home floors

Do-it-yourself rabbit cages - simple and advanced designs. Dimensions of industrial rabbit cages Universal rabbit cage dimensions

Many novice farmers are wondering where to start breeding rabbits. This activity will not require any special costs. First of all, it is necessary to equip a place of residence for eared animals, prepare cages, drinkers, feeders. All this can be easily done by hand. The main thing is to choose the appropriate design and size for the cage, prepare drawings, necessary tools and building materials.

First of all, you need to decide on the size. The most common are double designs with two separate sections. There are other types of cages: single-section, group for young rabbits, three sections or for a rabbit with babies. There are also author's designs: from the farmer Zolotukhin, from the breeder Tsvetkov. Based on what will be built, and materials are selected.

First of all, it is necessary to determine the type of cell, and then purchase the material.

Necessary tools for construction:

hacksaw;
a hammer;
corner;
pliers;
plane;
screwdriver.

Any design implies the presence of a frame, walls, floor, ceiling and doors. Most often, wood and metal mesh are used to build cages. Each cell of such a grid should be no more than 2 * 2 cm and at least 16 * 47 mm in diameter (depending on the age and weight of the rabbits).

The minimum set of materials includes:

large sheets of plywood;
slate;
screws and nails;
bars;
slats;
durable galvanized mesh (with small cells).

For the manufacture of doors, curtains and latches, as well as feeders and drinking bowls, are additionally purchased.

The wood must be well sanded and sanded, the ends of the mesh must be securely fastened. Be sure to remove all sharp edges so that the animal does not get hurt. It is better to cover all protruding wooden parts inside the cage with tin. Rabbits love to chew on wood to grind their teeth. Therefore, it is necessary to put branches in the feeder more often. The walls and roof can be made of plywood and mesh, and for the main frame choose thick bars of wood.

Attention. If the cage is located in an open space, on the street, then without good roofing materials not enough. But a metal roof is not worth doing. In the summer, in the sun, it will become very hot, which will lead to heat stroke in rabbits.

Most often, rabbit cages are made of wood and mesh.

The frame is made of thick bars, the length of which depends on the location of the cage. If it is installed outdoors, then the length of the legs of the frame should not be less than 80-100 cm. For a cage standing indoors, 35-40 cm of length is enough.

Sizes and types of cells

First of all, you need to find or make yourself the right drawing. It is important to remember that one cage for breeding rabbits is not enough. You need to build three or four at once.

The average dimensions of a standard cage are:

length 120-140 cm;
width 70-80 cm;
height 40-50 cm.

For young rabbits, a length of about 90 cm is sufficient, and the rest of the parameters may remain the same. For one adult animal, it is customary to allocate at least 0.7 square meters. m. area, for young animals - 0.2 square meters. m.

There are several types of cells:

for the young;
for adult rabbits;
for a rabbit with offspring;
for giant rabbits;
solid wire;
cells from Zolotukhin;
cells from Tsvetkov;
Rabbitax.

It is customary to keep rabbits with babies together, and for already grown up rabbits they build a separate house.

A standard two-story house for adult rabbits is easy to build.

On the drawing, it will look like this:

Drawing of a bunk cage for rabbits.

Cage for young animals

The grown rabbits weaned from their mothers are kept together, in groups of 10-20 individuals. In the manufacture of the cage, they are guided by the minimum dimensions: the total area is 300 × 100 cm and the ceiling height is 50-60 cm. ). You can install a completely mesh floor, but make a separate warm room for the rabbits. In winter, it is carefully insulated with hay and straw.

Important. One rabbit should have at least 0.2-0.3 square meters. m. area.

Some farmers do not make separate housing for young animals, but settle them in cages intended for adult animals. This calculates how many rabbits can be placed in one cage to provide them comfortable conditions.

For adult rabbits

For adult animals of medium size, cages with a depth of about 70 cm, a height of 60 cm and a length of at least a meter are suitable. It uses a block construction, and each block, in turn, is divided by a grid into two cells. For the mating period, the partition should be removed, combining two sections into one.

For adult rabbits, you can make a block of cages in 2 or 3 tiers.

You can make a two-tier and three-tier cage. It will be a little more difficult, but it will save space on the site.

In any cage, a separate place for sleeping, eating or walking should be equipped. To do this, the cage is divided by a plywood partition with a hole (20 × 20 cm) located at a height of 15 cm from the floor. The sleeping compartment must have a solid wooden door, and a place for eating and walking - mesh. The resting place does not need to be made large. Ideal dimensions, approximately 30x60x50 cm.

House for a rabbit with offspring

You can often hear the opinion that a rabbit with babies needs a separate mother liquor only in winter, and in summer a regular cage is enough. But you need to remember that in an open room, fenced only with a net, the female will be nervous and worried. This can adversely affect the health of the offspring. In the mother house, there must be a closed, warm place for the nest and a large space for walking, with a mesh front wall.

