The M-n-M Rabbit Barn was completed in the spring of 2004. The original barn was built in the spring of 2001. We built the barn from the ground up for our bunnies!
Inside, the barn is split between the old half, which houses our New Zealand stud and New Zealand and Palomino brood cages, and the new half. The new half houses our New Zealand growing cages and our Mini Rex, Holland Lop, and Palomino lines. With the exception of 16 stacked cages in the center, the cages have one of two manure troughs underneath them, which we plan to add worms to later. The old cage row consists of 12 brood cages and 8 regular cages. The new cage row has 40 cages, with 20 on top and 20 on the bottom. 8 are equipped as brood cages. Plastic chutes move manure to the floor. Heavy steel posts support the lower tier, while the second tier is suspended from the ceiling. These 40 cages are watered by 4 individual automatic watering systems. The cages themselves are built with rings and aluminum J-clips, so it's not likely they'll rust for a long time. They have plastic removable and variable-sized dividers and 4 walls to each cage for improved ventilation and to quarantine easier.
The 28' x 30' pole barn is fully insulated, has 12 windows (6 on top, 6 on bottom), and a 30' ridge vent to control the environment inside. We hang box fans through the windows in the summer. We also have a 1/2 horsepower 4-turbine fan that Ryan refurbished in the fall of 2004. This fan both moves air to the ridge vent and cools the water tanks. We have three sliding doors and a utility door that we can open to let the breeze in. Two additional 1/2 horsepower fans were added in the summer of 2007 for cross-ventilation through the sliding doors. 100' of soaker hose is attached to the roof in the summer and activated if the inside temperature surpasses 85 degrees.
Click here to see some pictures of the construction process!
