out of the sunlight, there is no reason it cannot last for a great many years.
