Your rabbit has been digging too many holes in your lawn but it won’t stop no matter what you do. So what do you do? You get a digging box for your little furry friend.
But why would a digging box solve this issue? It gives your little friend a place to act out all its natural behaviors and instincts. But what is it? Can you make it yourself? And what should you put in it?
We’re here to give you answers to just that.
What Is A Rabbit Digging Box?
A rabbit digging box is a space for your pet rabbits where they can express their natural instincts and behaviors without you needing to worry about them getting hurt and having them in your sight.
The box is usually made of materials like cardboard and is filled with materials like shredded paper which is safe for rabbits, and may also include wooden chew toys.
A digging box is a toy for your pet rabbits that you can make at home! It is a simple yet fun toy you should have for your rabbits since you can fill the box with items your rabbit would like.
It could give your little bunny explorer an easy yet fun way to get some foraging action.
Rabbit Digging Box Ideas
You can make a rabbit box out of anything that is sturdy and big enough to let your rabbit dig and have fun in it. One good idea is to use some bigger plastic containers or plastic boxes as they are usually quite spacious for your rabbit and will also give them something to chew on apart from their chew toys.
You could also reuse some cardboard boxes as digging boxes, as long as they don’t have any ink, sticky tape, or staples on them. Speaking of reusing, you could reuse some of those delivery cardboard/paper packagings to use in your digging box.
But if you’re using this, just be sure that there’s gonna be a lot of noise of your rabbit ripping and tearing through it.
How Do I Make A Rabbit Digging Box?
Choose The Size
you first will need to know how big the box should be and how deep should you make it as you want your rabbit to have enough room to play around in. So how do you decide how big the digging box should be?
One good way to make sure the digging box is big enough for your rabbit is to make it twice as wide as your rabbit and it should also be twice as deep.
Choose a Rabbit-Safe Material
When making a digging box on your own, you should be careful in choosing what material to use for the box. Here are 3 materials normally used to make the box:
- Cardboard Box. A cardboard box without a coating or printed inks is a good choice because your bunny is likely to gnaw at it. They’re free, and after they’ve been chewed up, they’re easy to replace. Before using it, make sure there are no sticky tapes or staples on it.
- Plastic Containers. They are also a wonderful option. Make sure they’re made of tough, non-brittle plastic, as damaged plastic can be sharp and cause injury. Make sure your rabbit can hop in and out of it, or add a little piece of wood to the side to allow them to climb up.
- Wood. Wood is a really good choice for a digging box as your rabbit will likely gnaw at it; as they do with most items that don’t move. Although if you decide to make a digging box out of wood, make sure that it hasn’t been treated in any way and doesn’t have any chemicals on the surface. A good option would be to get wicker baskets as there are always many of these at any charity shop and you just have to find one without any varnish.
While any of these materials can be used as a digging box, if your rabbit starts peeing in the digging box instead of its litter, you should switch to plastic instead of cardboard or wood.
Do Rabbits Need A Digging Box?
Since rabbits are one of those animals which just inherently love to dig, you have to make sure that they don’t dig up holes in unwanted places like your front porch or your garden.
A great solution for this would be to get that little furball a digging box. It not only solves your problem of unwanted holes but will also give your rabbit a place to act out all its natural behaviors.
A digging box not only provides a place for your rabbit to dig, but it also helps to manage your little friend’s teeth and nails, but it does depend on what you put in the box.
If your rabbit likes to chew, you could put in some wood or some chew toys to encourage more chewing, which in turn helps keep its teeth nice and short.
What To Put In Rabbit Digging Box
You can put natural materials like straw, hay, and sticks in the box, or even cardboard. And if you’re concerned that your rabbit might eat the cardboard, you can keep some paper towel tubes instead.
You could also add something for your rabbit to gnaw on so it doesn’t get bored with chewing on just sticks or the box itself. Additionally, you could use some meadow squares which are available on Amazon.
In the end, what you put in the digging box will depend on your rabbit. But your choice here is important as a good digging box can keep your rabbit occupied for hours, but if the box isn’t interesting enough for your rabbit, it might not use the digging box as much.
Can Rabbits Dig In Potting Soil?
Since rabbits love to dig, they will most certainly dig in potting soil. But before you let your rabbit dig through potting soil, just make sure there’s no fertilizer or any chemicals used on the soil.
Is Potting Soil Safe For Rabbits
Potting soil is safe for rabbits as long as it doesn’t contain any sort of chemicals in it, whether it’s fertilizer or pesticide. We don’t want any chemicals going into our little friend rabbit so if you’re getting potting soil for your rabbit, make sure it doesn’t come with free chemicals.
Frequently Asked Questions
My rabbit is eating cardboard. Should I stop him or is it safe?
As long as there’s no ink or adhesive on it, it’s fine if your rabbit eats cardboard, but it’s not ideal, and it’s not all that good if they eat multiple toilet roll tubes per day.
So keep an eye on them, and if they’re eating cardboard, limit it. Seagrass provides an alternative, and mats and blankets are relatively inexpensive.
How do I stop my rabbit from peeing in the dig box?
First, figure out what’s making them assume it’s a litter box, such as hay. Get rid of it. If your rabbit enjoys digging in the hay, either skip the dig box and let them dig in their litter box (you may need a high-sided one if hay is flying everywhere) or provide them with two litter boxes with digging capabilities.
Just thank your lucky stars they’re peeing in a box. If the box is made of wood or cardboard, you may need to swap to plastic.
Conclusion
Rabbits are animals that just love to dig and as such, you shouldn’t be stopping your rabbit from doing so instead, you should be providing it a safe space to dig
Encourage and train your rabbits to use these burrowing locations, which can include boxes, pots, and baskets. This will limit their desire to do so on other things, causing harm.
