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Original poster

Rabbits outside - do they really dig out of their homes?

27 replies

justnippingout · 11/09/2021 10:24

I am just working out the best exterior housing, and we are planning on it being large and walk in, but I am wondering about the digging out, how likely is it that a rabbit will dig out, or a predator will dig in, and how far do you have to go to prevent it? I would have thought that if a clever bunny really wanted to get out, they would just keep digging deeper?!

Have you had a problem with rabbits digging out?

Thanks!

OP posts:
dmudbur · 11/09/2021 10:32

I've never had a problem with our rabbits digging out. I think it depends on your rabbits nature! I have two very placid, chilled out rabbits that just want to lay in the sun all day.

Panningforfish · 11/09/2021 10:38

Yep, they love to dig! You’ll spend the rest of their lives backfilling and hoping that they don’t decide to be industrious whilst you’re out. I laid flags instead of having grass for that very reason! The flags wear their nails down too. I put a box of soil in for them to have a good dig in every so often.
My two have an 8x6 walk in run with roof (make sure you use welded mesh and not chicken wire, rabbits and predators can chew through it) and have a 6x3 section of an attached 6x8 shed with a hatch so they have 24/7 access to the run. I’d ideally like them to have a bigger run, but it wouldn’t fit. I’m thinking about getting some runaround pipes etc to create some extra space when we redo the garden.

Original poster
justnippingout · 11/09/2021 13:10

panning thank you - did you make your own, or buy one of the metal ones and adapt it? The metal walk in ones seem to be aimed at all animals but look as though it is mesh and the photos are all of chickens!!

OP posts:

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BenjiMcSchmenzie · 11/09/2021 13:15

Our rabbits were brilliant tunnellers. They had an enormous walk-in run in the garden and they used to tunnel out of it every day. We were constantly backfilling and eventually they tunnelled under the shed and it collapsed ...

They'd have been brilliant WWI trench-diggers or WWII Great Escape tunnel-diggers. They eventually died of old age, having spent many happy years digging.

We have guinea-pigs now Grin

MoreRainbowsPlease · 11/09/2021 13:17

I'm another one with lazy rabbits. They dig a tiny bit, but I think it's just to get at roots or something that they then eat. They is no way that either of mine would ever tunnel out of something as a previous poster said about their rabbits mine are most happy just lying in one spot and not moving as much as possible. I have a large english cross and a small dutch cross. Not sure if certain breeds might be more likely to dig than others.

Hellocatshome · 11/09/2021 13:19

Some rabbits are diggers others are lazy and just can't be bothered. Foxes are brilliant diggers and love a bit of rabbit for tea. I would always put whatever they are sleeping in on a concrete/paving slab base.

Notlostjustexploring · 11/09/2021 13:21

We used to have rabbits as kids and one tunnelled under the length of the shed overnight. Dashing into neighbours gardens after rabbits who had dug yet another hidden escape tunnel was common.

I think the garden ended up with a perimeter of chicken wire about 2 feet below the surface, and they finally contained them.

icedcoffees · 11/09/2021 13:22

I'm currently pet-sitting for a rabbit.

She's currently in her overnight hutch as she managed to chew through/rip the mesh between her owners leaving and me coming to feed her 6 hours later and she very nearly escaped out of the garden!

I always have to triple check her run before putting her out for the day and there are constantly signs of her trying to dig out. Her mate died a few weeks ago and the behaviour has worsened since - maybe due to loneliness or boredom?

She can't go in the run right now until the owners come home and either buy a new one or repair it as it would just be too risky for her to be left there unattended all day.

Panningforfish · 11/09/2021 14:42

I got a local joiner to build the shed and frame, then my Dad added the mesh with a staple gun. This was it after a few years, still haven’t painted it. Oops!

Rabbits outside - do they really dig out of their homes?
vdbfamily · 11/09/2021 14:45

I did not realise this until our bunny went missing and we found him in neighbours garden. He had a well established tunnel that he may have been using for weeks without us knowing!!!

frugalkitty · 11/09/2021 16:51

Mine are lazy buggers so they don't really dig, although they will squeeze under the fence if there's a gap in the soil. They quite happily go for a run around in next doors garden and when I go round to catch them, they Dash back under the fence! We bank up the soil and have bricks and wire round most of the perimeter now. Ours have a two storey hutch and the run of the garden when we're home, plus a run in the garden too.

ANameChangeAgain · 11/09/2021 16:56

Of course they will dig out, rabbits in the wild dig tunnels to live in. Even if your rabbit has lost the digging instincts, foxes will and can tunnel in. Its easily fixed buy having a mesh floor on your run, or housing your run on paving slabs.
As an add on, if you are keeping bunnies outside then make sure they have their HPV vaccine.

TimeIhadaNameChange · 11/09/2021 17:51

Mine did. Their current run is dig-proof though. DP buried the chicken wire about a foot down, curving into the run. He then laid down parking grids (tough enough for cars to park on grass without damaging it) then put the soil back down. 4 years later and still going strong.

Original poster
justnippingout · 11/09/2021 19:14

Thank you everyone. I have another question - if rabbits are kept inside they are supposed to have time outside too everyday - if you have rabbits inside how much time do they spend outside? I am sorry about the stupid questions, I have read the information websites, but it is useful to get experience stories too. Thank you!

