# NIC vs dog crate



## Enh98 (Jun 30, 2013)

Please help me decide on the housing for our bun, a 3 lb adult holland lop. I'm debating between a NIC condo or an xl dog crate. Condo would likely be three cubes long, two cubes deep and two cubes tall. Is that enough space? Which is easier to maintain and clean? I'm overwhelmed by all of the NIC plans and options, I don't even know where to begin as this is my first experience with house rabbits. Thanks for your advice!


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## BunnyWabbit (Jun 30, 2013)

People here disagree on size of habitat a lot but I go by the HRS standards which is 4' X 2' for a single rabbit. 

X-Pens are good options (my favorite) and I find them easy to clean because you can move them and change their shape to fit most areas. You can also make a wood base w/ trim to help contain mess. 

For NIC I wouldn't go smaller that 3 grids X 2 grids and you can make wood bases with trim to help keep in the mess a bit. 

Dog crates are probably going to be you more expensive option because the big ones are usually about $99+ in the US. I'm not a huge fan of dog crates but if it's large enough I think they can be fine. 

Anyway, that's my opinion.


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## Korr_and_Sophie (Jun 30, 2013)

There are some dogs crates that would be the same size as a 2X3 NIC cage, so the size would not be much different. The lay out may be a bit different with the doors, so make sure to get one that will work for you. I would get one with a front and side door so it can be used both ways and gives you more options. If you did get a bigger crate, then the size would be a bigger factor, but NIC cages are versatile for size as you can overlap the grids if you need to. 

I use NIC cages and find they work well. They can be a bit of a pain to put together. Levels and shelves are fairly easy to add, the only issue I really have is the flooring so it provides traction but is easy to clean. 
You can start with a 2X3 cage and add to it later if you want to. The only real issue would be the base, but coroplast is easy enough to cut and tape to add more. 
If you do go the NIC route, I would suggest getting more grids than you think you need and being generous with the amount of coroplast you buy. This allows you a bit more freedom when building. The grids can be used to bunny proof or make a pen. Coroplast can also be used for bunny proofing and you might need to replace some later on. 
Another thing I would suggest doing is to get something to prevent chewing of the coroplast. I have found J shaped moulding at a hardware store that work quite well, the plastic ones are easy to cut and hard to chew. Poster hangers also work well, but can be more expensive.


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## Tauntz (Jun 30, 2013)

Well, I'm still a newbie bunny mom but I will share my thoughts from my perspective! I was searching for another pet to love that would be a good match for my bird. I didn't want another pet that I would have to be overly concerned about the safety should they meet accidentally. (Yes, I know bunnies & birds could still hurt each other but they don't have time out together. Try to prevent any injuries to all of my pets.) Anyway I tried to ask every question I could think of before I got my Jersey wooly girls. It was recommended to me to get an xpen & vinyl flooring sheet for under the cage floor protection from piddle accidents. I love the xpen! Since then I have looked around locally & on the internet & can't imagine my buns going into most of those rabbit cages. I'm sure there are some excellent ones but they are probably very expensive if my checking around is any indication. Anyway I have a very nice xpen & currently I am using office chair mats for their flooring. It is working well for me. I do get a little hay & poop mess around the outside but I sweep it up without any difficulty. As mentioned above Coroplast is recommended as a good flooring & I am trying to check that out locally for bigger better flooring for our xpen. Thanks for posting this thread & I hope you can find the best ideas for you & your bun's housing soon! Be sure to let us know what you decide & how it works for you & your bun!


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## BunnyWabbit (Jul 1, 2013)

Korr_and_Sophie said:


> There are some dogs crates that would be the same size as a 2X3 NIC cage, so the size would not be much different.



My main point was the cost difference. A 3 X 2 single level NIC would be under $40 dollars most places while a dog crate of the same size is usually 99+ .


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## BunnyBabyboo (Jul 1, 2013)

I bought 100+ cubes at a yardsale for $20 lol. We found free flooring at a yardsale too. The only thing we had to buy from the store was zipties.


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## PaGal (Jul 1, 2013)

I purchased a dog pen that is 4 foot long on ebay for $60 dollars. That included shipping as well as paying $2 extra to have it within three days. The pen is large enough for my Flemish giant. I plan to add a shelf but have not done so yet. The cage has two doors and cleaning is easy and takes no more than ten minutes. I do have some hay mess around the cage after he has spent the night in his pen but you would have that with a NIC cage as well unless you build a coroplast bottom or such with higher sides. 

I did recently purchase an X pen to build a cage for two rabbits. I purchased a 4X8 piece of coroplast for $17. I contacted a local sign company and explained what I needed it for. The X pen is set up as 28" X 7" which gives the buns room to run. I built the coroplast bottom so that the sides were six inches high and the X pen fits inside the bottom. I did this hoping the buns would be less likely to chew the sides. So far they haven't chewed it but some hay and litter does get trapped between the X pen and coroplast sides.


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## Blue eyes (Jul 1, 2013)

BunnyWabbit said:


> My main point was the cost difference. A 3 X 2 single level NIC would be under $40 dollars most places while a dog crate of the same size is usually 99+ .



Yeah, the NIC cages and x-pens are about the same price. The crates can be expensive. 

If you aren't planning on having a partial 2nd level on the NIC, then you may want to just do the x-pen for simplicity. I kinda viewed the advantage of a NIC as being that it can have the upper levels. 

I've used rolled linoleum for a floor for the NIC -- I just put it directly on top of my carpet and put the cage on top of it. I've also used untreated drywall as a 'shelf'. 

Here's a (kinda) 2 x 3 NIC I made once as temp housing when I was bonding. I ran short of grids and that's why the roof doesn't go straight across as it should. You can see I just used a rug for flooring (there's linoleum underneath the rug to protect the carpet just in case). If bunny isn't going to get out alot, then that size may be a bit small. It depends on how much time he gets out.


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## Zeroshero (Jul 2, 2013)

My bunny has a large dog x-pen that he plays in all night, when I am not home he spends his day hanging out in his hammock in a store bought rabbit cage. I already own two x-pens so I was really excited to see that my bunny couldn't fit through the bars! I highly reccommend getting the dog x-pen, the small animal play pens are short, too small, and flimsy. It is worth the investment I have had mine for several years. I agree with Blue Eyes cage size depends on the amount of time your bunny spends in it. I like the coroplast floor idea, where I have his x-pen it seems to take the shape of 4 x 8, currently I use a tarp to protect Zero from licking the carpet but I worry about him if he were to "forget" to use his litter box to do his business.


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## middlemuse (Jul 8, 2013)

I use both together! My fiance's brother offered me a used dog cage when I mentioned I was building a house for the bunny, and I built off from there to make Aria's condo. I try to keep the messiest activities--water and veggies and litterbox--to the dog kennel portion of the cage, because it's a lot easier to clean. I had to buy a new bottom for the used cage, but it was less than $15 at Petco. And my favorite thing about the dog cage (other than the fact that it was free) was that it was super easy to add a second story diggy box for the Ariabunny, as you can see here.


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