I recently had to have my lovely rabbit Rhubarb put down as he developed an aggressive Pasteurella infection which couldn’t be treated in the long term, so the vet and I felt it kindest to have him euthanised. I lost two guinea pigs a few months ago, which could have been from the same thing…difficult to tell but they went down with a severe respiratory infection and succumbed quite quickly, and that is something that can happen with Pasteurella in piggies. I’m not sure, but Cherry and Piglet seem fine, although Cherry gets a little wheezy at times.
They have been living in the boot room area of my kitchen – formerly a dog area as my cottage is a tied farmworkers house and it boasts things like built-in cupboards, a proper pantry, and a dog kennel in the kitchen. There’s only one plug in each room but that only bothers my children! I wanted to move the guineas outside but obviously it is really cold at the moment, and although the boot room is chilly, it’s not that cold. I do, however, want to have them outside all year round eventually as I have no back porch so that area is really useful for well, boots, as well as dog food, cat litter etc.
I looked at hutches, but I have been so disappointed in the typical offerings when investigating previously, and I wanted something that didn’t need treating, or troubled with mites, or rot, or get chewed.
I have wooden houses for the hens as when I was setting up 11 years ago, the Omlet ones were prohibitively expensive and I was in full rural living mode having lived in the middle of town for 15 years, hence my decision to go with Flyte So Fancy. If I had my time again I would go with Omlet, just sayin’. FSF have been brilliant but the legs have suffered in the clay, and the red mites love it unfortunately.
I was impressed with the speed of delivery but £16 with DHL was the cheapest option. It arrived well packaged and with clear instructions. I got to work building the house and the run then panicked I wouldn’t be able to fit it through my door so finished it outside.
They have thought of everything. It’s super secure and feels genuinely cosy in there even in the strong winds and low temperature we’ve been having. I like the double-walled insulation; a bit like a WBC for small furries.
It comes with an integral hay rack and water bottle which being inside, means it stays clean and unfrozen. I bought a caddy for treats, which I am using for hay. The cover is great, with strong hooks and elastic, and covers the whole of the top of the run.
They are still coming in at night, and I will probably put them in a bigger run during the summer when there is grazing to be done as I’m not sure how well they can eat the grass once it gets longer as the mesh will squash it down. All in all though, I am really pleased with it.
Have you used Omlet products for your animals? How would you rate them?
Wayward Bee 
Sorry to hear about Rhubarb. Need to catch up on your wonderful Patreon. Been a suitably unpredictable spring for my bees. Sady lost the top bar colony. They had been doing really well and then we had a lot of unseasonably cold and wet weather for quite a while (only warming up properly now). So I had foolishly assumed that because there was plenty of forage around they would be ok, but unfortunately they used up their stores and weren’t able to replenish. I ended up feeding the Warre colony and they are doing well (fingers crossed). If there is a silver lining it will be putting an observation window in the empty hive. found it really handy with the Warre thanks to your great tip.
Hope you are well Jennifer. I am enjoying life slowly beginning to feel more normal after very long lockdowns here. Feel very grateful for my garden and nearby forest.
Lots of love
Pen xo
Hi Pen – how lovely to hear from you. That’s a shame about your top bar…so difficult to judge and often there are multiple factors, but like you say, good opportunity to reevaluate.
Covid still doing its thing here but you’re right, solace in nature is a real blessing!
Lots of love to you too 🙂