Fulltiming and bunnies..

I posted in the introductions page, but I am reposting some info here so this post makes sense. I didn't see a place for pets, so since we are looking into fulltiming it, I thought I'd post it here.

My husband and I are looking into living in an RV full time. The trucking company he has been with for 20 years closed in Sept. of this year and he is looking for a new job. We are currently selling our house and we have been thinking of living in an RV instead of renting a house.

I raise rabbits for show and pets. I would like to continue to do this while living in an RV. We would be stationary for 6 months at a time. We have been looking into staying in Texas during the winter months and living in a northern state (like Colorado, North or South Dakota, or Montana) in the summer months depending on what job he gets. We'd only be moving twice a year.

We are currently thinking about turning a 5th wheel into a rabbitry and taking it with us for the rabbits to stay in or finding a place where we could put hutches or put them in a building and be able to live in our 5th wheel.

Does anyone know an RV park that would allow this or some other way to accomplish this? I know it's kind of weird, but this is a hobby I love and don't want to give up the rabbits if I don't have to. We also have a couple of dogs, cats and a guinea pig and plan on taking them too. They aren't the issue though as I know that most campgrounds accept these kinds of pets. Just trying to figure out how to take the bunnies.

Thank you.

I would love to travel with a few bunnies in my motorhome, but I don't think Hef would allow it. ;D

We also have a couple of dogs, cats and a guinea pig and plan on taking them too.

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Unfortunately, that by itself may be enough to keep you out of many campgrounds.  Campgrounds aren't like a house - you don't have a yard buffering you from your neighbors.  All too often pets left alone in the confines of a RV get frustrated and/or scared at all the different noises and smells, barking anytime anyone approaches the rig - even people walking or driving by, or even being outside the rig parked next door.

And that's even before considering the bunnies.

Renting a building for your hobby brings up similar concerns.  When the building owner finds out you're living in a local campground, his first thought will be that you'll just up and disappear, leaving him with a roomfull of bunnies and their mess.

Your best bet would be to find someone who owns property in the country and make arrangements to stay with them for the season.  But this is a lot harder to set up in advance, especially when you're not in the area, than it is to just check into a campground.  Do you have any contacts that you've met through your breeding hobby?

I don't know about Texas.. but I suspect you'd be welcome where I'm parked in Georgia.. Weather is fairly nice when it's not raining. Have yet to have anything freeze (though a neighbor did one night.. His outside hose)  and you can always watch the ponies (horses actually, not racers, just the owner's pets)  Cathead Creek Ranch RV park, Townsend, GA. 3 miles off I-95.  One turn Easy directions.  Call 1st. NOTE. you will likely have to leave voice mail. 24 sites.

seilerbird said:

I would love to travel with a few bunnies in my motorhome, but I don't think Hef would allow it. ;D

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I wondered the same thing when I saw the title. Didn't open it until saw some other folks had been responding. Think this idea through very very carefully. I imagine those bunnies would be much higher maintenance than tarzan and jane!

I have rabbits in the past. I think you would have to get real good at timing your breedings and your moves. My mommas wouldn't have tolerated the jostling and I would arrive to abandoned or eaten kits. You could probably manage a small hutch with a couple of your favorites but if you need a dedicated rabbit trailer, my opinion is you need to choose between the travel and the bunnies.

chaplainrobert said:

I wondered the same thing when I saw the title. Didn't open it until saw some other folks had been responding. Think this idea through very very carefully. I imagine those bunnies would be much higher maintenance than tarzan and jane!

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Much more maintenance but a lot more fun. 8)

The Robert part of my user name says "yes, it would be" but the chaplain part smacks me and says "don't go there, fool".  Probably better listen to the chaplain part. Yours was a clever post, nonetheless.

We wouldn't be traveling like most people on these posts would. I wouldn't even consider this if we were campground hopping, month to month. I would want to be somewhere for at least 6 months, no more than 2 moves a year. For me, living in an RV is an alternative to having a house. I would love to just buy a place to put our RV and make new roots, but I am not sure we'd be able to financially before we moved. I have my rabbits inside a barn now, with drop pans and such. We're already working on a plan for a mobile rabbitry.

As far as raising the rabbits, I would be timing my breedings to when and if we would be moving to another area. Rabbits travel pretty good. People take them to rabbit shows all the time. Most do real well. There are the exceptional overly nervous ones. But I know most of them would rather just stay put. Thing is, they'll have be moved eventually, one way or another, even if it is to a stationary place.

I am more looking for people who might know of places that would accept the rabbits. I know I am kind of limited here. I am pretty confident I can do it somehow. Where there's a will, there's a way.

Blessings

There used to be a couple here on the Forum that traveled with rabbits. They kept them in dog crates under the kitchen table. They ran loose in the motor home when they were there.

I think their last name was Joy. Haven't seen them on the Forum in years.

Alaskansnowbirds said:

I think their last name was Joy. Haven't seen them on the Forum in years. 

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That was Joe and Joy Frost, and they haven't been around here in many years.  The last time we visited with them was in 1999.  We remember their rabbits, you could smell them almost before they opened the door

Ned said:

We remember their rabbits, you could smell them almost before they opened the door

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This is why it will not work in 99% of camp grounds. No way to sugar it camp ground owners will not put up with the smell and everything that goes along with them. I raised them when I was a kid and if you feed them 10 lbs of food you would end up with 15 lbs of droppings and the smell is unforgettable.

Denny

I am not FT yet, but we are in our final leg of 2 months - drove from Texas to Calgary, rented a house there for a month, now on our way back to Texas - with ONE rabbit.  totally different from what you are doing, but I thought I would chime in.  When we drove north, we kept Rupert in a carrier in the floor of the back seat when we were driving, and then he was free roaming in the trailer when we were stopped.  he seemed stressed, but he did well.  he is an old guy, who I have had for 10 years, so not taking him was not an option.  Anyway, for the trip back south, he has been just loose on the floor by my feet when we are driving, and he seems much happier this trip.

managing things with a pet is a challenge, but managing multiples in hutches would be prohibitive for most campgrounds, I would think.  I love rabbits, and I have lived with rabbits for over 16 years, but I wouldn't want to be parked next to a rabbitry.  I don't like being parked next to barking dogs or smelly BBQ, either.

this was our test voyage.  When we get back on the road, it will be with one cat and two rabbits.  I am nervous about that!  not sure where they are going to stay while we are driving...

--janis