Good Bunny, Bad Bunny: House Bunny Bedding and Accommodation

Bedding

Much like litter, when it comes to bedding, experts agree that the bulk of products on the market are designed to kill bunny.

Cedar and pine based bedding, both often sold in pet stores for the express purpose of being bunny bedding should not be used with rabbits, because rabbit urine can react with them to produce a gas toxic to rabbits. In addition to this, the shavings tend to get stuck very easily to fur, especially long rabbit fur, which means that if you use this type of bedding you will soon have small wood shavings tramped liberally across your carpet. Aspen shavings are apparently less toxic, but are no doubt equally as messy when traipsed through the house.

Newspaper doesn't come highly recommended either, usually because bunnies will try to eat it, and like all paper, it can potentially cause intestinal blockages.

Hay is probably your best bet where bedding is concerned. Bunnies can eat it to their heart's content, and it won't kill them.

Rabbit Accommodation

If you are keeping your rabbit indoors, then a small cage from a pet store is fine, as long as the bunny gets plenty of chances to stretch his or her legs during the day.If you are keeping your rabbit outdoors, the rules change completely. Those small hutches which are sold in their millions every year are not fit to keep a rabbit in at all, and if you think about it for a second, the reasons why become obvious.

In the wild, rabbits run and roam through fields. They jump and leap and sprint and play. Most commercial hutches barely have enough room for a bunny to sit up on its back legs in, let alone jump or run about. An outdoor bunny cage should have a minimum floor space of eight square feet, and a minimum height of two feet. Does that sound large? It is. If you don't have the room to spare for your bunny to run about in his or her cage, then consider bringing the bunny indoors, you'll have a better relationship with your bunny, and they will have a happier and healthier life.

This may seem a little intense perhaps, after all, if they sell those tiny hutches for rabbits, it must mean that they are okay, right? Wrong. Pet shops are in business to make a profit. Their concern for animals often ends at the bottom line, which means that much of what they will sell you is not good for your rabbit at all. Do your own independent research rather than listening to what a pet store assistant might tell you. They want your money, but you want your bunny to have a good life.

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