This is one of the simplest and most functional options for a house for a female with an offspring:

The photo shows a two-tier cage for rabbits with hinged nest compartments.

A frame is made of durable bars, and the back wall and two side walls are made of plywood. The cage is immediately divided into two sections: a large one for walking and a small one for the nest. For each of them, separate doors are made (mesh and solid wood). The walls, floor and ceiling in the mother liquor should be double, according to the sandwich principle. Styrofoam or straw can be laid between them. The roof is covered with slate.

Home for giant rabbits

Cages for these large animals must be much larger than normal. Adults can grow up to 60 cm in length and reach a weight of 7.5 kg.

There are many giant breeds:

butterfly;
German Risen;
grey;
Belgian;
ram;
white;
blue Viennese.

The minimum dimensions of a house for one rabbit should be as follows:

height 55-65 cm;
length 0.9-1.5 m;
width 70-75 cm.

If possible, it is better to increase the parameters of the dwelling.

For young rabbits, a special group cage is built, 40-50 cm high and about 1.2 square meters in area. m. Considering the rather big weight of animals, they strengthen the floor well. It is also made from galvanized mesh, only thicker. So that such a floor does not sag, a crate is made under it from bars located at a distance of 3-4 cm from each other.

Giant rabbits are recommended to be kept in spacious cages with a solid floor.

Some rabbit breeders lay a solid wooden floor in the cages and install plastic pallets under it. But cleaning in such a cage will have to be done at least twice a day.

Solid wire cage

This is the most a budget option rabbit housing, which can be installed both outdoors and indoors. These lightweight and durable cages take up little space and are easy to store and clean. For their manufacture, two types of mesh are required: a larger one for walls and ceiling (diameter 2.5 * 5 cm) and smaller - for the floor (1.5 * 5 cm). The frame is built from a durable timber, with a leg length of 50-70 cm. For the winter period, such a structure is placed in an insulated barn, and in the summer it is taken out into the street.

Cages for rabbits from Zolotukhin

The well-known breeder N.I. Zolotukhin developed his own, original, simple and inexpensive design of a dwelling for rabbits. There is no need to do daily cleaning in the cages, and the animals in them feel comfortable and get sick less.

Zolotukhin's cage is a three-story building with a sloping plywood floor. The mesh is laid on the floor only in a small space at the rear wall, without a pallet. The second tier is shifted relative to the first by the width of this grid. The third one is the same. The front wall (common for all three floors) forms a slope. Each compartment is equipped with a tilting feeder.

This is what Zolotukhin's three-tiered cage looks like from the back.

For the construction of the cage you will need: wood, straight sheet slate, metal mesh, polycarbonate and tin. A wooden frame, partitions and doors of the mother liquor are pre-made. Mesh is used for cage doors and the back of the floor. The floor itself is made of slate, and the back wall is made of polycarbonate. All wooden parts located inside the cage are upholstered with tin.

Cell dimensions:

height 150 cm;
width 200cm;
depth about 70-80 cm;
floor slope 6-8 cm;
mesh width in front of the back wall 15-20 cm;
door size 40*40 cm.

Each floor is divided by a partition into two sections, and between them there is a place for a sennik.

Cells from Tsvetkov

An experienced farmer A. A. Tsvetkov proposed the idea of a two-story mini-farm for rabbits, consisting of 4 separate sections. Distinctive feature such cages are: two gravitational feeders, two mounted mother liquors, original ventilation and manure removal systems.

The frame is built from coniferous timber and must be painted with white nitro paint. Moisture-resistant plywood, at least 8 mm thick, is suitable for making a sennik. From the inside, the sennik is upholstered with a metal mesh, it also plays the role of a door in each section.

The photo shows cages for rabbits, made according to the drawings of farmer Tsvetkov.

All wooden parts are sheathed with sheet metal, the manure cone is covered with slate mastic. For the roof, you can use slate or roofing material. The water in the drinkers is heated using a boiler.

Rabbitax cells

Cells "Rabbitaks" come in different designs and modifications. The simplest are small two-section options. There are also ecological models based on the technology of redirecting air flows.

There are even real farms for rabbits "Rabbitaks", in which more than 25 individuals live and breed at the same time. On sale you can find a huge number of varieties of such cells. You can make "Rabbitaks" yourself. As a basis, you can take the drawings of the rabbit breeder I. N. Mikhailov.

Cell manufacturing rules

In order for the rabbits to be comfortable and comfortable in the new house, a few simple rules must be observed during construction:

all wooden protruding parts inside the cage are upholstered with tin;
for a roof device it is better to use slate;
you can not use antiseptic, varnishes and impregnations;
for the floor, take a grid with cells with a diameter of 1 * 2.5 cm to 2.5 * 2.5;
The frame is built from durable wooden beam(not less than 5*5 cm);
the back wall of the cage is made of plywood.

The floor in rabbit cages is made of wooden slats or mesh.

