No, they need plenty of room to run around and binky, so an exercise pen is best. You can get them online for cheaper than in most stores. You’ll want a rug/mat and a litter box with pine pellets or paper pellets, with hay in it for the bun to eat. Hopefully you’ve been told that Timothy hay is 90% of their diet. Ideally a large ceramic bowl for water, but my one boy has a bowl that attaches to his pen. No bottles for water unless that’s the only thing the bun is used to. Pine shavings can cause respiratory issues, so for their litter box I use paper pellets. You shouldn’t need any shavings.
Fun-Lettuce4602
Possibly not having the cage elevated too? Rabbits aren’t always the biggest fan of that. Though I dont know if there’s a reason you elevated it.
Kindly-Chipmunk662
Hey! Bunnies need a minimum of a 3×2 meter area to roam everyday for a minimum of 6 hours I believe. He also might appreciate a mat/bed/small pillow so he can lay on, as well as some toys like foraging mats or sticks (oxbow has some great options!) also consistent access to water is important (bowls or fountains are best).
I also see the apple in there and it’s good to note that rabbits should only have a little bit of fruit per week as they tend to have very sensitive stomachs and too much sugar can cause bigger (and more expensive!) issues in the future.
I would also really recommend scrolling through this subreddit and r/rabbits as there’s some bunny enclosure inspo and plenty of other important questions answered!
Dazzling-Golf-879
Try and get a bigger play pen , they have one on Amazon under: Clear Acrylic Dog Playpen Indoor, Puppy Cat Small Pet Play Pen, Pet Cat Playpen for Rabbits, Dog Fence Crate Kennel Whelping Cage (Pink, 10 Panel) or even 12 panels. Ours is free Roam all day but then goes to his playpen at night. I didn’t realize bunnies need so much space before getting him! Good luck!
aarakocra-druid
Others have already advised you on the home, but you’re gonna need some toys! You can easily make some by stuffing empty toilet paper rolls with hay, buns also love to shred cardboard. They’ve absolutely gotta have something to chew on, their teeth grow continuously!
BunnySis
Take the door permanently off the cage (leaving it on can grab nails) and drop the cage to the floor. Enclose the area with an exercise pen. The fold-out coated wire ones used for small dogs work great. I have seen wire cube panels zip tied together as well. I like the exercise pen because it’s easy to fold up smaller, unfold larger, and take with you for travel if needed. You said you have a baby so you can put a pen inside a pen if you need to, so that baby and bunny have a buffer zone between them.
If the floor is slick or you have carpet, put a tarp under the pen edges, and a polar fleece blanket (wash it first) on top of the tarp. Make sure the edges are all under the pen. You can fold the panels and zip tie them together if you need to make the pen size a little smaller to do that. Whenever the polar fleece gets messy drop the poops on the ground as fertilizer (or in the trash if you don’t have access). Then scrape off as much hair as you can and wash it. Or get a new one if your home washing machine won’t handle it. (I wouldn’t worry about a commercial washer, they’re meant to handle pet fur too.)
*Wheat* pellets or granules meant for cat boxes are superior to pine (the dust can get in their lungs), or paper (can dry out the GI tract and cause stasis). If the rabbit eats any it’s just ground up wheat and it won’t hurt them. You can find that at most large pet stores now.
Added note: you can hook the exercise pen behind or to the existing cage, you can still use it as long as the rabbit isn’t trying to bite you when it is in there (cage aggression).
Upset_Customer8665
Get a puppy play pen. Make sure it’s safe for bun by making sure there’s no crevices where his/her neck gets stuck or any limb, etc. there’s some made specifically for rabbits on Amazon just please check reviews. Get one with a liner for easy clean up. Also another tip, make sure it’s high enough because your bun will jump out while your asleep and you’ll wake up in the morning to a bun running a muck
Certain_Ad3570
Awwww name??? 🥹
Far_Home2616
This is a way too bigger piece of apple. I wouldn’t give any treats in the start, later one you can give tiny tiny tiny pieces of apple/banana but not everyday, its way too sweet.
