Where to Keep Your House Rabbit

Many rabbit owners choose to keep their pet inside the house for a number of reasons. It  could be so you can interact with your rabbit more, it is easier change the rabbit litter whatever the weather, and you want to ensure your pet is warm and dry inside.  But once you have made the decision to keep your rabbit indoors, where is the best place to keep it within your home? The answer may be different depending on the layout of your home and your preferences - but here are a few key factors to consider.

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Hygiene

Rabbits are easily house trained and many pet owners provide a rabbit litter tray for this in addition to the appropriate rabbit bedding for its sleeping quarters.

For hygiene reasons, the rabbit litter tray and sleeping area needs to be kept well away from food preparation and eating areas. The smell of urine can be addressed with natural odour suppressing rabbit litter, such as SmartBedz, which gives you more options when it comes to siting your pet.

Cleaning out your pet can involve rabbit litter, rabbit bedding and other debris falling on to the floor, so it is best to avoid carpeted areas. If you do keep your rabbit on a carpeted area, lay down a rug, waterproof mat or other protective layer.

Using SmartBedz rabbit litter and rabbit bedding will reduce the amount of cleaning out you have to do because SmartBedz rabbit litter pellets are extremely absorbent and soak up to four times their size in moisture.

This rabbit bedding is ideal for both rabbit litter trays and sleeping quarters as it will keep your pet clean and dry. It is also a dust-free rabbit bedding which is not only important for rabbits, but it also makes the cleaning out process easier for the owners, especially if they are prone to allergies.

Crepuscular Habits

Crepuscular pets are animals that are most active during dawn and dusk. So avoid the bedroom unless you are happy with an early alarm call. Likewise your rabbit will want a dark and quiet area to sleep, so avoid rooms or locations which are very noisy, such as next to washing machines or TV sets, or rooms that are likely to have lights kept on all night.

For safety reasons, do make sure that your rabbit is kept away from electrical wires as they are likely to chew on these, which is deadly. To avoid this, rabbit proof your home. Conceal cables and make sure you use cable protectors.

It is also natural for your rabbits to have a go at gnawing furniture, curtains, wallpaper and household plants - and some of these plants can be toxic to a rabbit. Make sure you give your pet lots of attention, as well as toys and alternative things to chew on as this will help prevent this. Meanwhile remove all household plants that can be harmful to your pet.

Wherever you choose to keep your house rabbit, it should have an appropriate place to sleep and hide with a soft layer of rabbit bedding.  One option is to keep a hutch indoors with the door open, so your rabbit can come and go as they please, particularly during the daytime when they are supervised.
Temperature

Rabbits are designed to withstand a certain amount of cold and should not get overheated. Avoid rooms which get too hot, either due to central heating (so keep your rabbit away from radiators), or very sunny rooms.

Also avoid draughts and sudden changes in temperature. So if you can, try to position your indoor hutch away from the front or back door.

Other Pets

Depending on what other pets you have, rabbits can find it stressful being around other animals, especially cats and dogs. While many rabbits can successfully live alongside other pets, leaving them alone together with a cat or dog can be deadly in some circumstances.

In this case, it is best not to force them to share a space, although house rabbits can get along with non-aggressive dogs or cats. Before you decide to do this, consider the temperaments of the animals involved.

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