How to build a rabbit hutch

When the drawing is selected, materials and tools are prepared - you can start building. First you need to assemble a frame from a bar and lay a mesh floor. In outdoor conditions, the floor will have to be insulated and removable pallets made under it (for cleaning).

Next, install the back wall of plywood. It should be lower than the front. The side walls are also desirable to be made of plywood. In a double cage in the middle, a sennik is equipped. And the front wall can be made of mesh, with a door. If the cage will always be on the street, then you should take care of the insulated sleeping compartment. The sloping roof is covered with slate.

What do we place inside the cage

The internal contents of the cell may vary. It depends on who will live in it. So, for a rabbit with babies, it is necessary to arrange special queen cells and nesting compartments. When group keeping young animals, warm nesting rooms will also be needed. Often they are equipped with special indoor enclosures for walking. In each cage, there must be bunker devices, drinkers, feeders, senniks.

It is advisable to place the feeder and drinker outside the cage so that the rabbit cannot gnaw on them.

Choosing a place to install the cage

Before you start building, it is important to decide on the placement of the cage. It should be a comfortable place protected from through winds. You should not install a rabbit house on the south side, because in summer the animals will suffer from heat. It is necessary to strictly observe the size of the cage, depending on the breed and the number of rabbits. For ease of cleaning, a removable roof is made in the cells.

If the animals live on the street all year round, then the floor is best made of wood in the form of a retractable pallet. And already on top to fill the crate of the rails. Feeders and drinkers can be removable. The walls and ceiling are insulated with foam, and a warm floor with heating is installed in the uterine compartment.

We offer you to watch a video instruction that will help you build cages for rabbits with your own hands.

Rabbit cages differ depending on which animals and in what quantity will live in them. Correctly building rabbit houses is a whole science, and we will try to figure it out further.

The optimal cage sizes, in particular for young animals, are calculated by the number of heads that will live there. Both replacement young stock and commercial stock usually keep seven heads in one compartment. The length of such a house is on average from 2 to 3 meters, the width is 1 meter, the height is up to 60 cm. After fertilization, I plant the females separately - one individual in one house.

The dimensions of the cage where the pregnant rabbit is planned to be settled are as follows: 120x70x60 cm. For some farmers, the size of the cage structures may be smaller, but it is necessary to strive for just such parameters. If the mother liquor is retractable, its dimensions must match in height and depth with the main compartment. The length of the uterine compartment along the front wall is 40 cm, the depth is 70 cm, the height is 60 cm.

At home, the arrangement of the cage in which adult males will live can be one- or two-section. The dimensions of the cells per section are from 80 to 110 cm and a width of at least 60 cm. The dimensions of the cage into two sections: length up to 130 cm, the width is the same as that of a single-section. Thus, the aft part of the two-section structure accounts for 90 cm, and the nesting part - 40 cm. Adult rabbits in a one-section house can contain 2-3 heads, in a two-section house - 5-6 heads each.

In groups, male young animals are kept only up to 3 months, then they are planted one at a time. Dimensions of a single bachelor's dwelling: 70x70x60 cm (length-width-height).

Instruction

It is not difficult to make cages with your own hands, because their construction will require the most simple materials. Step by step following the instructions - and now the house for fluffy pets is ready! In the following video, the farmer talks in great detail about the size and construction of rabbit houses. This design was made according to the Zolotukhin method.

Materials and tools

wooden boards or timber;
slats;
Chipboard and plywood;
sheathing for protruding wooden parts (for example, thin tin);
roof covering material (polycarbonate, smooth slate, linoleum);
strong mesh for walls, sennik and part of doors;
hammer, nails, self-tapping screws, screws, screwdriver, hinges, valves, feeders and drinkers;
measuring tape.

Manufacturing

Step-by-step instructions will help you not to confuse anything and quickly finish the job.

We knock together a rectangular frame from a bar. If there are several separate tiers, a distance of 10-15 cm must be left between each (for a pallet).
Between the front and rear beams we fill the transverse rails, the first tier will be held on them. We do the same with the next ones.
We pin the side "legs" made of boards to our rectangles. The legs are measured in advance so that there is a margin of height of 30-40 cm from the ground. So the cells will be convenient to take by the bottom for carrying and cleaning.
Next, from the rails and screws, we twist the doors, upholstered with a net. We fasten the mesh from the inside with a construction stapler. Do not forget to make an inclination on the front side of the door to fit the sennik.
The doors are hinged and a small latch is attached, it is most convenient to make a top-down folding door.
The sennik is made in the form of the letter V, covered with a mesh.

The final stage

Next, we build a cell mother liquor with blank plywood walls and with a removable plywood bottom. This bottom can be removed and dried after the grown young. After you can use plywood again.
We also make the door of the mother liquor deaf, fasten it to the hinges.
Under each tier we place an inclined pallet. We tilt to the back wall so that it is convenient to remove manure.

Such homemade cages will serve the rabbits for more than one year. They can be moved from the barn to the street in the summer, and even build higher tiers. But as practice shows, three tiers are usually enough.