Your bunny needs a lot of hay, a litter box (similar to cat size) with a hay rack or hay inside, as well as wood pellets
Rabbits are not hamsters or guinea pigs. They need space to run and jump and zoomies
alicewonders12
Your cage is terrible. You’re not feeding your rabbit properly; you need fresh green hay at all times. He needs a bowl with water in it. Also you should get a litter box so he can be trained to go to the bathroom on it.
MilesBFree
It is great that you are asking and want to make sure he is happy!
As others said, get a puppy play pen – ours is about 5’ x 7’ that we put him in at night so he doesn’t get into trouble while we are sleeping. It has his litter box, water bowl, etc in it. During the day he free roams through most of the house (which we extensively went through to make it safe for him with cord protectors, soaping all the baseboards and wall corners, furniture kegs, etc)
Waterproof mat in the puppy playpen as others said. Get the kind that is fabric on both sides – our first one was plastic on one side and fabric on the other and the plastic side sticks to jtself after going through the wash and is impossible to unstick
He also has several structures inside the playpen he can hide in if he wants. He mostly hangs out in the rest of the house but goes to the playpen to eat and drink
PEN: What a cutie! Bunnies love to chew so I would get him/her a good sized dog pen and leave them in there for 2 weeks to get acclimated.
ENCLOSURE: add a hidy house (basically a cardboard cat house. A bowl of water and their litter box. Most bunnies don’t like being on a slick floor so I would put a blanket or short shag rug under them. If they are on carpet or have a rug that is fluffy they will likely chew it which can warrant a visit to the vet.
LITTERBOX: For litter box training, they will train themselves. You can get a litter box, line it with Carefresh and then put hay over the Carefresh. They like to eat and poop so they will train themselves.
FOOD: under 6months give 24/7 access to alfalfa hay, young rabbit pellets (alfalfa pellets). Over 6 months 24/7 access to Timothy hay, adult rabbit pellets (no more that 2 table spoons daily) and introduce greens slowly. I do romaine and cilantro.
TREATS: I order pellets and treats from Small Pet Select. I also get compressed Timothy hay bars. This helps with their need to chew.
CORDS: put all of your cords that are plugged in away or wrap them in protective plastic (just google bunny cord protectors). They will chew through your cords like nobody’s business!!
GI STASIS: rabbits have to eat and poop basically all day. Your new bun might not poop for a day bc they’re acclimating but if it goes beyond that then it’s a problem. Bunnies are prey animals so they don’t show their illness. If the bunny stops eating for up to 12 hours. Take them to the vet and feed them Critical care during those 12 hours (critical care is ground up hay which you mix with water and syringe feed to them)
SCENT GLANDS: bunnies have scent glands that need to be cleaned out. They are located by where they pee. They can get clogged and cause infection. When the bunny trusts you, you can clean them out with warm water and a q tip. It’s an unpleasant smell lol.
BRUSHING: bunnies need to be brushed when you see they are shedding (I used a brushing glove, a rubber brush and a comb (search bunny comb). The reason is that they bathe themselves a lot and they can digest some hair but too much will cause a blockage or for them to go into GI stasis (this is costly to help treat and can easily become life threatening)
A friend of mine called them “posh bunnies” bc truly they are lol. They’re a handful but when they trust you and you’ve built a relationship with them it is all worth it!!
Hope this helps! If you’d like photos of my buns area send me a message and I’d be happy to show you!
I found it easiest to just bunny proof almost my entire house ( a few rooms upstairs that aren’t I just keep the doors closed) other than that I have a giant “litter box” which is about the size of one of those shove under your bed storage containers and then another smaller one. Basically my buns lives like a cat and my electronics live in cages lol
Artistic-Ant-8175
Oof you picked a horrible place to post a cage
_sheep_gardenn
since people are already talking about the home, Toys are a must as well as a food and water bowl, litter box(it looks like you’re using wood chips id advise that you switch to pellets/paper based litter) and plenty of hay as well as hidey houses if you cant afford multiple of them boxes flipped upside down with cut out entrances work just fine and something more comfortable on the floor for your bun would be wonderful could be a rug or those little puzzle foam mats for kids so they can run around and binky easier:)
17 Comments
No, they need plenty of room to run around and binky, so an exercise pen is best. You can get them online for cheaper than in most stores. You’ll want a rug/mat and a litter box with pine pellets or paper pellets, with hay in it for the bun to eat. Hopefully you’ve been told that Timothy hay is 90% of their diet. Ideally a large ceramic bowl for water, but my one boy has a bowl that attaches to his pen. No bottles for water unless that’s the only thing the bun is used to. Pine shavings can cause respiratory issues, so for their litter box I use paper pellets. You shouldn’t need any shavings.
