Многие владельцы загородных и дачных участков с happy to breed rabbits. This fluffy pet is able to provide the owners with not only valuable fur, but also high-calorie nourishing meat. The efficiency of breeding rabbits depends entirely on the proper keeping, feeding and care of animals.
It will be helpful for a beginner rabbit grower to know how to make a rabbit feeder with his own hands. After all, high-quality and regular feeding has a positive effect on the health of animals.
Requirements for feeders
Before proceeding to the manufacture of feeders forRabbits with your own hands, you need to familiarize yourself with the basic requirements for these structures. Compliance with these useful tips will increase the efficiency of using homemade feeders and improve the quality of life of fluffy pets.
Rabbit feeders should be:
- Roomy so that there is no need to add food during feeding.
- It is easy to clean off feed residue during operation.
- To avoid injury to the animal, the structure should not contain sharp corners and projections.
- The device of the feeder for rabbits should provide unhindered access to food.
- The design should exclude the possibility of kicking the animal into the feeder with their feet, which leads to contamination of food.
- It is necessary to correctly calculate the dimensions in order to provide access to food to all rabbits at the same time.
- The mount must be reliable; the trough must not be turned over.
- And, of course, the cost of a rabbit feeder made by hand should be less than that of similar industrial structures.
Types of fixtures
The importance of making quality feedersconfirms the fact that rabbits come to food 26-30 times a day. Therefore, this device should significantly increase the hygienic conditions in the cage and maintain a rational diet of the animal.
There are the following types of feeders for rabbits:
- Бункерные приспособления применяются для granulated and bulk feed. The constructive solution of such a device completely eliminates the scattering of feed and allows you to load the amount of feed that will be sufficient for several meals.
- Grooved devices designed for feedinganimals with concentrated feed or root vegetables. Feeding trough for rabbits from a pipe - the simplest design in this plan. Grooved devices allow you to simultaneously feed a large number of animals.
- Loading hay and grass is carried out in a special feeder, the so-called nursery. Such devices are very practical to use, but require constant replenishment of feed stocks.
- Cup type rabbit feederscommon when serving both bulk and granular feed, and concentrated food. As these devices can be used metal containers. Often used such feeders for drinking.
- Bowls of ceramic material - more modern designs, most often industrial manufacturing. They look very beautiful, but turn over easily.
Before making rabbit feedersdo it yourself, professionals advise beginners to print a drawing of a device. Learn about the scheme of adaptation can be from the reference literature. There you can also see photos of rabbits feeders, of which there is a great variety.
Benefits of bunker feeders
Bunker type feeders are considered the most convenient and practical to use, therefore they have a number of advantages over other types of devices.
Main advantages:
- economy;
- spaciousness;
- ease of use;
- reliable protection of the feed from pollution;
- ease of care and maintenance;
- clean around the feeder;
- Easy to make bunker bunker with your own hands.
Grain and granulated feed when eatenpets gravity evenly fills the tray and is located at a certain level, not poured out beyond its limits. This feature allows you to keep the cage clean, which has a positive effect on the health of pets. Bunker feeders for rabbits are widely used in farms far from the place of residence of the owners.
Types of bunker type feeders
There are several types of bunker devices, the choice of which in the case of independent production is carried out depending on the preferences of the owner. The following designs are most popular:
- round feeder;
- a device having a transverse partition that allows you to load various types of feed;
- combined fixture.
Materials used
Before you make a rabbit feeder,you need to decide on the material that will be used to make the structure, because rabbits are rodents. Experienced rabbit breeders often use feeders made from a metal profile or thin tin.
Bunker equipment is also very popular.types made of wood (plywood, boards). The protruding places of the wooden feeder must be protected with metal plates. There are many designs made of plastic pipe, Plexiglas, slate. Glass, metal rods and wires can also be used as an auxiliary material.
Making bunker feeders from galvanizing
It is more practical to make the feeder out of metal.0.5 ml thick galvanized steel sheet is perfect for this job. Such material is cut better with scissors for metal, as cutting with a grinder will cause burning of a layer of zinc, and the place of the cut will begin to become covered with rust. For the device design will need a drawing that is easy to draw yourself.
The dimensions of the rabbit feeders should correspond to the size of the cage. For example, we can consider the manufacture of feeders with optimal sizes.
