Would it be ok to have my bunny in his cage without cardboard on the bottom of the wire cage?

Question

I just got a 4 months old Bunny. He lives in a big wire cage that has a pull-out tray under it. Would it be ok to NOT put cardboard or wood on the bottom of the cage? Or would it hurt his legs? The wire isn't sharp, and he would have a much cleaner cage if I didn't have cardboard on the bottom. I would only put arefresh bedding on the wire. Would that be ok for him?

The wires holes on the bottom of the cage are tiny

Answer 1

yes, i had a bunny which i had for a cupl years and these cages are meant not to have anything over the wires

***you do want somwhere for him to feel secure in like a wooden or cardboard box just his size so that he can sleep in***

i wouldnt advise fabrics as he cold chew and choke on these especially as a young rabbit

Answer 2

NO, it's not okay. It will be disastrous. Read Storey's Guide to Raising Rabbits by Bob Bennett. It costs $15. If you can't afford that, you can't afford a rabbit. You can get a used cage off Craigslist. Caging does not mean you can't let it out to run around (supervised, please). House bunnies do not start off roaming the house. It starts off in a SMALL area, gets handled properly a LOT, gets litter trained in that small area, is always supervised when out of the cage, the entire house gets rabbit proofed, etc. A rabbit WANTS its own place and it's cage is just that. Don't you want your own bedroom? What if you had to live in an enormous empty warehouse? That would be pretty lame. You'd have no privacy, no where to go that was your own sanctuary. Think of what a rabbit needs to be comfortable, not a what a person needs to make them feel good or ease their guilt. Be good to your rabbit and buy a cage for it. Read/study what a rabbit really needs before you get one.

Answer 3

Because wire floors can irritate rabbits' feet, any wire floor should not have spacing more than 1/2" x 1" and something (wood, towel, several layers of newspaper) solid to provide the bunny's feet a rest from the wire floor.

Answer 4

it would be fine i built a big cage for my bunnies using what is called rat wire then i put straw or hay down for them to eat as well as lay down in i put it close to the house and run the pipe from my wood stove through the top of the cage so they stay warm in the winter months as well then come spring i take all the straw and hay along with all their droppings from the winter put in my garden and till it in good you should see my vegetable's they grow great using this method plus i give back some veggies to my bunnies for their part in all this

Answer 5

I dont know if that's such a good idea; it kind of seems like the wire would hurt his little feet irregaurdless. Rabbits can be litter box trained & since he's pretty young I'm sure you could probably teach him fairly quickly. I dunno; I just dont really like wire cages all that much; but whatever option you choose; your the owner & I'm sure that it will be suitable for you & your bunny :]

Answer 6

Since bunnies have toes and not pads on their feet, it would hurt their feet as their toes would slide thru the wires. also, the cardboard provides some comfort for them to sit on as opposed to hard wires. great rabbit owner site is www.rabbit.org.

Answer 7

I wouldn't use cardboard. Try a piece of wood that way it will take him longer to chew through it. It doesn't have to be very big. Just big enough to fit his whole body on it. Or if you can find a big enough rock. That way it will trim his nails too.

Answer 8

yes that is fine my rabbit is in a wire cage like that as well and i have had him for 3 years

Answer 9

No its not ok, it will give the rabbit skin irritation that could later get infected, so continue putting cardboard, hope this helps!!

Answer 10

Yes, it would be okay, although it is much less comfortable for the rabbit and MAY (slight chance) give him future foot or leg problems, it's still okay.