How Often Should a Rabbit Hutch Be Cleaned?

The prerequisite for a long and happy rabbit life is a clean and species and needs appropriate attitude. In addition to the constant supply of fresh water, proper feeding, species-appropriate cage size and equipment, it is very important that you keep your rabbit’s home clean. Unpleasant odors are avoided during regular cleaning and pathogens are removed. Since animals may be in their hutch all day, hygiene is paramount. Free-roaming rabbits would never sleep in their own feces. Only in clean hutches rabbits feel well and remain healthy in the long run. The following article shows you how to clean the rabbit hutch properly.

How often should you clean the rabbit hutch?

There is no general answer to this question. An indoor hutch should generally be cleaned more often than an outdoor hutch, as odors can dissipate much more quickly outside. It also matters how large the rabbit hutch is and how many rabbits are kept in the hutch. Obviously, the less space available to each rabbit, the more frequently the rabbit hutch will need to be cleaned.

In practice, it has proven effective to clean the rabbit litter box daily. Many rabbits designate a corner in the hutch for their toilet. This corner can then be quickly cleaned daily. Bedding and droppings are removed and new absorbent bedding is added. Water and food bowl should also be checked daily for cleanliness and replaced if necessary. Also remove green food remains daily. Once a week you should then do a major cleaning of the entire hutch.
What is the best way to clean the rabbit hutch?

You don’t need much to effectively clean the rabbit hutch or rabbit cage. Here’s a quick checklist:

Trash bag
Dustpan
Trowel
Water
vinegar essence/citric acid
new bedding, straw, hay

How do I clean the rabbit hutch?

In order to be able to work in a relaxed manner, it is best to place your animals in another rabbit hutch, rabbit cage or run while cleaning. This will also keep the animals calm and not stressed by your handling in the hutch.

Put aside all fixed objects such as food bowl, drinker, hutch and toys and remove the litter from the hutch. If any litter or debris remains stuck to the floor, you can easily scrape it off with a trowel. It is important to remove even this stuck dirt so that the hutch or cage does not become sanitary in the long run.

Now the hutch can be cleaned with water. The easiest way to clean it is to put the floor in a tub and rinse it intensively with hot water. Otherwise, wash it with hot water. You can counteract the formation of odors with vinegar water. Vinegar also dissolves urine scale. Solid deposits can be removed with vinegar essence or citric acid. However, vinegar and acid must be wiped away well after cleaning so that your rabbit does not develop respiratory problems.

If you clean a wooden outdoor hutch, make sure it is properly dried before bedding it again. Otherwise, mold can form, which in turn is very harmful to your rabbits. The dry hutch can then be bedded with wood litter, bedding pellets or straw.

By the way, it is advisable to muck out an outdoor hutch more often in the summer than in the winter, as flies like to lay their eggs in the damp bedding.

When should you disinfect the rabbit hutch?

It is not usually necessary to disinfect the hutch. However, it is advisable to disinfect the hutch when your rabbit is sick so that you contain the pathogens. Also, it is wise to disinfect a used rabbit cage or hutch because you do not know if the rabbits that lived in it were sick.

To disinfect the hutch, first clean it thoroughly. Then apply the disinfectant. It must be left for some time (please follow the instructions on the package). Then you have to rinse the disinfectant thoroughly again, because it is harmful for the animals. When the rabbit hutch or cage is dry, you can fill it again with bedding, hay and straw.

Conclusion

To keep your rabbit comfortable and healthy, it’s important to keep its home clean. Cleaning the toilet corner daily and doing a major cleaning of the entire hutch weekly is an appropriate way to keep odors and pathogens at bay. Disinfection is only warranted if the rabbit is sick or a used hutch was purchased.