The cage

The cages are for the most of our rabbits 60 cm X 60 cm X 120 cm (2 feet x 2 feet X 4 feet). One rabbit has for the time a smaller cage. We think, that the cage should be that big to let the rabbits be able to move around. Our rabbits also get their exercise in the fence, but though they have to be able to move in the cage. The cage is put up at trestle about 60 cm. (23.6 inch.) high to avoid draught. If you take care of that your rabbit gets its exercise every day, the cage can be smaller; especially if you have your rabbit indoor and you have it out of the cage very often.

This cage is 60 cm (23.6 inch.) X 60 cm (23.6 inch.) X 120 cm (47.2 inch.). The open wire in the doors is fastened with small screws. To hang the cups on we use a piece of open wire. In the bottom and a little up the walls there is used roofing felt, so that it is easier to clean, and the wood doesn´t get wet.

So do the cage look, when it is finished.

Our rabbits are standing outside. That is, in the beginning they stood free in the garden in a sheltered place. The cages were in the best way protected against weather and wind with strong tarpau-lin of the kind used for truck trailers. Now my husband has built a little stable for the rabbits, so that they can stand under cover.
Before a new rabbit is coming in its cage, we put shavings in the corners. Over this we put straw. Of course the rabbit gets a cup for water and a cup for food pellets. A hayrack has to be there too, so that the rabbit doesn´t make a mess with the hay, before it is going to eat it. Then the rabbit is put into the cage, and it gets peace the firsts days, so that it can get used to the new surroundings. At least once a week shavings and straw have to be changed. If it is very warm, you have to change twice a week. The most rabbits quickly begin to pee and mostly to pooh in one corner. If you have the luck, that your rabbit does, and you are sure, in which corner your rabbit wants its toi-let, you can put a toilet box there.
All our rabbits have a toilet box. All are peeing in it, and the most make their pooh in it too, but some pooh go outside. The toilet box is a plastic box (without handles). It is 30 cm (11.8 inch.) X 38 cm (15 inch.) X 19 cm (7.5 inch.). You can get them in many colors and it is not expensive. Jakob, my husband, saws with a com-pass saw some of one of the long sides away about 5 cm (2 inch.) from the corners and 5 cm (2 inch.) from the bot-tom. (see photo.) We put shavings and straw in the box and put it in the corner. If you have luck, the rabbit will do its duty in the box, and it´s easy to clean. If your rabbit can´t find out, you can take some of its pooh and some shavings it has peed on up into the box. It can help it top find out. When we are going to take the wet shavings and straw out of the toilet box, we scrape with a little hoe with a short handle. We also use this together with a little 20 cm (7.9 inch.) broad, flat shovel when we clean the rest of the cage.
Sometimes we just clean the toilet box and sometimes the whole cage after how much mess they have made.
If you have your rabbit indoor, you must expect to change every 2^nd or every 3^nd day; else it will begin to smell bad from the cage.
Now and then we have our rabbits indoor. We always take along a transport box with straw, and the rabbits hop up into it when they will do its duty. We have heard of others, who have a cat´s pan, and the rabbit does its duty there. You have to find out, what is best for your rabbit. If it is very cold outside (frost), we do not bring our rabbits inside, because the change of temperature will be too big.
Remember, each rabbit has to have its own cage. In the beginning we meant, that our two female rabbits could go together, but quickly we got cleverer, because the one female the whole time dominated the other, and it never got tame till it had its own cage. You can only have two males together till they are sexually matured, and then they will fight. A male and a female together for just some seconds, and 31 days later there are small rabbits in the nest.
In the winter we put a guinea pig´s cage with an opening in the long side into the rabbits cage and we put a lot of straw upon it. The rabbits love to lie in the small cage when it is cold, and if it is not so cold, they lie upon the small cages.

CONTAINERS

Some rabbits prefer a drinking bottle, and some do not like them and prefer a container. Take care, that the container are so big, that it can get its head into it. Both things you have to keep clean. At the drinking bottle you have to take care of cleaning the tip. Keep an eye that the rabbit is drinking.
The container for food pellets has to have the same size. Do not place the containers just next to each other, or the water will be dirty and the pellet will get wet.
If you choose, that your rabbit is going to have a drinking bottle, you have to take cake that it can find out how to drink. You can help it by putting a container with a little water under the tip of the bottle. Then it might get a drop of water on its head or face every time it drinks of the container and in this way learn, that there can come water out of the bottle.

TOYS

Your rabbit will look the whole cage through and bite in all, what it finds, so take care of what you give it. A piece of hard, undressed wood will satisfy its need for gnawing. You may give it apple branches, pear branches, hazel branches, beech beeches and what you else have of branches, which are not poisonous. Remember, that the branches must not be sprayed. . You can buy plastic toy for your rabbit. If you buy such things, you have to look after the whole time, that the rabbit doesn´t bite small pieces of it.

INSTALLING THE RABBIT

So do our cages look.

No matter what kind of cage you choose for your rabbit, there are some things you have to think of:

Never put the rabbit in direct sun.
Rabbits can stand coldness, but not draught, so take care of protecting it from draught.
Never place the cage near to the heating (radiator, boiler etc.)
It doesn´t do the rabbit good to stand in a moist room, so never put the rabbit in such a room.
The rabbit has to stand in a place with good ventilation.
If your rabbit stands outside, it has to stand at a place, where it is protected against the weather, and the cage has to stand that high, that it is protected against other animals.

SHAVINGS AND STRAW

It is a matter of opinion which kind of shavings, that is best. You have to feel your way, what you think absorbs best. Just remember, that it must not come of dressed wood. The straw, that you use to put over the shavings, has to be dry.
If it starts smelling from your rabbit, you have to change the shavings and straw and clean the cage. Don´t use a fresh air spray in the rabbit´s cage, it smells too strong for it.
There are people, who prefer to have cat´s gravel in the toilet box instead of shavings. Then it has to be gravel without perfume.

TOILET TRAINING

Here are our toilet boxes.

If you have the rabbit indoor and it is allowed to run free at the floor, it is good, if it has learned to use a toilet. Put a little box with shavings and straw in the same way as described for the out-door rabbit. When the rabbit has learned to use the toilet box, the rabbit can start coming out running free at the floor. Open the door, so that the rabbit can walk out by itself. It is the best to do it, when the rabbit has just been in the toilet box to pee. Let it be out at the floor or in your arms al together 5 minutes. Next time, you have seen, that it has been in the box to pee, you can take it out again. Gradually it can be out longer and longer time. If your rabbit gets a little mis-hap, then bring it back to its cage, but let the door stand open, so that the rabbit doesn´t learn to associate to be put pack with something bad.

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