Watch the step-by-step construction to make cages for rabbits according to the indicated instructions in the next video. Making this method will take you literally half a day.

Other types

Other types of rabbit houses include a design for a rabbit with a nest. This is an autonomous structure, which does not imply any tiers, and is built separately. As you can see in the photo below, it is portable and can be both outdoors and indoors.

Manufacturing instructions

You will need the same tools and materials as when assembling ordinary rabbit dwellings. Unless the grid will need less - only on the door of the general compartment. Next, we offer a brief step by step instructions to assemble a cozy rabbit house for mom and young.

Based on the dimensions (we take the same ones that are indicated at the beginning of the article, 120x70x60), we put together a frame.
We make side and back walls from thin boards or plywood.
After that, we separately assemble the door for the mother liquor and the door for the main compartment. On the second - we nail the grid.
We put the doors on hinges, fasten any form of a valve and a handle for opening.
The final step is the roof. We cover it with a water-repellent material, you can take linoleum, polycarbonate, but not iron, so as not to heat up in the heat.

That's it! You can take such a house for a female and cubs into the garden, or put it in summer kitchen so that pets are always supervised. The following drawings will best represent what the cells look like.

Photo gallery

Video "German houses for rabbits"

The cells in the video are made using German technology. They are intended for single keeping of adults or for young animals up to 3 months.

All rabbit cages are manufactured according to several general principles, but there are also a number of significant differences that are necessarily taken into account in the process of independent implementation of such a design.

What should be the design

The most important requirements for the design of a rabbit cage are as follows:

complete absence of drafts;
high-quality and sufficient ventilation of the space;
optimal dimensions based on age features animals and their number;
use of harmless and durable materials;
the absence of sharp or any traumatic elements in the structure;
absence of negative climatic influences in the installation area;
ease of maintenance and operation;
maximum hygiene;
affordable cost of raw materials and a fully finished design.

It is interesting! The right design of the cage for rabbits provides the highest productivity of farm animals in conditions of minimizing the incidence and high safety of the livestock.

The installation of cages in the room involves ensuring the purity of the air and the absence of excessive humidity or overheating, as well as the normal intensity of illumination.

Cage with an aviary for young animals

A standard cage for keeping young farm animals is most often designed for 8-20 individuals, whose age varies from three months to six months. In the manufacture of such a group cage, it is necessary to adhere to an approximate optimal area of \u200b\u200b0.25-0.3 m² for each individual. At the same time, the height of the walls cannot be less than 35-40 cm. The aviary for walking is equipped along the back wall, and is also separated from the cage by means of a removable partition.

Cages for mature rabbits

The dwelling for a sexually mature female is divided into a couple of parts: uterine and stern. In this case, the partition is most often represented by a plywood element with a convenient sawn-out manhole with a diameter of 200 mm. The manhole is located above the floor surface at a height of 10-15 cm, which does not allow the rabbits to crawl inside the feeding area.

The floor inside the mother liquor is most often made of solid moisture-resistant plywood. For the manufacture of the front door of the queen cell, a board or plywood of sufficient thickness is used. The stern part is made of high quality mesh. Immediately before the birth, a mother liquor is installed inside the nesting compartment, the dimensions of which are 40 x 40 cm with a height of 20 cm.

Family block of three sections

It is quite affordable to independently manufacture simple three-section rabbit cages. The so-called "family block" is very convenient for breeding farm animals. In this case, the central compartment of the structure contains a rabbit-producer, and females are located on the sides.

In wooden partitions installed between all compartments, manholes are equipped, which are supplied with plywood valves. Thus, it is quite easy and simple to control the process of planting females to the male.

The timber frame is complemented by side and rear walls, as well as nest compartments with partitions and doors based on a wide lining. For the purpose of manufacturing the front wall, a metal mesh is used. Inside the nesting compartments, it is recommended to provide attic free space for animals to rest. An additional convenience of such structures will be the thoughtful arrangement of drinkers and feeders, which can be easily filled from the outside.

Mini-farm from bunk cages

The cost of building typical two-tiered cages for farm animals is not too high, due to structural simplicity. Particular attention is paid to the location of the mini-farm depending on the type of lighting.

A closed blank wall with crates and feeders is located towards the north, which allows you to protect the rabbits from gusty winds and extreme cold. The roof of the structure from the north should overhang by about 0.9 m, and from the south by 0.6 m. From the west and east, the roof is flush with the protruding beams.

It is interesting! With proper arrangement of a rabbit mini-farm, each cage structure can contain up to twenty-five adults of a valuable farm animal.

A two-tiered cage consists of a frame stand, a lower part and an upper tier, and, as a rule, transparent or translucent materials, as well as roofing material, are used as a roof. As the practice of operating a mini-farm shows, one cell should occupy an area of 1.4 m 2. A standard two-row farm of eight cellular structures with an opening of 70-110 cm occupies an area of 25 m 2.

