pagesguineas Posted March 23, 2010 Share Posted March 23, 2010 Hi, we currently have two 9 month rabbits living in a hutch, but we are not happy and want to give them more space! We do have a large paved area of the garden (around 10 by 10 metres) that we were intending on fencing off and moving their hutch to, and then letting them free to roam in the daytime. Their hutch is one of the two tier ones with a larger run underneath. I have a few concerns though: 1) Obviously with it being so big, it will be uncovered - I realise that they need constant access to their hutch incase they feel threatened but the problem I have is - how can I let them have access to their hutch and stop cats geting in? Even if i make a very small hole in the mesh i'm almost convinced a cat can get in - but then I'm also wondering if a cat will bother with two medium sized rabbits in the first place? I originally was going to cut a hole in the mesh and put a cat flap in the side so we could lock it at night but I'm really not so sure if thats a good idea anymore. I then thought of buying a tunnel and placing that through a small hole in the mesh but then theres a problem of how to close it off at night! Has anyone got any experience/ideas? 2) Do I need anymore safe places dotted around incase the rabbits feel they haven't got enough time to get to the hutch? Obviously as it's paving they can't dig burrows to hide in so i'll have to make some hidey holes for them! I'm just really paranoid about them getting harmed by anything and everything - at the moment nothing could get at them their hutch is so strong and safe, but I want to give them more space. Thanks in advance for any help!! Catherine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FruitandNutCake Posted March 23, 2010 Share Posted March 23, 2010 Is it possible to section off a bit of the garden and build a walk in run made of weld mesh? I have a section of garden about the same size as yours, and it is fenced off around the edge, but i couldn't risk leaving the rabbits out when I'm not around as we have foxes. Whenever I go out, I make sure the rabbits are locked up safe, indoors, or in their walk in run during the summer. My run is about 15-20 ft long, and 9 ft wide. 6 ft fence on 2 sides, shed on one side and double thickness weld mesh on other side. Roof is covered with weld mesh under the corrugated pvc roof (half blown off now!) I've lost too many rabbits to foxes over the last 20 years, even when they appeared to be secure in a hutch or a heavy duty run, and foxes often roam during the day in some areas. Also, I'm not sure a rabbit would actually make it for a bolt hole if they were in danger from a fox. I thought they froze and flattened themselves, making them more prone to attack - but I could be wrong! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pagesguineas Posted March 24, 2010 Author Share Posted March 24, 2010 Hi, thanks for your reply It's not really possible to do that as the area we are going to dedicate to the rabbits is like our 'courtyard' where the washing line is so we were going to have a gate for easy access. I know theres no risk of foxes as we live in an estate, and have chickens which are left out to free roam the other side of the garden all the time, and we have never had an issue with foxes in the 3 years we have had the chickens. I'm mainly worried about cats to be honest as we have cats wandering around. They do not touch the chickens but i'm unsure whether they will do the same with rabbits. Ah - thanks for your tip on bolting - a friend who has a similar setup to what I was planning on was saying to build lots of hidey holes incase the rabbits felt vulnerable! I'll have to have another chat to her and see where she got that info from and whether it's right. Just like to add - this is only a temporary set up while we build a nice walk in run for them! I'd just rather they had more space at the moment as it's going to take a while to build! Thanks Catherine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunnypnp Posted March 24, 2010 Share Posted March 24, 2010 mm I dont think its good idea to leave your rabbits out unatteneded when there are cats around... We have just moved house, and we have about 4 visiting cats to our garden, and they all show quite a lot interest at our bunnies.. The bunnies live in the eglu, so are safe. But 1 cat likes to sit on top on the eglu, and stare at the bunnies, and you can tell the bunnies are scared and ready to fight back...... Maybe you can just let your bunnies out to play in the garden when you are at home and can keep an eye out for cats. My bunnies tend get pretty tired after 30 minutes/ 1 hour of running around the garden every day, and they just run straight back into the eglu to nap for a few hours... so your bunnies will probably be happy even if they dont access to the running space all the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FruitandNutCake Posted March 24, 2010 Share Posted March 24, 2010 Hidey holes are a good idea in general, as they offer shade when it is sunny, but I don't think they will offer any protection from a predator. If anything, once cornered, a rabbit is more vulnerable to a fox/cat/dog, as the rabbit then has no way to escape. Remember that a cat can probably sniff out a rabbit quite quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
victoriabunny Posted March 26, 2010 Share Posted March 26, 2010 I think it depends on the rabbits. I have two and they free-range in the garden during the day - there are cats in the area but they rarely come in the garden (we have a dog, so perhaps it's because the garden smells of him!) and when they do, they either ignore the rabbits or the rabbits actually chase them off. I used to really worry about cats and only let them out under supervision, but when I saw them doing this and the cats backing off I stopped worrying - we've never had any problems. I wouldn't do it if there were foxes in the area though as they're not always as nocturnal as you think (I always shut the buns away in their hutch at night, just in case). My two are very happy and love charging up and down the garden - they have ruined it though!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pagesguineas Posted March 28, 2010 Author Share Posted March 28, 2010 Yes we have a dog too - he just ignores the rabbits! I might do a trial run, we hardly ever see cats in the garden but I know there are some around as they used to come into our garden when we had a cat. I think it will be a while before we let them out and go to work, but it's progress! I'll keep this thread updated for anyone else in my position. Thanks for all your replies they have been really helpful! Catherine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