Possibly not having the cage elevated too? Rabbits aren’t always the biggest fan of that. Though I dont know if there’s a reason you elevated it.
Hey! Bunnies need a minimum of a 3×2 meter area to roam everyday for a minimum of 6 hours I believe. He also might appreciate a mat/bed/small pillow so he can lay on, as well as some toys like foraging mats or sticks (oxbow has some great options!) also consistent access to water is important (bowls or fountains are best).
I also see the apple in there and it’s good to note that rabbits should only have a little bit of fruit per week as they tend to have very sensitive stomachs and too much sugar can cause bigger (and more expensive!) issues in the future.
I would also really recommend scrolling through this subreddit and r/rabbits as there’s some bunny enclosure inspo and plenty of other important questions answered!
Try and get a bigger play pen , they have one on Amazon under: Clear Acrylic Dog Playpen Indoor, Puppy Cat Small Pet Play Pen, Pet Cat Playpen for Rabbits, Dog Fence Crate Kennel Whelping Cage (Pink, 10 Panel) or even 12 panels. Ours is free Roam all day but then goes to his playpen at night. I didn’t realize bunnies need so much space before getting him! Good luck!
Others have already advised you on the home, but you’re gonna need some toys! You can easily make some by stuffing empty toilet paper rolls with hay, buns also love to shred cardboard. They’ve absolutely gotta have something to chew on, their teeth grow continuously!
Take the door permanently off the cage (leaving it on can grab nails) and drop the cage to the floor. Enclose the area with an exercise pen. The fold-out coated wire ones used for small dogs work great. I have seen wire cube panels zip tied together as well. I like the exercise pen because it’s easy to fold up smaller, unfold larger, and take with you for travel if needed. You said you have a baby so you can put a pen inside a pen if you need to, so that baby and bunny have a buffer zone between them.
If the floor is slick or you have carpet, put a tarp under the pen edges, and a polar fleece blanket (wash it first) on top of the tarp. Make sure the edges are all under the pen. You can fold the panels and zip tie them together if you need to make the pen size a little smaller to do that. Whenever the polar fleece gets messy drop the poops on the ground as fertilizer (or in the trash if you don’t have access). Then scrape off as much hair as you can and wash it. Or get a new one if your home washing machine won’t handle it. (I wouldn’t worry about a commercial washer, they’re meant to handle pet fur too.)
*Wheat* pellets or granules meant for cat boxes are superior to pine (the dust can get in their lungs), or paper (can dry out the GI tract and cause stasis). If the rabbit eats any it’s just ground up wheat and it won’t hurt them. You can find that at most large pet stores now.
Added note: you can hook the exercise pen behind or to the existing cage, you can still use it as long as the rabbit isn’t trying to bite you when it is in there (cage aggression).
Get a puppy play pen. Make sure it’s safe for bun by making sure there’s no crevices where his/her neck gets stuck or any limb, etc. there’s some made specifically for rabbits on Amazon just please check reviews. Get one with a liner for easy clean up. Also another tip, make sure it’s high enough because your bun will jump out while your asleep and you’ll wake up in the morning to a bun running a muck
Awwww name??? 🥹
This is a way too bigger piece of apple. I wouldn’t give any treats in the start, later one you can give tiny tiny tiny pieces of apple/banana but not everyday, its way too sweet.
Your bunny needs a lot of hay, a litter box (similar to cat size) with a hay rack or hay inside, as well as wood pellets
Read through the old posts on here 🙂
Please see this guide on proper care: https://houserabbit.org/care
Rabbits are not hamsters or guinea pigs. They need space to run and jump and zoomies
Your cage is terrible. You’re not feeding your rabbit properly; you need fresh green hay at all times. He needs a bowl with water in it. Also you should get a litter box so he can be trained to go to the bathroom on it.
