12/07/2022
Wondering how to keep your little furry family members cool during this heatwave, here are a few ideas that we do here!!!
*It is a long read I'm afraid but so worth it!!*
1.Create lots of shaded areas for your rabbit within their accommodation, with good ventilation. Create shaded areas behind items like nest boxes, or raise nest boxes & hutches so they can lay underneath them in the shade. (Make sure you raise them up off the ground safely)
2.Patio umbrellas & sun sail shades are a great way to provide instant shade.
3.Car screen sunshades are great to create some shade & help to keep rabbit homes from heating up. Buy more than one, tape them together to make one large sun screen and place on top of roofs or over sides of rabbit enclosures that catch the sun for long periods.
Create cool flooring
1.Concrete slabs or ceramic tiles placed in a shaded area provides your rabbit with something cool to lay on. Ceramic tiles can be placed in a freezer for a few hours to make them even cooler. Have more than one tile in the freezer so you can alternate them through the day.
2.Litter trays with soil in also provide a cool place for bunnies to lie down in.
3.Damp towels or damp cotton pillowcases also provide cool flooring for bunnies to lay on, you can also keep these in the freezer so they are cooler for longer & alternate them. You could place a ceramic tile inside the pillow case.
Create effective cooling blocks
1.Frozen plastic water bottles: Fill old plastic pop bottles up with water and freeze. Place inside a cotton pillow case and lay on top of a ceramic tile inside your bunnies enclosure. The is a great way to keep your bunnies cool and the bigger the plastic bottle the longer it will stay frozen. They love laying against them. Have a few bottles in the freezer so you can alternate them morning and night. You can also use lots of smaller plastic bottles and place them inside cotton socks and dot them around your bunnies enclosure.
2.Plastic lunch boxes & containers: Fill with water and freeze and place in your bunnies enclosures for them to sit on or lean against. The good thing about plastic containers is they come in all shapes and sizes, so you can use what suits your bunny & their accommodation best.
3.Terracotta plant pot saucers: Place these upside down with an ice block placed underneath it & your bunny can lay on top of this to keep cool.
