How to build your own rabbit cage: has anyone done it?

Question

I would really love to have my own rabbit, either from a pet store or from a rescue or shelter.
I was wondering if anyone out there who owns rabbits, guinea pigs, big hedgehogs or ferrets have ever built there own cage out of a wood / wire type thing... :)
The reason I am asking is because it seems like a lot of 'medium' sized animal owners make their own indoor cages for their animals. I'm wondering because most of the cages out there seem very expensive, good-sized ones $100+. Anyone out there know a helpful website / book / personal ideas on what I could do to possibly build my own cage for maybe under $60 that would be able to hold a medium sized rabbit... thanks! :)

Answer 1

It just depends how big you want the cage to be. I built a rabbit cage that was about 3 1/2ft. tall and about 5ft long and about 3ft in width. I was able to build this cage with chicken wire, some cheap locks, cheap hinges, and some wood (mainly that I found around at our house). Good luck with building the cage, if you want more information or exact measurements, contact me and I will try to help you even more.

Answer 2

Build Your Own Rabbit Cage

Answer 3

www.cavycages.com
made with shelving panels. depending on where you get the supplies, it can be about $60 for everything. I have build 2 for rabbits. One is 3 levels and is about 5 feet tall and the base is about 2*3 feet. The other is 5*2 feet for the base and 2 feet tall. These cages can be any size or shape you want.

As for getting a rabbit, go to you local animal shelter or rescue. There are tons of rabbits that need homes. Many places will spay or neuter the rabbit and the cost for the rabbit is generally $50 or so. Most of these rabbits are medium to large size.

I recommend www.rabbitonline.net as a forum for all you rabbit needs.

Answer 4

The person who said cavycages.com is right. I built that one and then built a modified version of it for my second pair of rabbits. You can build them a little more cheaply though. Go to www.bunnybuddies.org and download their free rabbit care guide. Besides getting great advice on how to build cages, it will also give you lots of advice that you'll need as a new rabbit owner. And listen to the other person who said get a rabbit from a shelter. Many thousands, if not millions, of bunnies are put to death each year because there is simply not enough room for them in shelters. Contact your local shelter or find the closest one on Petfinder.com or www.rabbit.org for the House Rabbit Society (also has lots of good info for new rabbit owners!). I got my last 3 rabbits from shelters and they were already spayed/neutered and were inexpensive, too. (2 for $35 each, and 1 for $15 - they were having a special Rabbit Day!) Best wishes!

Answer 5

If it is going to be a solely indoor rabbit and you don't have any other pets, then you could get away with just buying a run like this one:

http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/Listing.aspx?id=124373269

You can even fold it up and take it outside for a few hours a day! (with a cover on, of course) My bunnies have the nice expensive set-up that I made for them (see the photo below), but they prefer to just run around my bedroom and sleep on a pillow on the floor! So if you can get a baby barrier for your door and bunny-proof any wiring, that would be even cheaper!

Have a look at dog kennels, they are much cheaper and just as good. I got this entire set-up, including kennel, run and chicken wire for less than $US160 brand new.

http://pics.livejournal.com/mellowpuff/pic/00032z2f/g17


Check out your local paper or auction sites, it's reasonably cheap to post a kit-set kennel.

Answer 6

I kept my bunny in a pen type cage that I made out of those wire cubes and connecters that you can make shelves with. They're great because you can arrange them into almost anything. I used an extra piece of linoleum for the floor and then just set the pen on top of it making sure that all of the linoleum was on the outside so he wouldn't nibble on it when I wasn't watching.

I just made a simple rectangular shape two cubes high(so he couldn't jump out) but no cover, so I could reach down and pet him anytime. and I also put a shelf for him to sit on on one side. The shelf had to have a roof over it so he couldn't jump but the rest of the cage didn't.

for the door, I just left an empty space and tied one cube with string for hinges and a clip to keep it closed.

He spent alot of time out of the cage, but he really loved all the space in the cage which was about four times larger than his previous cage. Best of all, the cage disassembled into very small pieces so it was easy to travel with and then set up on arrival and also quite easy to clean. You can even run the cubes through the dishwasher if you're not up to cleaning them individually. And the linoleum will stay quite clean as long as you wipe it down on occasion and litter train your bunny.

Answer 7

I got some rabbit resting boards (wire is not good for their feet) from bass equipment via the internet. They have good ideas for do-it-yourself cages.

Answer 8

if you look on the internet there is a really good plan for building one. im gonna post this now but give you the link in a few minutes so hold your horses! lol

http://rabbit.purinamills.com/NutritionManagement/Housing/ECMD006522.aspx you can explore the site to find other plans i think. hope i helped! good luck