We have 2 indoor bunnies Little Doll and Magic. Currently they live in their own room which used to be our guest bedroom. We dont keep our bunnies in cages. I also daily let them run in the hallway and explore another large room, but they have to be watched very closely because it is my husband’s TV and music room, and there are wires in it.
We have had them in this setting for over a year. I found that I have completely exausted myself by daily cleaning the room. The floor in that room is carpeted, and I have 5 very large washable pads that cover the carpet completely. There is a couch and some shelving in the room. There are 2 large litter boxes from Busy Bunny, toys and tunnels. Thankfully, the bunnies pee only in the litter boxes, but one of them poops outside of boxes a lot.
So, here is my daily routine. I bring greens and occasionally small pieces of fruits to them twice a day, and give them high quality pellets. Then I clean the litter boxes. I take the boxes into a bathroom. I dump droppings and hay leftovers into a bag, pour urine into the toiled. Then I rinse, clean with vinegar, rinse very well again and wipe dry. Then I bring the boxes back into the rabbit room and fill them halfway with hay. They like to sit in the boxes and eat the hay. Then I pick up the droppings from all over the floor. I also discovered that I am allergic to hay, and because of that I cannot spend very long time in their room without developing symptoms. I limit my time in their room to 15-20 minutes.
I have a full time job. I feed the bunnies before I leave for work around 2 PM. I come back from work at midnight and have to do the feeding plus cleaning. I am completely exausted. I do not get good night sleep. My teenage daughter who originally bought the rabbits does not help me at all, and when she does, she does not do a thorough job of cleaning the room.
So, my husband and I have been thinking of building some kind of an outdoor heated shed with a large fenced run covered with wiring to protect from predators. I want to make it as comfortable for the bunnies as possible. There would be enough room to come inside the shed to spend time with the bunnies. The building would be not in the back of our yard, but adjustent to our house, so the bunnies would not get forgotten and neglected.
I would like some ideas of how to build such place. We would still be spending the time with them, but they would also be able to play in the grass, and cleaning the litter boxes should be easier by taking them outside. I need to know what kind of flooring should be in such house. Also, I dont know if bunnies are able to use flap doors like cats for going outside when they want to.
Does anyone have similar housing for the bunnies or know where I can find details to build it. I looked at books on Amazon, but they all are for raising bunnies commercially and keeping them in hutches or cages which is not the kind of life I want for our bunnies. I am attaching a picture that I found on the internet, which looks similar to what I am thinking of. I know this site is for indoor bunnies, but I just cannot continues such routine while working a full time, and I dont want to give the bunnies away either. I will appreciate any ideas. Thank you.