- large-mesh
hardware cloth
- bailing
wire
- wire
cutters
- pliers
First
of all, let your rabbit out of the cage. Don't
let him or her back in until the hay rack is attached
to your satisfaction. You'll be working with some
sharp metal edges, and you don't want your curious
bunny to get hurt while you're attaching the hay
rack. For that same reason, you might wish to put
on a pair of work gloves.
Choose one side of the cage to attach the hay
rack to. This side should not contain the door
to the cage. It should also not be a side to which
you've already attached a water bottle or a feeder.
The reason for this is that the hay rack should
take up most of the side of the cage--you want
to have enough space in the rack to add a day or
two worth of hay at a time.
With wire cutters, cut the hardware cloth into
the shape you want the bin to have. Some people
like to use triangular shape, but I prefer rectangles.
Assuming you want a rectangular shape to the bin,
cut a rectangle slightly smaller than the side
of the cage you're attaching the hay rack to. Leave
a bit of wire exposed at the base and sides of
the rectangle. You're going to use this exposed
wire to attach the base and sides to the cage,
while leaving the top open so you can add hay to
the rack later.
Hold the rectangle of hardware cloth against the
side of the cage so that you create a pocket. (To
do this, you'll need to bring the sides of the
hardware cloth together a bit--the rectangle shouldn't
lay flat against the side of the cage, but should
gap a bit instead.) Make sure that you have enough
space inside of the pocket to add plenty of hay
at a later point.
Once you have the rectangle positioned to your
satisfaction, push the exposed wire at the edges
of the rectangle through the bars. Bend the wires
around the cage bars with your fingers or the pliers.
Make sure you bend all of the wire edges, or else
your rabbit could get hurt.
Cut two pieces of bailing wire. These should be
about one to two inches long each, depending on
the thickness of the bars of the cage. Use the
pliers to loop a piece of wire around the bars
of the cage and through one of the base corners
of your hay rack. Twist the wire together behind
the rack. This will help hold the hay rack in place.
If you feel that your hay rack needs to be more
secure, cut additional pieces of bailing wire and
attach them to places on the hay rack where you
want reinforcement.
Look over the hay rack to make sure there are
no sharp edges exposed. If you see any, bend them
out of your bunny's way.
Fill the rack with hay and then let your bunny
back into the cage. Your rabbit should be able
to pull hay through the bars of the cage without
problem. If the cage is made of mesh rather than
bars, you might need to cut a hole or two in the
side of the cage so that he or she can pull the
hay through more easily. If you do cut a hole,
be sure to bend or file down any sharp points.
Voila! You've created a tidy, convenient hay rack
and probably made your bunny happy.