Cage for Californian rabbits

According to experienced rabbit breeders, California rabbits are extremely easy to care for and do not require much space to keep. The optimal size of a rabbit cage for such a farm animal can be about one and a half times smaller than a dwelling for keeping a gray giant rabbit.

Among other things, California rabbits are well adapted to cold weather, so they are often kept even without traditional bedding. Standard sizes cells with a mother liquor are 0.4 m 2, and for one mature individual - 0.3 m 2. For self-manufacturing constructions can be used conventional, environmentally friendly and hygienic building materials.

Cage for dwarf rabbits

For home maintenance, decorative rabbits or miniature dwarf breeds are most adapted. A cage for such an animal will not occupy a significant place in the space of the room, which is explained by the compact size of rabbits and adults. The weight of a sexually mature dwarf rabbit, as a rule, does not exceed a couple of kilograms.

It is interesting! Despite the fact that the rabbit cage can be made of very different, almost any materials, the best option would be high-strength, durable and completely environmentally friendly plastic.

The twigs in such a finished cage should not be painted. To facilitate the care of a decorative animal, the presence of a special drawer of a retractable type will allow, into which all the waste products of a domestic rabbit fall.

Cage for rabbits "giants"

Large-sized meat and skin rabbits of the "giant" breed require a special approach to their content and the arrangement of non-standard cellular structures. A cage for a large and fairly fast-growing farm animal has significant dimensions, since the length of a rabbit is 55-65 cm and weighs between 5.5-7.5 kg. Based on such parameters, you should first draw up a drawing-design of the cell.

One adult rabbit "giant" must be kept in a cage with the minimum dimensions presented:

length - 96 cm;
depth - 70 cm;
height - 60-70 cm.

A young couple of this breed must be kept in a cage measuring 1.2-1.3 m². Among other things, giant rabbits are quite heavy, so the floor in the cage must be reinforced with a galvanized thick wire mesh, which is laid on a frame base laid with a distance of 4.0-4.5 cm. Some farmers often use cages with a solid flooring and installation of special plastic or rubber pallets. In this case, the pallets are cleaned daily.

The cells developed by Zolotukhin are characterized by the creation of living conditions for rabbits as close as possible to their natural existence. Due to the design features, farm animals are able to feel free, which has a positive effect on their fertility and general immunity.

Cages made according to the method of rabbit breeder Zolotukhin have significant differences from many other types of rabbit dwellings. The main characteristics of such convenient designs are presented:

multi-tiered;
lack of a mesh floor and pallet;
the absence of a stationary type mother liquor;
feeder mobility.

The three-tier design is designed for six rabbits, and each subsequent tier is shifted back by 15-20 cm, which easily prevents any waste from getting onto the lower animals. The sloping floor in the rabbitry is predominantly solid, and only a small slatted area is fixed at the rear wall. AT summer period the mother liquor is placed in the darkened zone of the cage, and in winter removable nests are placed in the structure.

The dimensions of Zolotukhin's rabbit cage vary depending on the breed characteristics of farm animals, but for large or medium breeds, the designs presented will be optimal:

width - 2.0 m;
height - one and a half meters;
depth - 0.7-0.8 m;
mesh zone width - 15-20 cm;
floor slope - 5-7 cm;
door dimensions - 0.4 × 0.4 m.

total area - 0.4 × 0.4 m;
height level for the inlet - 150 mm;
indicators of the height of the front wall - 160 mm;
rear wall height parameters - 270 mm.

It is interesting! If necessary, the above approximate parameters of the cage can be increased or decreased, which will make maintenance of the structure as convenient and easy as possible.

The advantages of such cells are represented by the affordable cost of materials, as well as ease of maintenance and self-manufacturing, and not too large dimensions of the finished structure. Among other things, it is possible to observe the optimal lighting regime and regular sufficient ventilation.

Sizes of industrial cages for rabbits

Rabbit cages intended for breeding animals on an industrial scale, as well as ready-made designs, can be represented by different types:

stationary type for indoor installation;
stationary type for outdoor installation;
mobile type;
models equipped with aviaries.

Outdoor cultivation is most often carried out in single-sided cages set along a solid fence or wall. The rear and side walls of the cage in this case must be solid, which will provide full protection for animals from precipitation and gusts of wind. For indoor installations, double-sided constructions are best suited, made entirely of steel mesh, which ensures easy and efficient ventilation.

The most popular for keeping adults are structures consisting of a pair of compartments with the installation of a queen cell near the side wall.

The solid floor in this area should be made of boards, and the aft section should be separated by a partition with a hole measuring 17x17 cm. The floor covering is made of steel mesh. Standard sizes of mother liquor:

depth - 0.55 m;
length - 0.4 m;
height at the entrance - 0.5 m;
back height - 0.35 m.

It is interesting! A feature of rabbit houses, designed for the street keeping of rabbits of any breed, is their unlimited size and lightweight maintenance option.

