You or your child would like a bunny as a pet. That means you need a rabbit cage. Bunnies, especially when they are young and later, are adorable animals. Soft, fluffy, and intelligent, they are the preferences of those looking for a pet with relatively easy maintenance. Even so, there are rules you must consider for your friendship to be extended. Well, whether it is a pet that you will frequently play with on the carpet in the living room or one that you will grow in a rabbit hutch outside, it is mandatory to follow a set of care-related tips.

Learn to Choose a Rabbit Hutch

You don't need to be a veterinarian to be able to take a close look at a rabbit for a place in the heart of your family and to realize if it is a good choice. If you have opted for a pet rabbit, you must be aware that these breeds are not selected to be able to withstand exposure to the external environment. The safest place to live for them is in the house, in a rabbit hutch. A pet rabbit needs a cage in which the dishes with water and food are placed on the bed and where it can shelter or where it will stay as long as it is not supervised.

A Rabbit Cage Is the Proper Rabbit Playground

A rabbit also needs a space where he can play, exercise, and come into contact with family members. You can invest in a pen that you can place in the living room, or you can choose to leave the bunny free for a few hours a day, provided you secure your home. That means hiding all the cables that the pet could start gnawing on. Regardless of the space in which it will be kept, inside or outside, the rabbit needs a rabbit cage with two compartments, one of which is dark, without direct access to the outside, which will be used for sleeping.

In the main compartment, the rabbit must have room to stretch out in any direction it wants, stand up on its hind legs without the ears touching the roof, and be able to make at least three jumps from one edge to the other. A giant rabbit will need more space than a rabbit of a smaller breed. The rabbit hutch must be away from windows, heat sources such as radiators or radiators, or vital air currents. Instead, if you want to monitor it constantly, you can use a spy camera connected to the phone to watch his activity when you are not at home.

Give Your Rabbit a Suitable Diet

Rabbits are rodents, meaning their body needs them to eat something constantly. It is also the only gentle way to take care of their teeth, which grow throughout their life and which, if they get out of control, can cause serious diseases. Pellets for rabbits should only be part of their daily diet. Therefore, you can put some in their rabbit cage but do not exaggerate the amount. They need fresh vegetables, grass, hay, and even twigs, mentioning that certain species of trees must be avoided: cherry, peach, apricot, and plum.

Usually, when living in the wild, rabbits do not live in a rabbit hutch, so they are used to eating grass and hay as their primary food source, which provides them with the high-fiber diet they need. Broccoli, carrots, Brussels sprouts, kale, and cabbage are on the list of fresh foods that they enjoy eating. They must be alternated in significant quantities by no means offered daily. Pellets are offered in limited quantities. Otherwise, the rabbit will gain weight. Fruits and seeds in the rabbit cage are usually avoided because they have a high carbohydrate content and too little fiber.

How Do You Clean the Rabbit's Cage?

Rabbits are spotless animals that care about their hygiene and that of the rabbit hutch in which they live. Most choose only one place to defecate and keep the rest of the space clean. However, periodically the cage needs a general cleaning, which only you can do. Cleaning is significant for maintaining the health of the animal but also of the family. Choosing a metal and plastic cage that can be cleaned easily is suitable for an apartment rabbit. The rabbit would feel best in a wooden cage, but wood absorbs moisture and urine and gives off an unpleasant smell.

The cleaning program may differ depending on the animal, its size and the rabbit cage, the diet, and the number of rabbits. When the house already starts to smell like urine, it means that you are late with cleaning. A general cleaning per week is sufficient, along with daily hygiene maintenance sessions. If you have a rabbit that knows how to use the litter box or has only one corner where they defecate, you will be done quickly. The litter box or toilet will be cleaned of feces, and the sand/substrate will be refreshed. Uneaten vegetables and fruits will be removed.

General Cleaning, Weekly

You must remove the rabbit, the litter, and all the accessories from the cage. You will wash all bowls, accessories, and toys very well. The rabbit hutch will be cleaned and disinfected. Rabbit urine contains many calcium salts, which you can see deposited both on the cage's base, in the litter box, or on the accessories. You will use a vinegar solution to get rid of these foul-smelling stains. Vinegar has the remarkable property of dissolving these residues. Spray the vinegar solution on the colors and wait a few tens of minutes. Then rinse well until the smell of vinegar is removed.

If it smells of vinegar, the rabbit will no longer defecate in that area, and if it is in the litter box or the usual corner of the toilet, then this is not desirable. For disinfection, we can use hot water or a chlorine solution. The accessories and the cage can be scalded immediately after using the vinegar. Hot water not only removes the smell of vinegar but also sterilizes it. Place the rabbit cage in the bathtub, pour hot water, and rub well. Sterilizing the rabbit will stop marking the territory with urine. Consider this solution as well.

Publication: 04/07/2023 12:58