The local weather forecast is looking pretty scary for today, and no doubt will continue into the week. Whether its wind, rain, hail, sleet or snow you need to think about your outdoor rabbits and make sure you take all sensible precautions.
Can your rabbit’s hutch withstand the forecast wind? We have heard stories recently of the wind breaking open doors of hutches, and for smaller lightweight hutches it is entirely feasible that the forecast storms could send your hutch tumbling. Check the stability of the hutch, and if necessary move the hutch and/or your rabbit. Try placing the hutch in a sheltered area protected from the high winds, or if you can bring them into the safety of a larger/grounded shed or garage.
The rain is equally as problematic, if not more so. The rain can easily flood a hutch as it gains access through weak joints and the open mesh. Water will then soil your rabbits bedding and leave them little option but to sit in cold, damp and wet conditions. Try covering the mesh area with a breathable windbreaker (many pet stores sell hutch “blinds†for this purpose). You may also want to wrap the roof back and sides of the hutch in tarpaulin to protect it from other areas water damage (keep the front of the hutch accessible and “breathableâ€. Again, consider moving it somewhere sheltered from the rain or bring it into a shed, garage or indoors.
Check on your rabbit regularly too. The noises of the weather may frighten your rabbit just as much, if not more, than it does yourself. So remember it is your responsibility to check your rabbit is safe. If that means you need to don your mac a few times a day and face the elements your self, so be it. Better to get wet a few times than deal with a sick or dead rabbit when the storms subside.
If you are concerned about how to protect your rabbit from the weather, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. Call us on 0141 280 3272 or email david@fairlybelovedrabbitcare.org.