On the front side, a pair of solid doors and two mesh doors with securely fixed feeders are installed. The entire structure must be raised to a height of 80 cm from ground level by means of stable legs.

Cell making

The simplest design of a rabbit cage can be done independently. Moisture-resistant OSB boards are used as the main building and finishing material for arranging the cage in the open air. The length of a standard single cage is one and a half meters with a width of 0.7 m and a similar height. The best option is to make a pair of rabbit cages with a length of 3 m, a width of 0.7 m and a height in front and behind of 120/100 cm. This design is easy to maintain, and also allows you to significantly save building materials:

sheet plywood with dimensions of 1.5 × 1.5 m with a thickness of 10 mm - a pair of sheets;
wooden bars 3.0 m long with dimensions 3 × 5 cm - ten pieces;
galvanized mesh with cells measuring 1.5 × 1.5 cm - 3.0 m²;
self-tapping screws 30 mm long - kilogram;
self-tapping screws 70 mm long - kilogram.

The manufacturing process includes the construction of the frame and its sheathing, as well as the arrangement of the feeder and mother liquor, the installation of the roof and hanging the door. It's important to do it right flooring inside the cell.

Rabbits are great pets. However, before you bring your rabbit home, you need to set up a cozy cage for him that will meet his unique needs. Find out how to prepare the cage so that it becomes a comfortable and safe home for your pet. In addition, you should remember that there should be enough space in the cage for the rabbit to stretch, play and lay down for a night's sleep.

Steps

Part 1

Choice of cage and accessories

Choose a rabbit hutch. Classic type cages are better suited for the temporary housing of rabbits, as they do not give the rabbits the opportunity to hide. A rabbit that is open to view from all sides will become stressed very quickly. However, in this case, the rabbit can always be provided with a house or box for hiding, so that he can retire if necessary.

While solid-walled rabbit hutches may be preferable, they are heavy and bulky and therefore not well suited for use within the walls of a home.
Traditional rabbit hutches are made of wood and have a bird cage door that allows the rabbit to peek out. Wood remains an excellent choice to this day, as it has good thermal insulation properties, protecting the rabbit from wind, rain, snow and cold in winter, as well as providing shade in the hot summer.
The classic metal cage is good for temporary placement of a rabbit, for example, if the rabbit spends most of the time free in the hall, but you do not exclude the possibility that he will chew on the wires. When placing your rabbit in such a cage, be sure to provide him with a hiding place or a box in which he can hide if he wants to feel safe or just sleep.

Find the right size cage for your rabbit. Rabbits vary greatly in size from miniature lop-eared rabbits weighing 1.3 kg to huge Flemish giant rabbits weighing up to 10 kg. The floor area of the cage and its height will depend on the breed of rabbit you choose. When purchasing a cage, always consider the adult weight and size of the rabbit.

Make sure the cage has a solid floor. Many rabbits suffer from pododermatitis, which develops as painful pressure ulcers on their hind legs from sitting on hard floors or wet bedding. Cell floors in the form metal mesh completely unacceptable and inconvenient for rabbits.

Choose a cage with walls made of metal bars. A cage with slatted walls and a roof will provide the rabbit with good ventilation, and besides, it will be fairly easy to clean. However, make sure that the bottom of the cage is also not made of a metal grid. Your rabbit should not be forced to sit or stand on a metal grid for extended periods of time.

Make sure the bottom of the cage is protected from urine leaks. The bottom or pallet must be high and monolithic. This is due to the fact that rabbits can splatter urine when urinating.
- In addition, less straw will spill out of the cage.
- If the cage does not have high protective sides and you want to build one yourself, use a material such as cardboard, which will not harm the rabbit even if he chews on it. You will need to renew it often, but cardboard won't make your rabbit sick.
Choose a litter box for your rabbit. Buying a litter box and teaching your rabbit how to use it is very important when keeping this animal at home. Corner litter tray is very conveniently placed in the corner of the cage or pen for the rabbit.
- Your rabbit may not start using the litter box right away, so be patient. You will need to train your rabbit to use the litter box. In the end, he will always go to the toilet in it.
Buy food bowls and a drinker. Use heavy bowls with a flat bottom that are difficult to turn over. Provide a hay shed, but place it as low as possible, as rabbits don't like to put their heads up.

