Housing Upgrade

In our previous rental housing, Steve and I never bothered to try to make the rabbits' housing attractive. We just improvised with whatever space we had to make the furry critters I kept bringing home as comfortable as possible. Now that we own our home, we were definitely hoping to come up with more attractive habitats. I had thought about modifying a piece of furniture, but hadn't come across the right thing. That is, until we took our semi-monthly trip to the Santa Cruz Habitat for Humanity ReStore. There we found this (pictured standing on end since we weren't planning on buying furniture that day and hadn't cleared space): 

I immediately had a vision of what it could be... so off to the hardware store we went.

Using simple wooden trim, small metal brackets and coated fencing designed for garden use, Steve built panels for each open bay in the lower two levels of the shelving unit. 

I used small nails to attach 1/2"x1/2" wooden "stops" in the sides of each bay to prevent the panels from pushing inward. Steve attached half-turn buttons (normally used to hold in window screens) on both sides of each panel to prevent the panels being pushed out, but allow for easy removal of any panel for cleaning or bunny-harassing access.

There is a hinged door on each level, secured with a cupboard latch. We didn't stain or paint the wood in the panels or stops in case the rabbits nibbled on them... which they have.

Finished product:

Kiwi is living in the middle level, a roughly 4' long space, which is at least a foot longer than her previous cage. When we first put her inside, she ran around in circles like a crazy thing (how rabbits express happiness, so I think it's safe to say she approves). Violet is living on the lowest level in a space approximately 6' long, which is comparable in size to her previous "rabbit table" housing, but infinitely more stylish. 

Unfortunately I've got piles of stuff on top of it currently so it's not necessarily evident in the finished picture, but I think it's a beautiful piece of furniture and it makes an awesome rabbit home.