OP posts:
Panningforfish · 12/09/2021 10:17

I have the two outdoors and two indoors. The indoor ones don’t go outdoors at all. I leave the door open but they just sit and look out. Friends have house rabbits that take themselves off for a wander outdoors though. Mine have free range of the kitchen/diner and supervised access to the lounge. They have a cage as a base, but it has a side panel removed so they are never shut in.
They have remodelled the skirting boards, bottom of kitchen cupboards, table and chair legs and pulled paint off the walls. They do use their litter trays although they have determined where they are placed. You will need to ensure that the place is bunny proofed (mine are only 1kg Netherland dwarves so get in ridiculously small spaces - couldn’t find one one morning, then discovered he’d wriggled behind the fridge/freezer and was happily sat in the workings at the back of it. I couldn’t pull him out as there were very hot bits in there when I stood my hand in, so had to lure him out with a trail of treats!), I’ve also got an electric shock after they nibbled down to the wire along a cable for about 12 inches. Thankfully it had an adapter, so it was a lower voltage where I touched it, but I still got a small burn. I wouldn’t be without them though.
Benefits of indoor rabbits, much more interaction with them. My outdoor rabbits are much less interested in humans unless they have food, but I love watching them interact with each other and often find myself nipping to the loo and spending 10 minutes watching them out of the window! One of my outdoor rabbits is a very grumpy rabbit, who the rescue were worried about rehoming as he can be aggressive at times. Bonding him up with a very confident friendly rabbit and interacting with him on his terms has mellowed him over the years. He definitely wouldn’t be happy as a house rabbit though. Not sure if you have rabbits already, but would definitely suggest getting from a rescue though, they can advise of accommodation and personality of the rabbit. I’ve had some incredibly friendly rabbits from rescue too over the years. I was confident about taking Mr Grumpypants due to my experience and knowing that I could give him the hands off approach he needed. I wouldn’t be without any of them.

SoloISland · 12/09/2021 10:21

A slight aside.. We don't have rabbits on the small offshore island where I live. There is a very thin layer of soil then solid rock so no tunnelling.

We have hares though; saw one running across the field earlier. They nest.

Thecurtainsofdestiny · 12/09/2021 16:11

We have decking and stone slabs in the run to prevent them digging out.

One of ours also chews... She chewed a hole in the side of the shed in her attempts to get outside....

BBOA · 12/09/2021 16:22

Our rabbit has the run of the garden. He’s pretty lazy and the only time he tried to dig out was when we spent a fortune getting a new side gate so the garden was safer for him. Saying that both he and our dog had a joint digging project for some weeks but it butted up against a garage so they didn’t escape! He is outside pretty much all day in the garden, though has access to an outdoor hutch, but comes in at night to his open indoor hutch. I think it’s female rabbits that do the most digging.

VeganVeal · 12/09/2021 17:08

I found the negative side is they dig deep holes, the positive side they dig their own graves for later

TimeIhadaNameChange · 12/09/2021 21:29

The rabbit I had as a teenager became a house-rabbit. My mum was insistent she should go out every day, despite an obvious lack of enthusiasm. In the end she asked the vet who said it was fine to keep her indoors. So she had free-range of the garage 24/7, and the house when we were home. She loved it!

reluctantbrit · 12/09/2021 21:39

One of mine did dig, all the others weren’t bothered.

The current bunch is living on a stone slab patio with a run also on stone. They are transferred onto the lawn as soon as it is dry. In bad weather they just stay in their normal home where they have plenty of space.

Make sure you get fox proof wire, we have daily night visits from a fox family, even standing on the run and we saw one trying to chew.

Original poster
justnippingout · 14/09/2021 09:02

Thank you so much for all the info

I am worried about foxes and also birds of prey because they are huge where we are - but it feels so wrong to cage them in completely! At the moment bunny is happy inside still exploring and we have an outside runaround but it isn't really safe so working out the best thing. Thanks again!

OP posts:
Panningforfish · 14/09/2021 22:18

If you intend to have just one rabbit please keep it indoors so it can have more attention. Rabbits are social creatures and need to be in pairs. Mr Grumpypants * is always grooming his wife and is usually by her side if he isn’t eating. Not sure if she is quite so happy that she can’t even drink out of the water bowl before he joins her mind!

  • not his real name, would be dreadful if the vets had to call that out!
Original poster
justnippingout · 15/09/2021 09:49

Definitely getting another panningforfish once outside space is sorted out, and I agree, i wouldn't put one outside on their own. i have read about bonding them too.

OP posts:
itssarcasmjoan · 15/09/2021 09:58

I've had several pairs of rabbits.
A&b, then a&c, a alone, d&e and now d is alone.
The girls tend to dig more than the boys.

We have a wooden playhouse that I insulated and created a second level for. It is permanently linked via a tunnel to an 8ft round run. They can access the garden during daylight hours.

Rabbits can climb- d&e climbed the wire of the run to escape out of a hole the previous pair were too later for!

The boys do dig occasionally but are generally lazy and don't dig deep. The ladies always dig deep- they'd dig burrows along fences, under the decking, under the fence etc.

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