It is great that you are asking and want to make sure he is happy!
As others said, get a puppy play pen – ours is about 5’ x 7’ that we put him in at night so he doesn’t get into trouble while we are sleeping. It has his litter box, water bowl, etc in it. During the day he free roams through most of the house (which we extensively went through to make it safe for him with cord protectors, soaping all the baseboards and wall corners, furniture kegs, etc)
Waterproof mat in the puppy playpen as others said. Get the kind that is fabric on both sides – our first one was plastic on one side and fabric on the other and the plastic side sticks to jtself after going through the wash and is impossible to unstick
He also has several structures inside the playpen he can hide in if he wants. He mostly hangs out in the rest of the house but goes to the playpen to eat and drink
https://preview.redd.it/ior2whvto4dg1.jpeg?width=5712&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=cdf8883dcf0387205e0da2108f00c3d5246a2359
https://preview.redd.it/qs0wfdn155dg1.jpeg?width=2252&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8d781df83c48cca5ce2988f1498610960764fb7e
Moved it to the ground guys
PEN: What a cutie! Bunnies love to chew so I would get him/her a good sized dog pen and leave them in there for 2 weeks to get acclimated.
ENCLOSURE: add a hidy house (basically a cardboard cat house. A bowl of water and their litter box. Most bunnies don’t like being on a slick floor so I would put a blanket or short shag rug under them. If they are on carpet or have a rug that is fluffy they will likely chew it which can warrant a visit to the vet.
LITTERBOX: For litter box training, they will train themselves. You can get a litter box, line it with Carefresh and then put hay over the Carefresh. They like to eat and poop so they will train themselves.
FOOD: under 6months give 24/7 access to alfalfa hay, young rabbit pellets (alfalfa pellets). Over 6 months 24/7 access to Timothy hay, adult rabbit pellets (no more that 2 table spoons daily) and introduce greens slowly. I do romaine and cilantro.
TREATS: I order pellets and treats from Small Pet Select. I also get compressed Timothy hay bars. This helps with their need to chew.
CORDS: put all of your cords that are plugged in away or wrap them in protective plastic (just google bunny cord protectors). They will chew through your cords like nobody’s business!!
GI STASIS: rabbits have to eat and poop basically all day. Your new bun might not poop for a day bc they’re acclimating but if it goes beyond that then it’s a problem. Bunnies are prey animals so they don’t show their illness. If the bunny stops eating for up to 12 hours. Take them to the vet and feed them Critical care during those 12 hours (critical care is ground up hay which you mix with water and syringe feed to them)
SCENT GLANDS: bunnies have scent glands that need to be cleaned out. They are located by where they pee. They can get clogged and cause infection. When the bunny trusts you, you can clean them out with warm water and a q tip. It’s an unpleasant smell lol.
BRUSHING: bunnies need to be brushed when you see they are shedding (I used a brushing glove, a rubber brush and a comb (search bunny comb). The reason is that they bathe themselves a lot and they can digest some hair but too much will cause a blockage or for them to go into GI stasis (this is costly to help treat and can easily become life threatening)
A friend of mine called them “posh bunnies” bc truly they are lol. They’re a handful but when they trust you and you’ve built a relationship with them it is all worth it!!
Hope this helps! If you’d like photos of my buns area send me a message and I’d be happy to show you!
https://preview.redd.it/gfj2yhpp46dg1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=366247d8614bbee8ad459271c20d0da7b862ee99
I found it easiest to just bunny proof almost my entire house ( a few rooms upstairs that aren’t I just keep the doors closed) other than that I have a giant “litter box” which is about the size of one of those shove under your bed storage containers and then another smaller one. Basically my buns lives like a cat and my electronics live in cages lol
Oof you picked a horrible place to post a cage
since people are already talking about the home, Toys are a must as well as a food and water bowl, litter box(it looks like you’re using wood chips id advise that you switch to pellets/paper based litter) and plenty of hay as well as hidey houses if you cant afford multiple of them boxes flipped upside down with cut out entrances work just fine and something more comfortable on the floor for your bun would be wonderful could be a rug or those little puzzle foam mats for kids so they can run around and binky easier:)