How To Build A Rabbit Hutch: Three Easy Steps & Items Needed

Three Easy Steps & Items Needed To Build A Rabbit Hutch

If you have rabbits at your place and you want to build a hutch for them so that they will have a space to live, you can do so easily. Just collect certain items & follow the steps afterward:

Things You Will Need

Safety Glasses & Quality Work Gloves
Wood & 14 To 16-Gauge Galvanized Wire
Wood Screws & Screwdriver
Dremel Tool Or Metal File
Wire Cutters & Industrial Staples And Stapler
Measuring Tape & Sliding Latch
Hinges & Plastic Trim

Step 1: Prepping Your Supplies

Plan Out Your Design: Most of the hutches are made from the wood frame with wire windows & doors. Make roughly design about four times the body size per rabbit. A minimum height near about 41 cm (16 inches) is also a good idea.
Use Wood Pieces: Use 2/4 inches (5.1 by 10.2 cm) of wood pieces for your frame and 4/4 inches (10 by 10 cm) wood pieces for the posts. Use straight wood, not warped. The number of wood pieces that you will need will depend on the size of your hutch.
Choose Plywood For The Hutch Roof & Floor: You need one roof piece of wood & one flooring piece of wood that matches the width & length dimensions of the hutch. You can then cut out the pieces that you need and use the leftover wood for your other projects.
Measure Your Wood Pieces: Layout all of the wood pieces. Select a single piece of your wood & place your measuring tape & measure out the length that you will need. Also, make a mark on your final measurement spot by using a marker or pencil. This is where you have to make the cut. Repeat the process until all of your wood pieces are measured.
Cut Your Wood Pieces: Also wear safety goggles & gloves. Set up your sawhorse (for a hand saw) or your table saw (for an attached saw). Set a 1 piece of your wood into your sawhorse or against your table saw at a time. Align your saw blade with your measurement mark & make a single, clean-cut.
Select Wire: The best wire for this process is 14 or 16 gauge galvanized because it will not break if the rabbit tries to chew it. Use 1/2 inches (2.5 by 5.1 cm) rabbit mesh for the door & sides. Use 1/2 by 1 inch (1.3 by 2.5 cm) weave rabbit mesh for your flooring because the smooth mesh will protect your rabbit’s feet.
Cut Your Wire Mesh Pieces: Use a pair of your wire cutters to snip the cage wire into pieces that will fit on the outside of the rabbit hutch. You now need four pieces for the sides. You now need to cut out a further piece of wire to fit the wooden doorframe.
Set Out Rest Of The Supplies. Buy some shingles for your roof if you know that your rabbit hutch will be exposed to any kind of outdoor weather. This will augment the life of your roof. Get two of the hinges and the sliding bolt lock mechanism for the door of the cage.

Step 2: Set-up The Basic Structure

First of all, screw together your two end sections. Use the wood screws to now attach 2 of your width pieces to 2 of your height pieces and should be rectangle once connected. Your width pieces should be opposite one another and the same with your height pieces. Then, do this process again with your remaining 4 short pieces of your wood.
Attach your length pieces to the ends hutch. Simply use your wood screws to secure every single long piece of your wood because it will run from the corner of one end to the corner of the other completed end. Continue until you have screwed in all your four long pieces.
Now you need to attach the mesh to your wood frame. Rotate your frame on your ground until the frame is properly positioned & minus the supports. This process will help you to envision how to attach the mesh. Get each cut mesh piece & secure it to one of the open spaces in your frame by using an industrialized staple gun & staples. Use about the staple every inch to secure your mesh to avert any gaps from forming.
Attach your top and bottom last. With your hutch facing upstanding, position your roof on top of your frame. Screw it into the frame around the edges. Get another person to help you flip the hutch over on to its top, so the bottom is facing upwards now. Position your flooring plywood on your frame and then screw it in securely. Flip your hutch back over carefully.
Create your door and use your wire cutters to cut your mesh and also make a space in the front of your cage for the cage door. Roll the pieces of your plastic trim over the newly exposed edges of your wire mesh. You can also make a square wood frame for the door, simply attach 2 hinges to it & then cover it with your wire mesh before installing it. Or, you can make your door out of wire alone. Attach your door to the main structure using staples or c-rings.
Attach your support posts. Take the help of someone, flip your hutch upside down for one more time, and then use a combination of the L-brackets & wood screws to secure your leg's posts to your base. You need to attach a single leg to each of the 4 corners of your frame.

Step 3: Installing And Finishing

Add drainage & shingles. A shingled roof is not a prerequisite for your rabbit hutch, but this will make it last longer. Nail down your shingles or your metal roofing pieces onto your plywood foundation on the top of your rabbit hutch. If you are worried about the drainage, extend your shingles so that they lightly overhang the edges of your hutch. You can also stack them in order to create a slight downward angle.
Choose a secure & safe location for your hutch. You need a spot place that will not be noisy or subject to too much of the foot traffic. It is best if your area is away from any exceedingly forested areas that wildlife might live in or intermittent. If you can easily position your hutch under your tree to keep your hutch from direct sunlight 24/7, then it is a good idea.
Finally, secure your support posts by using concrete. Most of the hutches are weighty enough & don’t require any further stability aside from their own weight. Nonetheless, if you are still worried about your hutch tipping or moving then you can easily dig 4 holes in your ground in the future locations of the support posts. Then, place your posts into the holes, check it again to make sure that your hutch is balanced & then add a bit of the ready mixed concrete into each of them.