The procedure for the manufacture of the following:
- A conventional bunker trough consists of a rear andfront wall, as well as the tray. A limiter is also made so that the food is not raked by rabbits from the feeder. Work begins with the manufacture of the tray. The cut fragment from the sheet is folded along the fold lines, taking into account the allowance at the joints of about one centimeter, which will be necessary to connect all the parts.
- The back and side walls are made from a whole galvanized sheet to reduce the number of surfaces to be joined. Dividing into three parts, this part is bent in width.
- The front wall is also bent in three parts in width.
- Further, all the details are folded into one design. At the junction where they make allowances, drill holes. Connect with bolts or rivets.
- To prevent the entry of garbage, make the top cover.
Metal profile fixture
A very accurate trough is made of a profile metal section with a section of 100 × 40 mm.
The procedure for the manufacture of feeders as follows:
- Make a cut with scissors for metal after marking the profile. Extra plots at the bend are removed.
- To remove small debris from the tray, the lower part of the profile is perforated with a drill.
- Then give the blank the shape of the finished fixture. At the junction of the holes for rivets.
- To secure the feeders on the cage, attach two hooks of pieces of the profile.
This simple device is used to feed one pet. If you want to distribute food to several rabbits, you will have to hang several such feeders on the cage.
Bunker feeders from auxiliary material
For the beginner rabbit breeder will be interestingseveral designs made of material that can be found in any farm. It can be a piece of plastic pipe, any can and a simple plastic container.
We take two plastic bottles with a wide neck.From the board or plywood do L-shaped frame. We attach one bottle with the pre-cut side part with screws to the bottom of the frame. And to the vertical bar of the frame with clamps we fix the second container, directing its neck to the window of the bottom bottle. We cut not the bottom of the vertical tank to the end to make a lid, we fall asleep feed, and the feeder is ready.
Similar, the combined design canto make from a piece of a polyethylene pipe and a galvanized metal profile. The feed tray is made of a profile and is mounted on the lower shelf of the L-shaped base. A piece of pipe attached to the vertical frame, pre-cut at one end of the recess for spilling feed.
You can make a trough of tin cans. At a distance of 5 cm from the bottom of the banks saw cut through to the middle of the tank. The front wall is cut and fastened with rivets. That's it, the fixture is ready!
Device groove type
This design is practically the simplestof all kinds. This confirms the photo of the feeder for rabbits. It’s easy to make it with your own hands, the main thing is to understand what its peculiarity is. There are many types of grooved accessories, it all depends on the location and method of mounting the device.
From the name it follows that the design isthe usual trench made of various materials (metal, a tree, plastic). Such feeders are used to supply concentrated feed or root crops.
The simplest device is consideredfixture made of plastic pipe. It is simply cut, and the ends are closed with plugs. The groove feeding trough inside the cage is fastened to one of its walls. Adaptations of this type allow you to feed several animals at the same time.
Rabbit Feeders
Such devices are more in demand insmall farms. They are intended for giving to pets of their most favorite delicacy - grass, hay. Since such devices are located most often outside the cage, this allows you to keep it clean. A nursery is mounted on the light side of the rabbit dwelling. They look like a nursery for pets, hence the name of the device.
Creation procedure
The simplest design is a V-shaped model. After collecting all the simple materials for the manufacture of the device (plywood, tin, wire or mesh), we get to work.
The order of operations:
- In accordance with the size of the door on the cell, we cut two side walls.
- We cut out the grooves on the sides for fastening the entire structure to the cage.
- With the help of a wooden bar we fasten the side parts of the feeder.
- The front part can be cut out of plywood, but better from tin, it is stronger and not exposed to moisture. Attach this part to the sides.
- But the back wall through which the rabbits will beget food, can be made of mesh. If the door in the cage is lattice, then the back wall can not be installed, pets will get food through it.
Cup feeders
On the cup devices stop especially not worth it. They are known to all beginner breeders. After all, any bowl can be a bowl feeder.
The positive side is its versatility, you can submit any feed. But the main problem is that the bowl often turns over and the food is quickly contaminated.
Modern industry offers many options for various ceramic feeders, which are in demand among beginner rabbit breeders.
With self-manufacturing devicesfor feeding you need to remember an important rule - any feeder should be convenient not only for the pet, but also for the person who serves the animal. A rabbit feeder must necessarily comply with hygienic requirements, which is the main factor in maintaining the health of a fluffy pet.
