Rabbit Cage q's

[beccalj]

Ok, so the bunny came with a regular cage. No wire bottom and we put bedding in it. I was looking online and it seems most bunnies have cages with wire flooring and no bedding. So, what should I do? Is one better than the other? Also, I read that we could use shredded paper for bedding. Is that true?

[Dragonrain]

Hellos

Wire flooring is usually bad, and if the cage was all wire flooring you would need to cover at least part of it up. Rabbit's feet are not designed to stand on wire all day, and doing so can hurt their feet, usually by causing a problem called 'sore hocks'. Shredded paper is fine for bedding. Some people only put bedding in the litterbox. In my cage, I cover the floors with soft things like old towels and an old bathroom rug, or some fleece. Some rabbits would chew on stuff like that, so becareful, but my rabbits leave them alone. But I only put litter in their litterbox, because that's the only spot they use for a bathroom. It really makes your bedding last longer if you don't have to cover the whole cage floor with it.

Also, make sure your cage is big enough. I've never really seen a store bought rabbit cage that I thought was big enough for them. Rabbits can be very active and most of them love running around and having space to play. The bigger the cage, the better! I've been using NIC (Neat Idea Cubes) to make my cage, if you google them I'm sure you'll find some websites on how to make them. They're cheap, about $15 at wal*mart, or target, and you can make a lot of interesting cages out of them.

[Luckybunny]

I love my NIC cage panels for cages. I have used indoor/outdoor carpet for floor covering. When like new Lucky did not chew on it but the more it was washed and became thinner (backing breaks down) I find he is starting to chew. He developed sore hocks because it was not soft enough...we also had a wire insert for his litterbox only...but have since taken that out. So I think wire flooring is not a good choice. Molly seems to chew the towels that are in her cage so I am also looking for a good flooring for the cage also. You want traction and absorbency but also something that is easy to clean and safe for the bunnies.

[Mommy of 9]

I am going to make a cage with NIC!! Just wondering to put them together do you just use zip ties?? I really think my buns would love these!

[Dragonrain]

I just use the little connectors that come with the panels, and then zip ties to make sure they're extra sturdy. I've seen some really nice ones made with zip ties alone as well.

[MattMouse]

Quote: Originally Posted by Mommy of 9 I am going to make a cage with NIC!! Just wondering to put them together do you just use zip ties?? I really think my buns would love these!

Yep, I've read in several places that zip ties (cable ties, right?) that cost like $5 for a hundred of them work perfectly. I wouldn't bother with the connectors that come with the cubes because I only use my NIC for bunny proofing gates and those connectors were freaking annoying. I struggled and wrestled with them for a while before I was able to successfully put it all together. The tricky part is getting 4 pieces of cube connected in a flat panel because the plastic connectors just don't like to stay together on those corners. They're only manageable if connected at right angles. I was quite frustratedly hammering away at the connector pieces and had it fall apart on me once or twice. Zip ties are probably less irritating.

Here's some great websites to get you started designing a better cage out of NICs.
http://www.rabbitnetwork.org/articles/NIC.shtml
http://www.guineapigcages.com/types.htm (This one's pretty awesome. One page has an entire list of what materials you'll need and exactly where you can find them, and then step-by-step instructions you can alter to your needs)
http://www.michiganrabbitrescue.org/condo.htm

[Mommy of 9]

Thank you Dragon and Matt for your help! I will have my husband build this so I don't have to get frustrated! He works construction & he loves to build stuff! He still wants to build a outdoor hutch for them!