I’m so excited! The rabbit and pig yards are done! We started the backyard project on April 23, 2019. The project started with building a huge privacy fence and clearing out a lot of weeds. On May 16, 2020 we moved Dixie pig into her new yard. The week before that, we moved the rabbits into their new yards. This was one of our largest outside projects to tackle since we moved in.
I’m so happy with the way everything turned out! Doug is amazing. Before we start working on any project, I draw up designs and he works so hard to make the designs come to life. Looking around the finished rabbit and pig yards, it’s like I drew the designs after I saw the completed project. The yards are exactly what I envisioned!
Dixie Pig’s New Yard
Dixie pig loves her new home! We’ve never seen her so happy. Her old yard had no trees and was pretty much just dirt except for some weeds here and there that she didn’t eat. The only shade she had was from shade cloth that we put up every summer. She hates the wind and her old yard had very little to block it.
Dixie’s new yard has trees, lots of shade, a little grass, and her scarecrow friend. We put stumps around the yard because she loves scratching herself on them. She’s been spending her days laying in the shade of her big tree, on the moist ground, next to her favorite stumps. The six-foot privacy fence on the north-side of her yard blocks the harsh wind and allows a gentle breeze to keep her cool. Whenever we go into her yard, she grunts and flops over onto her side asking for belly rubs.
We moved Dixie’s house, teddy bear, and blankets into the new yard so she would have something familiar. Pigs are really sensitive and we didn’t want to overwhelm her by changing too many things at once. I was concerned that she would miss having chickens around her, but she seems happier without them. She no longer has to share her salads!
future plans
In the future, we’d like to put in sod so she has more grass to lay on. We’d also like to install another window for her house, with shutters that we can close when summer storms roll in. The two doors to her house are on the west and east sides and having a window on the south side will allow for better ventilation. We’ll be able to board up the window in winter to keep the warmth in.
The New Rabbit Yards
The rabbits are still trying to get adjusted to their new homes. We now have three new rabbit yards.
the yards
The big yard is for the large colony of twenty-two rabbits. It should be for twenty-three rabbits, but I’ll explain that in a minute. The yard is over 1,000 square feet and has trees, things to climb on, places to dig, and two large houses. It started off having grass, but the rabbits quickly ate what was growing. In the future, we’re going to be building a third house in the yard, identical to the other two, so the rabbits can spread out more.
The second yard is for Clyde. Although all of the bucks are neutered, there was a question when Clyde was neutered whether or not he was born with two testicles or only one. The doctor neutered one, but couldn’t find the second. Without putting Clyde through exploratory surgery to find the second one, we have to assume it’s still somewhere in him which means he can get the girls pregnant. He may not be able to, but with over fifteen girls (and the possibility of each one having ten babies), we’re not taking any chances. He’s happy in his yard and can still see the other rabbits through the fencing.
The third yard is for Amethyst, Atari, and Lewis to share. They are our shy bunch and they get picked on the most. Early on when we were planning everything, we decided to give them a yard away from the main colony. Like Clyde’s, their yard doesn’t have a tree in it, but apple trees are growing just outside of the yards. Once the trees mature, there will be plenty of shade. Until the trees get bigger, they have wooden shade structures.
combining everyone
We knew there was going to be fighting between the rabbits when we combined all of the smaller groups into one large colony. Rabbits are territorial and have a hierarchy (or “pecking order”) that they need to sort out before any chance of peace can happen within the colony. Out of all of the animals, rabbit fights are probably the worst. Rabbits are tough little animals. When they fight, they really fight. They kick, bite, scratch, and roll around on the ground and in the air. Fur flies, they scream, and it gets bloody. It’s not pretty. Usually, once they establish their hierarchy, the fighting stops. Like with chickens, sometimes someone will get it in their mind to challenge the top rabbit, and a small fight will happen. But it’s usually over quickly and it isn’t as bad as the initial fight.
Copper and Elliott
After we combined everyone, there was a really bad fight between two of the boys, Copper and Elliott. Copper ended up getting his eye injured so we had to bring him into the house. He couldn’t open his eye and it was oozing pretty good. We flushed it regularly and we were getting ready to take him to the doctor to make sure his vision wasn’t permanently impaired. After a few days inside, he was able to open his eye, the discharge stopped, and it was obvious his vision was good, so we attempted to put him back outside with the colony.
He and Elliott immediately started fighting again, and Elliott ended up with a bloody nose. Elliott was bleeding badly so we brought him into the house to patch him up. Even though fights between the rabbits are expected, we try to minimize the severity of them and protect everyone the best we can. Once Elliott’s bleeding stopped, we decided that since he was the one being overly aggressive with everyone, we couldn’t put him back into the colony.
We put Elliott in an enclosure where he’s going to stay until we can build a fourth rabbit yard that’s separate from the other rabbits. He seems less stressed being the only rabbit in his yard so we’re thinking it’s going to work out well giving him a yard of his own. Like with Clyde, he’ll still be able to see the other rabbits, but he won’t be able to get to them.
peace…for now
Since moving Elliott out of the colony, there’s been chasing, but no serious fighting between the rabbits. Everyone seems to know their place in the colony and we have peace…for now.
More about the rabbits and Dixie pig…
A Tale of Five Rabbits
Animal Pages