Part 2
Choosing a place to place the cage
1. Place the cage in a well-ventilated area that is neither too hot nor too cold. Do not place it in a dusty or dirty room, such as an attic or basement, as the dust can destroy a rabbit's delicate lungs.
  - The rabbit also needs natural light. Make sure that sunlight does not flood it, but falls on the rabbit in a scattered form.
  - Know that rabbits do not like loud noises or sudden movements, so do not place him near a clothes dryer or similar noisy places, so as not to put him under unnecessary stress.
  - A free bedroom is not bad for a rabbit, as long as you remember to communicate with him regularly.
2. Make sure the rabbit is protected from predators. Also make sure that other pets, such as cats and dogs, do not disturb the rabbit. Rabbits are prey in nature and find the close presence of predators very disturbing.
  - If you have dogs, try to lift the cage off the floor. Rabbits can become very frightened if dogs sniff them at floor level.
3. Choose a room where you can let the rabbit run around. Rabbits should not be kept caged all the time. You need to let the rabbit out of the cage in order for it to receive physical activity. It's easiest to place the rabbit's cage in a room where you don't mind letting it run around and explore.
  - Make sure the room is free of wires, sharp objects, small toys, and other items that could harm the rabbit.
Part 3
Arrangement of the cell
1. Line the cage with bedding. A rabbit needs a thick layer of bedding to protect its paws from bedsores. The larger the rabbit, the thicker the layer of bedding should be for him.
  - Usually straw, sawdust or hay is used as bedding. It is best to take straw, as it is resilient and soft, besides, it retains heat in winter. Straw can also be safely chewed on by a rabbit.
  - A regular-sized rabbit requires a layer of bedding 12.5–15 cm thick, and for larger rabbits, even thicker.
  - Even if your rabbit is litter box trained, we don't recommend carpeting the cage, as it can cause intestinal blockage if the rabbit decides to chew on it.
  - Spot clean the cage daily, removing urine-stained bedding and feces with a shovel, then pouring in fresh straw. Ideally, the cage should be completely cleaned once a week.
  - Rabbits can gnaw on blankets or fabric, so for shelter, it is better for them to put inside a box or house, especially a large number of densely packed straw.
2. Line the litter box with a layer of newspaper, fill it with non-toxic litter, and cover it with hay on top. Change the hay daily and clean the tray weekly.
  - Do not use cat litter on a rabbit, especially one that is clumpy, as it can be deadly to a rabbit.
3. Provide your rabbit with food. Grass is the ideal rabbit food, and hay is an excellent substitute. If possible, feed your rabbit exclusively hay to keep his teeth in perfect condition and keep the rabbit from gaining weight.
4. Provide your rabbit with water. A rabbit can easily overturn or soil a bowl of water with feces, so it is preferable to use drinkers. Change the water daily to keep it fresh. Also wash your water bowl daily and never use one that is overgrown with green algae.
  - If you have more than one rabbit, hang waterers at two opposite ends of the cage.

In order for rabbits to grow and develop well, it is important not only to feed them properly, but also to provide them with comfortable living conditions. That is, to build comfortable spacious dwellings for the animals. The sizes of cages for rabbits can be different. It all depends on what kind of breed they will be intended for.

Minimum dimensions

Cells are made in such a way that one head has at least:

for mature rabbits - 0.5-0.7 m 2;
repair rabbits - 0.17 m 2;
young animals - 0.12 m 2;
breeding males - 0.3-0.5 m 2.

A large rabbit (giant, flandre) will need a dwelling measuring at least 0.75 (w) x 0.55 (h) x 1.7 (d) m. Smaller animals (chinchilla) - 0.6 x 0.45 x 0.9 m. Cage sizes for dwarf and decorative rabbits will be appropriate.

What should be the design

Usually cages for rabbits are built on a paving frame. The back and side walls, as well as the roof, are made of thick plywood or boards. The facade part is made of a grid with a small cell (for example, 2.5 x 5 cm). The floor of the cage should be sloping. It is also made from a grid (1.5 x 5 cm) or laths stuffed parallel to each other. A manure collection tray is installed under the floor. This design will keep the "room" clean. The cover, if the cages are installed on the street, should be made single-pitched and protruding forward by about 20 cm and on the sides by 10 cm. It is covered with slate or profiled sheet from above.

Above the ground, the cage should be raised by at least 70-80 cm. It is much easier to care for animals in this arrangement. And the animals themselves will be protected from the attack of dogs and the penetration of small rodents into the cage. Very often, the cells are arranged in rows in several tiers. One dwelling can be used for one or two adult rabbits (or for several small ones).

Hanging removable drinkers and feeders are hung on the front side. It is best to make them swivel. In this case, it will be easier to feed the rabbits. In addition, animal feces will not fall into the feeders. Next, let's see what the "rooms" for the queens should be, as well as the sizes of the cages for keeping rabbits and breeding them.

Cages for rabbits

Dwellings for sexually mature females are divided into two parts: feed and uterine. Plywood is used as a partition with a hole cut in it with a diameter of 20 cm. It should be located above the floor at a height of about 10-15 cm. This is necessary so that small rabbits do not crawl into the stern. The floor in the mother liquor is not made of slats or mesh, but of solid plywood. The front door of the mother liquor is made of board or plywood. For the stern, it is made of mesh. Before birth, the mother liquor itself is installed in the nesting compartment with dimensions of 0.4 x 0.4 m and a height of 20 cm.

Standard double option

In addition to multi-tiered, long cages are often used in personal farms. They plant a pair of animals at once. Sizes of cages for double rabbits:

in length - 210-240 cm;
wide - 65 cm;
in height from the side of the facade - 50-60 cm;
in height from the back wall - 35 cm.

