In order to comply with our USDA Exhibitor's license requirements we must renovate the barn that we house the rabbits and guinea pigs in their roomy free-range enclosures. The interior walls and partition must be covered in washable waterproof material- such as merlite, linoleum, vinyl flooring, vinyl siding, or corroplast (corrugated plastic like is used for yard signs); the bottom 2-3 feet must be covered in metal- to prevent chewing through. Rolled Insulation is optional but would be great! The ceiling must be finished as well- it can be plywood, chipboard, drywall or other material sturdy enough to hold up the rolled insulation that is there already and seal it in. Half of it is already done. Currently the walls are bare wood with studs exposed and chicken wire & chain link are used as the barriers. This is effective but not able to be washed and sanitized completely. The lower part of the barn (the area used here) is approx 40 ft x 20 ft x 8 ft tall. The floor is cement and acceptable as it is. |
Rabbit/Guinea Pig Enclosure Renovation project Lauren Stran's Girl Scout Gold Award Project for Troop 595 is complete! Thank you!!!! Contact us to donate to the project Work Day 1 was January 31 & We worked about 11 hours! Work day 2 was Valentine's Day Feb 14 & We worked about 10 hours! It is way warmer and cleaner in the enclosure! Yay! The educational signs Lauren made are fantastic too! The inspector said the renovations was "PHENOMENAL!" He said that our rabbits and guinea pigs have an optimal life here. We are very glad to be able to provide such care after the difficult lives some of these pets have had. |
Before: |
Finishing up in the dark with spot lights! Insulated, drywalled and half the Marlite and metal lining done! |
After we finished up late in the evening on Valentine's Day we fed the piggies & bunnies their fresh veggies & look what the piggies did- they chewed a red bell pepper in the shape of a heart! Amazing!!!!! They must really love their new enclosure! |
Work Day 2 - Valentine's Day 2009 We finished it all up working into the evening again! It is wonderful!!!! |
Fox News Good Day Shout Out featured Lauren's work on the project! See our video here too! |