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The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet.  It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

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Forum HOUSE RABBIT Q & A I can’t stop my rabbit from escaping her cage and doing dangerous things…

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    • sniffablecow
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      65 posts Send Private Message

        Sorry again if I am flooding the forums with bologna, but this is actually serious. I got home and found two cords chew in half with my rabbit just relaxing OUTSIDE of her cage with her body 

        I don’t know how to stop her. she beats every trick I try and ends up doing something she shouldn’t. I need serious help because she could have died from chewing on the cords. I am lucky she is still eating but I can’t let this happen again. She hopped over the waterbottles I put down, opens the xpen with her mouth, finds ways to make it tumble over, and is really starting to become reckless.

        How do you guys stop rabbits from escaping their cage with xpen setups?


      • sarahthegemini
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        5584 posts Send Private Message

          Put a roof on the xpen?


        • Serenity
          Participant
          173 posts Send Private Message

            Well….I don’t. I just rabbit-proof and train, train, train. It’s not that Hermione has ways of getting out, it’s my siblings opening her cage despite my forbidding them to and her constantly just wandering out. It was annoying and dangerous at first but now it doesn’t matter anymore except it kind of annoys my Dad. I had to hide all of the wires or staple/duct tape them to the walls or behind dressers pushed all the way against the walls so she couldn’t chew them, lock up chemicals, put away stuff that could fall and hurt her etc. (google rabbit proofing houses to see fill details) but after a while the house was danger free and she could wander where she pleased. I trained her to stay well clear of the front door except to cross the entry-way to get to the living room, she’s not allowed in bathrooms (taught her this was a spray-bottle of cold water) and she’s not allowed in the laundry room because it was impossible to rabbit-proof that room.
            If rabbit proofing your house isn’t an option, try tying or zip-tying the handle to the door so it doesn’t open at all. Then just access the cage by stepping over the wall maybe? You could also plan a day when you’re free and just sit by the door and spray her every time she tries to undo the latch.


          • DanaNM
            Moderator
            8901 posts Send Private Message

              Yes I would say roof on the x-pen (you could make one yourself with storage grid cubes zip tied together), and make sure all doors close with a clip so she can’t open them. I use this type: https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0658/2699/products/lines-rigging-brass-clip-swivel-size-3-by-1-1_1024x1024.jpg?v=1458268529

              . . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  


            • Deleted User
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              22064 posts Send Private Message

                I think you have to get really creative with rabbit proofing to find things that work. Go to some diy stores and often you see items that are really ideal for what you are needing and sometimes it’s something you didn’t know existed. Think outside the box. I think in your case you really need to go hard with the proofing because your bunny sounds like a determined and curious little thing. I think she needs to learn that there isn’t anything of interest out there for her and the novelty of escaping should eventually die down. Instead of blocking things try safely incorporating these areas into somewhere she can play. My bunnies were relentless at one point in trying to get behind my sofa, the gap at the back was blocked with an xpen panel but they just wouldn’t give up, they would bang and pull and even chewed some threads loose on the corner of the sofa. So what I did was moved the sofa forward and put a small hideaway and long tunnel behind there so they could safely play. It’s there favourite area now and they no longer try to chew or dig behind it.


              • Fluffykins
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                239 posts Send Private Message

                  The easiest thing would probably to get a better xpen. My Bunny can’t escape my xpen yet, (I say yet because it’s only 3ft and as he gets bigger he might be able to jump that high) but for now he can’t.

                  He can’t squeeze through the gaps in the bars, he can’t jump over it and he can’t push it over.

                  You probably need a bigger, heavier and taller xpen.


                • happymoon
                  Participant
                  16 posts Send Private Message

                    If you’re really adamant about Xpens I would suggest just buying a large playpen or something a bit more sturdy than those metal cube walls. Pehaps if you can find it, a large cage if you’re willing to spend a few hundred.

                    My suggestion though, especially if you’ve got a larger breed on your hands is take the time to rabbit proof your home and free roam. Tuck cords in behind objects they can’t move. Use cord protectors which you can make out of pvc pipe. You can apply clear shipping tape to the edges of carpets, baseboards, wooden furniture… You can also limit the rabbit to specific areas of the house.


                  • Wick & Fable
                    Moderator
                    5770 posts Send Private Message

                      I’d move the x-pen to the middle of the room, away from walls, cords, etc. best as possible so you can readily control the environment. Use a water bowl instead of a water bottle (much healthier for a rabbit) and put a roof on it, as other’s suggested. You can use a bed sheet, clipped down with binder clips temporarily. Blocking some of her visual space (i.e. covering some of the x-pen walls) may help, because she’ll have less view of what she’s being kept away from, but obviously still give her a good, wide window so she can feel stimulated and free, to an extent.

                      The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

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                  Forum HOUSE RABBIT Q & A I can’t stop my rabbit from escaping her cage and doing dangerous things…