Dwarf Bunnies

Our Indoor Bunny Run

Our indoor bunny run was originally built as a temporary home for our dwarf bunnies Mars & Jupiter. We had moved into a new home and the back garden had no fencing around it, and even if it had been secure there was no grass for them to live on. So Derek made a temporary indoor home for Mars and Jupiter, which later became home to our house bunnies Flower and Thumper.

The run sides were simply made up of MFD sheets held together with strips of wood. It measured about 6 x 5 feet and was roughly 3 feet high. The sides sat on some loft boards, which were covered in linoleum, for hygiene. Because this indoor rabbit run had originally been built for temporary use it did need some alterations to make it suitable for a long-term home for our house rabbits:

Flower

The first addition was a bunny door. We wanted our dwarf bunnies to have free run of our house, when we were there to supervise them, and so the run needed access to allow Flower and Thumper could come and go as they pleased.

We also picked up some cardboard trays, the kind you get from the supermarket that have fruit in them, and cut holes in them for the bunnies to hide under. Even though the bunnies had their run we also bought them a rabbit cage, which housed their food and water and was filled with wood chips so they could use it as a toilet. The whole lid of their cage opened up, so we were able to leave it open with the bonus of being able to use it as a hayrack and it also made somewhere fun for the bunnies to hide.

Thumper was a very active and adventurous bunny and it didn’t take him long to realise there was nothing to stop him jumping out the top of the run. So the next thing we made were two large wire lids, to keep him in. Once the lids were in place Thumper would often sit on a box and try and chew them.

Thumper

We wondered if Thumper’s habit of jumping out the run and attacking the lids was because the run didn’t have much of a view. So we added two large windows in the side of the run so both bunnies could have a nice view of their room and more light could get in. Flower wasn’t as adventurous about climbing on boxes as Thumper, in fact he never did it, so the windows would improve his view of the world too.

While we were making the windows, we also made a wooden platform to go beside one of the windows. We made ramp to try and encourage Flower to climb up as well, but he never did. Thumper liked the ramp though and he’d often sit on his new perch and look out the bunny run window.

Key aspects of the run:

• Bunny door for freedom to come and go as they choose.
• Wire ‘windows’ to let in light.
• Multiple levels.
• Separate toilet area (provided by the bunny cage).

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