Queen cells are arranged on the sides of such cells. In the rest of the aft compartments are located. The floor in them is made lattice, and in the nesting compartments - solid. In the middle of the cage there is a V-shaped mesh nursery designed for distributing roughage. Drinkers and feeders for grain are hung on the doors.

Cages with aviaries

Such dwellings are usually arranged for young animals. Walking teenage rabbits are very useful. After all, these animals are naturally very active and like to move a lot. The sizes of cages for rabbits, designed for two animals, and with an aviary are usually as follows:

The aviary is arranged along the back wall and has the same height as it - 60 cm. The cage and paddock are separated by a removable partition.

Group cages for young animals

There are other types of similar structures. Of course, in this case, certain cage sizes for rabbits are also selected. Drawings are drawn up, for example, in such a way that the dwelling turns out:

in length equal to 2-4 m;
in width - 1 m;
with a front wall height of 50 cm;
back - 40 cm.

AT this case the back and side walls and cover are made of thick plywood, and the front and floor are made of mesh. The length of the visor is 30 cm.

Cages for California rabbits

This breed is recent times is becoming more and more popular in our country. It's all about the very good adaptability of Californian rabbits to the weather conditions of any region. They have very thick hair on their paws. Therefore, they do not freeze in winter. For animals of this breed, dwellings are arranged in the same way as for any other not too large. The optimal cage sizes for Californian rabbits are 120 x 60 x 60 cm.

Cells of N. I. Zolotukhin

This option has recently been of great interest to rabbit breeders. N. I. Zolotukhin has been breeding fluffy animals for more than 60 years and independently designed two types of rather convenient and practical cages for them - three-tiered and pyramidal.

The main feature of the first option is solid plywood floors. From the grid, only a strip 15 cm wide is made at the back of the cage. The biological feature of rabbits is that they go to the toilet in this place (70% of all feces and all urine are collected here). In order to prevent waste products from falling on the head of animals from the lower tiers, the back wall of the cage is made inclined. That is, the grid on the floor protrudes beyond the plane of the complex. The back wall is made of opaque polycarbonate.

The floors of the pyramidal variety of Zolotukhin cells have the same design. However, in this case, the tiers are simply shifted relative to each other by the width of the grid strip. As a result, the complex takes on a pyramidal shape when viewed in profile.

Folding feeders are another feature of Zolotukhin's cells. They spin not on hinges or some complex device, but on ordinary nails. The dimensions of the cages for Zolotukhin's rabbits are not too large - about 70 x 100 cm. However, the animals feel very well in them. When keeping rabbits in cages designed by this farmer, it is not necessary to carry out a thorough weekly cleaning. It is enough only from time to time to sweep absolutely dry floors. Manure is cleaned from the back side of the tiers from the ground 1-2 times a year.

sheds

So, now you know what the dimensions of the cages for rabbits should be. Drawings of such structures are presented on this page. Now let's see where to place the finished cages. Of course, you can put them right on the street. In this case, the tiers are usually placed under the trees. With this arrangement, in summer the animals will be protected from direct sunlight, and in winter - from piercing wind. However, it is better to install cages in special sheds. This is what buildings are called. gable roof, the side walls of which are formed by the rear walls of the tiers. That is, the cells are installed in two rows with facades inside the resulting room.

The doors of the shed are made double-leaf. Often they are double. In this case, in addition to solid canvases, a mesh door is installed. In summer, the wooden doors open. The mesh door remains closed. As a result, animals get more light and fresh air. On the south side, they usually arrange an aviary for walking young animals.

Shed for rabbits

It is not necessary to install cages in the shed. You can also protect animals from rain, snow and severe frosts by arranging a comfortable shed for them. The most important thing when drafting such a structure is to ensure that there are no drafts in it. Their rabbits do not tolerate at all. The roof of the barn is best done with a shed. In this case, it will be possible to dry and store hay on it. The floors are usually arranged slightly inclined towards the entrance. With this design, it will be more convenient to clean.

Be sure to arrange several windows in the barn. Rabbits need fresh air and plenty of light to thrive. Inside the barn, a corner must be equipped for storing inventory.

Cages for young animals are usually placed along the walls. The dwellings of rabbits with queen cells are in the middle of the barn.

What you need to know

The prescribed sizes of cages for fattening rabbits, the maintenance of queens and rabbits-producers during manufacture must be observed. If you put a big animal in a small "room", nothing good will come of it. Deprived of the opportunity to move freely, the animal will develop poorly. Very much discomfort in the cells is also reflected in the ability of rabbits to reproduce. In addition, with high crowding, the risk of developing different kind infectious diseases.

As you can see, making cages and even a shed for rabbits is not at all difficult on your own. Comfortable dwellings for these animals have a rather simple design. The optimal cage sizes for rabbits depend only on the characteristics of the body constitution of this particular breed.