How we got started
Like allmost everybody else, we started at a minimum - 2 cages in an old woodshed behind our newly bought house. The passage that led to the shed was so narrow and shabby, the realtor never botherd to look and did not even know it existed!
The old, broken wooden boards was replaced to match the rest of the house.
This woodshed would turn out to be the center of our stables!
At that time we had no notion of rabbit breeding, and had really no plans in terms of expanding the number of cages - that turned out to change immediately!
We both felt we needed something more to keep us interested in rabbits. Something needed to happen.
We wanted to work actively with rabbits..
Promptly, we started examine the potential of our old woodshed - as it turned out, it had much more than expected..
We quickly realized our first homemade cages was not nearly practical enough for the little amount of space we had. We needed some rethinking to make this work.
From various webpages we learned the smallest variants of rabbits should be kept in living quarters measuring at least ½ m², and therefore we dimensioned the cages at 100 x 50 cm.
In sheer luck the inside of the woodshed was exactly wide enough to have a row of cages on one side and still leave room for a wheelbarrow to pass!
When the first assembly of 6 connected cages was build and installed, we had the opportunity to build a single tower of 3 slightly bigger cages, measuring 120 x 50 cm - these were ment for breeding does.
At the same time we developed new ideas - a rack for hay, straw, feed and whatever the rabbits needed, including 2 small cages for youngsters.
These 3 towers amounted to a fully functional stable with 11 cages and room for all our equipment.
When 11 cages was no longer enough..
It only took a small amount of time for us to fill up the 11 cages.
We had a varied group in assorted colors, spread across 3 races.
Good intentions of helping unwanted rabbits had brought us to this point, our dreams and goals could easily be suffocated in other peoples washed-up pet rabbits.
Luckily, we saw lots of potential in the narrow passage outside the shed, and plans for an expansion was launched!
The shabby passage, that used to appear impassable, was turned into an open wooden building, a transparent roof, concrete slabs and at last, but not least, 9 new cages which all could be split into two.
Ultimately, we now had 29 cages for our use, and we were pleased with that.
At the same time we upgraded the old shed. We put in a window, filled the wooden wall and ceiling with insulation and had an electric light installed and an output power socket for miscellaneous use.
The foundation for a promising breeding program was now set.
Big scale goals = big scale stables!
Both the rabbits and ourselves got through the following summer and fall using the small area behind the house.
We had found our 'project' for our breeding program. We chose netherland dwarf - smoke pearl, theese should be bred for show purposes, and for the sheer joy, mini loops would be bred exclusively to be sold as pets.
But as we learned more about our smoke pearls, we understood, that 29 cages would never bring us to the level we wanted - because this subspecies would only show their true potential past 8 months of age, making it necessary for us to keep every single smoke pearl we managed to breed.
Eventually, the realization of breeding mini loops for shows came, and grew stronger bit by bit..
Meanwhile, all of our guests visiting the stables were complementing the cages we build. As it turned out, there was a market for building this kind of cages for others. Now, we just could not wait building more cages, improve cage systems and test them with rabbits in everyday life.
New plans for expansion were made..
Bigger, and much more comprehensive, this expansion should once and for all cover our needs for space!
The new building is measuring 9 m. of length and 2½ m. of width.
As soon as the soil thawed in the spring, we started building.
We spent the winter requesting permits, notifying the neighbors and sort out the last details, making this construction the ultimate stable for both us and the rabbits.
As usual, the practical details came first. The width of the construction is determined by the need of two rows of cages with a suitable corridor in the middle.
Sunlight enters through a transparent roof, that provides shelter - and wisely placed vents below the roof gives the ventilation needed.
when the new section is done, we immediately start using it.
In late fall 2013 we stop building cages for the season. At that time we had made ourselves 12 new cages, witch all is divided in two on a daily basis.
The new cages are primarily used for netherland dwarf males, the 9 cages in the narrow passage are used undivided for mini loops - all of theese cages is measuring 120 x 60 cm, by the way.
The cages in the old wooden shed are inhabited by the netherland dwarf females. Yet, the biggest of these cages are used for those mini loop females, whom is scheduled to give birth in the winter.
In spring 2014 we chose to include the adjacent chicken yard to the rabbit stable, of which most will be used as work space.
Meanwhile, a few jumping-rabbits find their way into our stables, and thereby we have even more needs to meet. More cages is build, and in spring 2015 we have 42 cages, witch of 21 can be divided in two - a total of a potential amount of 63 cages.
And since the number of mini loops increased, we had to undertake a somewhat larger reshuffle;
Mini loop females is now living in the old wooden shed - the males is placed in the narrow passage.
All of the jumping-rabbits is gathered in a single tower of cages ind the old chicken yard. And both genders of netherland dwarf inhabits the new, biggest stable section.
At this time, 4 towers with 3 cages in each - which all can be divided in two - has not yet been built.
In time, we will end up with a total of 87 cages..
.. Wonder if that is enough?
