mrbunny Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 Hello, I'm new to the forum but have had a lovely purple rablu since about June. My rabbits Mr Bunny and Rosie love it and have coped all through 3 months of extension building with strange men (just builders..), lots of noise etc. I don't shut them in at night as they like to be out as much of the time as possible. But I'm a bit bothered about how they will be over the winter. Up to when they moved into their rablu they have lived in a wooden hutch in a shed, coming out during the day into a run with a small hutch. So the main hutch was always conpletely dry. I've followed another member's excellent suggestion of putting a clear Ikea shower curtain over the run but in this sort of weather (torrential rain at the moment) parts of the ground inevitably get wet - and they will sit with their bums pressed up against the uncovered bits of run! So they get damp - then they go in the house and make their straw slightly damp. I always understood damp was a killer for rabbits. And Mr Bunny is about 7 or even 8 - a senior bunny. We just had a patio laid and should, weather permitting, get a new lawn to replace the building site we were left with, so they can't go on the new grass for a while anyway. Would they be ok on the patio for a while? Or should I get another wooden hutch (having given the old one away) and put them back in the shed at night? Sorry for such a long post! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnnieP Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 Hi mrbunny! Welcome to the forum. I haven't got any rabbits unfortunately, but hopefully someone will be along who can help you. I have moved your post to the rabbits section, so that bunny people will look! finally: Any chances of pictures of your rabbits? Mr Bunny sounds lovely! Best Wishes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted October 26, 2006 Share Posted October 26, 2006 Hello mr bunny Well done with the shower curtain, it works well, doesn't it? My girls don't get too damp in the winter, but then our lawn is pretty well drained. You can move them to the concrete, but they wil find it cold on their feet, so I would advise putting down either some board or cardboard under at least part of the run for them to sit on. They will have fun chewing up the cardboard too. Remember to make sure that they get plenty of greens and hay when they are off the grass. Looking forward to seeing their photos. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pepe Posted October 26, 2006 Share Posted October 26, 2006 Hi Mrbunny! Its my first winter with a rablu, they are supposed to be alot warmer than wooden hutches and they definitely are drier but Iam in Cornwall not as cold as Newcastle. The only thing I can advise is if it gets extremely cold maybe you could put your lovely rablu in the shed like you did before, and if your bunnies are easy to handle let them out during the day. Sorry I can't be more helpful.I did consider putting mine on the patio but its on a slight slope and the rain would just run in.I did wonder if rabbits could have bark chips in their runs!welcome to the forum, this is the place for rabbit chats Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lib Posted October 26, 2006 Share Posted October 26, 2006 Welcome Mrbunny! I can sympathise with your dilemma as I faced exactly the same problem at the beginning of the year when I received my lovely green rablu. Unfortunatley my two girls had some behavioural issues (and that's putting it mildly!) which meant that poor Georgie spent alot of the time outside in the wet. Even though the run was covered with the summer and winter shades and also the compulsory shower curtain (!), Georgie always managed to find a wet patch to lie in. It got to the stage that her sister, Peggy wouldn't allow her back into the rablu, so Georgie ended up becoming quite poorly from all the time spent outside in the damp and had to have daily injections of Baytril. To cut a long story short, my hubby has now built the girls a lovely 10ft wooden hutch (with cedar shingles on the roof - all very posh!!) for the winter as I don't want to spend another winter/spring worrying about the girls getting ill again. But I can't wait for the warm/dry weather again so the rablu can come back out again. Good luck with whatever you decide to do. Liz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrbunny Posted November 17, 2006 Author Share Posted November 17, 2006 Thank you for those helpful replies. The buns have now been moved in their rablu onto a patch of soil which will eventually become a flower bed! They have 2 shower curtains! And a thick layer of bark chips in the run which they love to play with. I had to get a wire floor cover to prevent them digging to Australia.. So far they seem fine and do spend time inside the house, but the weather has been very mild so far. I also got a covered cat litter tray, filled it with straw and hay and put it in the run to give them somewhere to get inside as an alternative to the house! They quite like it especially when it has treats in it! I'll wait and see what the weather does. I have shut them in the house overnight once when Rosie wasn't very well and they seemed OK so that might be a possibility in very cold weather. But the water bottle leaks a lot - do other rablu owners find that as well? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted November 17, 2006 Share Posted November 17, 2006 It does drip a bit - not loads though. I have found, however, that it freezes in the winter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pepe Posted November 17, 2006 Share Posted November 17, 2006 Hi Mrbunny! glad things are going ok. My bottle drips especially when its nearly empty. I have now put my bunnies on the patio as the grass needed a rest, they have tarpaulin over their run then the shades on top, as I have found water seeps through, and at the moment its chucking it down The patio gets wet as its on a slight slope, but dries very quickly. I have 2 tree stumps in my run which they love to sit on to keep dry, so if you can get hold of one they might like that. Great idea about bark chips I did wonder if it was safe, but yours sound ok, I may get some when they are back on grass, I also need underwire! and the bark will hide the wire. On the chicken section someone has got a snugglesafe, a hot water bottle for animals including rabbits I'm tempted to get one! mad eh! I will stop all this bunny talk now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrbunny Posted November 26, 2006 Author Share Posted November 26, 2006 Yes I saw that about the snugglesafe! I actually considered one for the buns but they would just toss it out into the run - as they do with their food dish and most of their bedding! Does anyone else have that problem? I put lots of lovely cosy straw and some nice tasty timothy hay in the house for them and the little ingrates remove most of it into the run where it either gets damp or blows all over the garden - and all the neighbouring gardens.. Any suggestions from experienced rablu owners? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted November 26, 2006 Share Posted November 26, 2006 Not much you can do about that I'm afraid - bunnies are expert at 'doing a Pickfords' I made my girls up with a lovely clean snuggly hutch this afternoon - within a couple of hours it was wrecked; just like a teenager's bedroom! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pepe Posted November 27, 2006 Share Posted November 27, 2006 Hi! mine dont fling there bedding around, but the boy did chuck his dish around, so I swapped it for a ceramic one that I still had, it sits nicely in the rablu He also has chewed to bits a little bench I knocked up out of some old wood, but thats bunnies for you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hockeyaholic Posted January 9, 2007 Share Posted January 9, 2007 I've also been concerned about my bunnies being damp. With it being so wet my 2 are kept on the concrete as our lawn can get quite muddy, they seem to be fine with it as they don't know any different. They're only babies & they never had a run until we got them. The problem is despite the run being nicely covered up, the floor obviously still gets quite wet. Luckily I shut them in at night and they seem to dry ever so quickly but just wanted to know if they can get ill from getting wet a lot? I know it seems a daft question as rabbits in the wild get wet all the time but I was just a little concerned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted January 10, 2007 Share Posted January 10, 2007 I know it sounds strange, but our pet bunnies are far removed from the wild ones and prefer to be kept dry if at all possible. Mine are daft and will sit in the rain if left to their own devices so the Rablu run has a clear cover over it made from an IKEA shower curtain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pepe Posted January 10, 2007 Share Posted January 10, 2007 Right! mad bunny owner here I bought my buns a cheap cat lit tray to use as a toilet, they kept using the corner just outside the rablu door, they used it straight away, but then they kept on sitting in it snuggled up together, so I bought them a small plastic dog bed! dont laugh, they love it, I line it with newspaper and put hay on top I also bought a snugglesafe, when we had that cold snap, now they are always in their little rabbit bed. They never sleep in the rablu, but do go in for cover if its very windy or we have hail or they get scared by something. As long as they have somewhere dry to shelter which yours do, I shouldnt worry, they will sit out in rain some days and sit in on sunny days! thats rabbits for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lynda.chatfield Posted February 7, 2007 Share Posted February 7, 2007 Hi Mr Bunny, I've been having the same problems with you with regard to bedding - they've been throwing it all over the run, and I have to admit to being slightly fed up with clearing it all up, and then they go and do it again within 5 minutes. Have a look at the topic " They kick their bedding all over the run!!!" there are some really useful comments and ideas from several people. Hope your bunnies are happy. Lynda. with Lily , the lovely Billy in a and a rather snuggly dog bed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
