pagesguineas Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 I've been worrying about my buns quite a bit recently with the heatwave in the UK, and was wondering how you all keep your buns cool in summer? I've been freezing water bottles and putting them in their run but neither of mine seem to go near them! Last weekend when it was very hot we actually trailed an extension lead outside and put a fan on them for the hottest spell and they spent most of the day sat infront of it! It's made me wonder, does anyone have electric/solar powered fans for their buns and how have you set them up? I've had a look online for solar powered fans but there doesn't seem to be much out there . Might have to be nice to my OH and get him to wire me up a decent solar powered fan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beach chick Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 funnily enough we were thinking exactly the same! we've got a solar charger thingy, so reckon it could be done... in the meantime I've moved the hutch to a shadier spot - not really where I wanted it to go, but it's better for them. I've also put a concrete paving slab in there, with a view to keeping claws down as well as providing a cool spot to lie on. someone suggested a marble slab, mine will have to make do with concrete! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LuckyChickenLover- Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 General Summer Tips: > Water is extremely important. Make sure that you refill the water bottles at least once a day, and maybe consider placing two water bottles in the run. (Ha ha, the last bit is probably just me being a bit paranoid, but at least I don't have to worry that the bottle might leak and empty itself, or that one bunny won't prevent the other from drinking). Sometimes I chill the water bottles in the fridge for a few minutes before giving them their water. I'm not sure about freezing it. Did you freeze the whole thing or just the bottle? If it was the whole thing then are you sure the spout still worked and didn't freeze? Or maybe the spout was too cold for their little tongues? > You could consider giving them 'watery' foods to help your rabbits to stay hydrated. Things like apple, banana, celery, cucumber, melon, pear, strawberries, tomatoes (but never the leaves) could be given a bit more often. Just make sure that you're not giving too much, and never give them lettuce as this will lead to tummy upsets > Shade. Make sure that your bunnies have access to a shady area at all times. By all means let them have an area of sunshine where they can sunbathe, but just make sure that they can get out of the sun should they want to. Be aware that shade area change as the sun moves during the day. > As Beach Chick said, some people like to give their rabbits a tile or something similar to rest on. You can buy specially made ones that are particularly for small animals eg. **LINK** , but a cheaper alternative that is just as good is to chill a tile in the fridge for a few minutes. > In the unlikely event that your bunny does get too hot, they may suffer from heatstroke. According to the book I have open in front of me... Your bunny is likely to get very hot in summer if it does not have a shady corner in its hutch or enclosure. A rabbit with heat exhaustion lies down at full length and breathes very rapidly with its nostrils wide open. It gets a very high temperature and may die if something is not done quickly. Move the rabbit to a shady area straight away and apply a wet (not ice cold) flannel on it's forehead, back and legs. Offer water at room temperature and feed half or one teaspoon of black coffee (depending on the size of your bunny) to improve circulation. Prevention is better than cure, so check your rabbit's cage and run are set up in the right location I'd like to add that personally, if this happened to me, I would get my bunny to a vet straight away. I think that covers the most important things. (They're probably ridiculously obvious Oh well!) It might be worthwhile checking out the Sticky about Caring for Hens in Hot Weather as that might give you a few ideas or make you think about something that had never occured to you before. To be honest we could do with a sticky about keeping bunnies in hot weather. Re. the fan, I think my bunnies might be a bit freaked out if I gave them one, but if yours like it then it sounds like a great idea! Not sure about how to power it though, sorry ~ Hope that helped LCL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pagesguineas Posted May 2, 2011 Author Share Posted May 2, 2011 Hi, thanks for your tips. LCL, I didn't mean we froze their water bottles!! We just refill an old water bottle (pepsi/milk etc) with water and freeze it so they can lay over it. They always have fresh drinking water to drink and in hot days we change it multiple times a day (even though it is in the shade). Their run is on paving slabs and only gets the sun in the morning on one half of it as it is shaded by a fence, a 3 storey house and their wendy house! I might try the marble slab idea though... Don't like the idea of the watery foods as I'm scared of flystrike and Sweep is prone to getting a dirty behind if he has too much veg, at the moment they are on a diet of ryegrass hay and a handful of Excel pellets every other day, and very very occasionally a bit of cucumber or a carrot. At first I thought they were going to be scared of the fan but they instantly took to it! I've seen a solar powered light on eBay and I'm thinking maybe could create a system where the solar panel powers a motion sensor light and a fan...hmm. I'm sure I'm probably fussing a bit much seeing as we already follow all the tips anyone has ever given me on keeping them cool! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LuckyChickenLover- Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 Hi, thanks for your tips. LCL, I didn't mean we froze their water bottles!! Sorry Don't like the idea of the watery foods as I'm scared of flystrike and Sweep is prone to getting a dirty behind if he has too much veg, at the moment they are on a diet of ryegrass hay and a handful of Excel pellets every other day, and very very occasionally a bit of cucumber or a carrot. I personally don't give extra veg in the summer, I just thought I'd put that in there in case anyone was worried about their bunny not getting enough liquid during hot weather. I would be paranoid about flystrike too. Have you applied any of the various sprays that you can buy to put on your rabbit? Apparently they stop the flies laying their eggs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LuckyChickenLover- Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 Just found this website. Which has plenty of good advice. Provide plenty of water because it's essential for keeping rabbits cool in the summer. Add ice cubes to help keep the water cool. Keep your rabbit out of the sun. Whether they have an indoor or outdoor cage it's important that they have adequate shade so they can keep cool in the summer. Mist your rabbit's ears. Rabbits regulate body temperature by dissipating heat through their ears. Give your rabbit a breeze to help it beat the summer heat. Place a circulating fan near the rabbit. If you have air conditioning make sure your rabbit is not directly in front of the cold stream of air so you don't freeze him out. Groom your rabbit as an important step in keeping your rabbit cool in the summer. Brush the rabbit to get rid of any excess hair and if you have a long-haired rabbit consider giving him summer hair cut. Feed the rabbit plenty of fresh vegetables to keep them hydrated in the summer. Freeze a plastic milk jug or one-liter beverage container and place it in the cage to help keep the rabbit cool. Put ceramic tiles down for your rabbit to lay on. You can put these tiles in the freezer first to get the tiles really cool. Hot weather is hard on rabbits. Optimal temperatures for rabbits are 50 to 70 degrees F. A rabbit's normal body temperature is 100 to 103 degrees F. You can tell if a rabbit is overheated by taking its temperature rectally. Never leave your rabbit in the car. Temperatures raise quickly in automobiles even with the windows down. Automobile temperatures can become dangerous very quickly. Panting, lethargy and feeling warm to the touch are signs of your rabbit being overheated. When providing a fan to help your rabbit stay cool in summer make sure it's in a safe place so that he won't try to chew on the cord. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beach chick Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 just found my 2 lying on their sides on the concrete slab. as it is blowing a 30mph gale here, and their hutch is in the shade, they are unlikely to be too hot, but it seems they like it anyway! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pagesguineas Posted May 3, 2011 Author Share Posted May 3, 2011 LCL, I sprayed my four with Beaphar Fly Guard spray, but am checking them regularly too just in-case. I believe that one stops the eggs from hatching so it's well worth the tenner - however they did not like having it applied!!! It's funny, last year and the year before we weren't so worried about flystrike but this year I've already seen a few flies in the garden buzzing around and therefore we've gone flystrike crazy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
