8 PET RABBITS, CAVIES, AND MICE. 



are kept. If kept out-of-doors under a roof, open at the 

 front, it will be advisable to try and choose a place where 

 the most stormy weather conditions can be avoided; and 

 measures must be taken to protect the hutch fronts from 

 the beating of rain in winter or the fierce rays of the sun 

 in summer. The size of the hutches in which rabbits 

 are kept, depends upon the variety selected. There are 

 exceptions. Generally speaking a box about 2ft. 6in. 

 long by 20 inches from back to front, and 18 inches high 

 will be ample for a single rabbit. Of course if breeding 

 is engaged in, the hutch should be quite eighteen inches 

 longer, and that will give room for a bed or place for 

 kindling to be parted off. The varieties needing larger 

 hutches are Belgian hares, which must have plenty of 

 room, or it impedes the attainment of many special 

 points of excellence, such as length of limbs and general 

 raciness. Any reasonable expenditure of hutch room 

 will not be lost on this variety. We have known some 

 breeders give Belgian hares the run of a loft, and the 

 results, so far as length, style, and raciness of the animal 

 are concerned, have been marvellous, especially amongst 

 growing young stock. Flemish Giants, which ought 

 never to be less than nibs, to i3lbs. in weight to satisfy 

 the standard, must have large hutches. Angoras, too, 

 need a hutch quite 3 feet long, with additional length for 

 breeding purposes. It is not the height that affects so 

 much, provided there is space on the floor of the hutcn. 

 English are another kind that need a little larger hutch 

 than the smaller breeds, such as Dutch and Silvers. We 

 would like to emphasise, on the question of housing, that 

 no matter whether rabbits are kept outdoors or in, the 

 single hutch or stacks of hutches should always be so 

 placed as to provide for an air-current all round them, 

 while being kept religiously free from draught. 

 Hutches are easily made. A box of the size required 

 can be fitted with a front by the amateur carpenter in a 

 very short time. Of course some prefer joiner-made 

 hutches of uniform pattern, elaborately finished, but 

 that is not absolutely necessary. That is more for 

 appearance than utility. If the rabbits are kept indoors, 

 the hutch fronts can be made more open than those out- 

 of-doors. That means a more liberal use of wire 

 netting. But whether kept out-of-doors or in, narrow 

 mesh (say about } inch) netting is always best, as it 



