By Allyson M.
October 24th, 2023
5+ Tips for Bunnyproofing Your Home
With rabbits in the home, damage is inevitable. As cute as they may be, their curiosity can often lead to harmful consequences: damage in the home and even potential fatal injury to the rabbit. Fortunately, there are many easy methods to keep your home in nice shape while also letting your rabbit perform their natural behaviours.
Look From Your Rabbit's Perspective
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It’s always helpful to get lower down on the ground and see what could pose a hazard for smaller creatures. Bunnies like to get their paws (and mouths!) on anything they find, so it’s crucial to ensure that anything that you don’t want destroyed is securely placed out of reach.
Set Boundaries
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Even if your rabbit is fully roamed, it may be a good choice to block their access to certain areas with many dangers. For example, if the home office has too many cables, houseplants, and hiding spots to cover up, it would be ideal to not let them into that room by setting up a gate and ensuring doors stay closed. Additionally, if you’d like to block their access to a smaller area, such as under a couch, wire grids would be ideal. They can easily be positioned and zip-tied together to provide a simple barrier.
Using wire grids is a great choice to block off under couches.
Protect Those Wires
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Wires and cables aren’t known as ‘spicy hay’ for no reason - rabbits LOVE to chew these when they get in their way. Especially when plugged in, wires can pose huge electrocution risks and even lead to death. Due to this, investing in heavy-duty cable protectors, keeping wires together and out of reach, and blocking off areas with many wires is extremely important.
Set Boundaries
​
Even if your rabbit is fully roamed, it may be a good choice to block their access to certain areas with many dangers. For example, if the home office has too many cables, houseplants, and hiding spots to cover up, it would be ideal to not let them into that room by setting up a gate and ensuring doors stay closed. Additionally, if you’d like to block their access to a smaller area, such as under a couch, wire grids would be ideal. They can easily be positioned and zip-tied together to provide a simple barrier.
Blocking off wires with wire grids
Flooring​
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As burrowing animals, rabbits spend lots of time digging, and they may take it out on your carpeted floors. Since digging is a natural behaviour, the best step to take is to prevent any damage. This means putting rugs/cardboard/tiles over enticing areas such as darker corners, and making sure any blankets/rugs are secured well with binder clips or heavy items. These measures will ensure your rabbit cannot dig it up.
Baseboards
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Chewed baseboards are one of the most common bunny-made decorative accents in the houses of rabbit owners. The best bet for protecting these is to cover them, whether that be with cardboard strips, wire/plastic grids, or even securing another piece of safe wood on top to give the rabbits another thing to chew on instead.
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Divert Your Rabbit's Attention
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With enough enrichment, rabbits can be kept busy enough to lessen the amounts of destructive behaviour they perform. Ensure that your rabbit has adequate space and many toys that allow them to safely perform behaviours that otherwise destroy your house. Examples include willow rings for chewing, and hay mats for digging.
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Cardboard cat scratcher for chewing instead of baseboards (the white parts are painted over parts that have been chewed before!)
Stick to Safe Methods and Materials​
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Though it may be enticing to use products marketed towards deterring pets from furniture, these are often made with ingredients that are unsafe to rabbits, and they usually don’t work. It’s also important to stay away from materials such as tape and glue for securing items, as they can cause blockages.
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Final Note​
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Whether your rabbit is fully free-roamed or only has playtime hours outside of their enclosure, bunny-proofing is vital for the well-being of your rabbit and the furniture around the house.
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Rabbits love destroying things and eating everything - be sure to use safe materials.
Further Reading
More resources on bunnyproofing!
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