Are you looking for a Cardboard toy to give your rabbit something to chew and stop them getting bored?
We have reviewed the most popular types of Cardboard chew tubes, Boxes and Pop-up Tents and Tunnels as well as Cardboard castles and tell you their good and bad points.
We tested them with our rabbits to share their reactions as well as rating them for Value for money, Mess and Noise nuisance.
We explain how these toys can help control unwanted behavior and how they provide entertainment to keep your rabbit healthy and happy.
Don't waste money on a toy that may end up being discarded, take a look at our round up below so you can choose the best cardboard toy for your rabbit.
Fun:
Value for money:
Mess:
Noise: Silent
The cardboard chew tube serves as a simple hideout and a chew toy. Your rabbit will love sheltering in it as well as shredding the layers of paper off.
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Fun:
Value for money: Great value
Mess:
Noise: Annoying
Overall, a Cardboard house rabbit toy is the best choice if you're looking for a chew toy to keep your rabbit entertained for the longest time
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Fun: Irrisistable!
Value for money: Very expensive
Mess: A bit untidy
Noise: Annoying
Most rabbit owners find that a cardboard box provides all-around entertainment for their rabbits, and the best part is that it’s free!
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Most pet stores stock cardboard chew tubes because they offer excellent value for money, combining a tunnel toy, shelter, and chew toy all in one.
These colorful tubes are made from thick cellulose board, which is safe for your rabbit to chew.
Rabbits quickly discover they can strip the layers of papery material off, providing endless entertainment.
Chew tubes come in various sizes, so make sure you choose one big enough for your rabbit to hop through comfortably, especially if they are a larger breed.
You can leave them out as an activity toy for your rabbit to jump through. They also make great hideouts for your rabbit to relax in when they want some shelter.
Since they tend to roll around it's best to push them against a wall or wedge something next to them for stability.
We got one of these when we set up a room for some baby bunnies, and it became an instant hit.
Hopping through it quickly became part of their routine, which they loved. Although the chew tube does create a bit of shredded paper mess, it’s easy to tidy up.
As our rabbits grow older, they discard the tube as a tunnel toy and use it primarily as a giant chew toy, which they enjoy.
We also tried alternatives like alfalfa-coated tubes, thinking they would be more entertaining.
However, they didn't attract any more attention than the basic cardboard ones and created a lot more mess that quickly spread around the room.
A common issue with bunnies is chewing on wallpaper. They can't resist getting their teeth under the paper and tugging it off in strips.
While it's difficult to completely prevent this habit without fencing off your walls, providing your rabbit with fun and acceptable alternatives can help.
Cardboard chew toys are ideal as they are made from multiple layers of papery material.
The cardboard chew tube serves as a simple hideout and a chew toy. Your rabbit will love sheltering in it as well as shredding the layers of paper off.
Fun:
Value for money:
Mess:
Noise: Silent
If you had to choose the best chew toy to keep your rabbit occupied, a cardboard castle or house would be the winner. Your rabbit can spend hours customizing it by stripping off ribbons of paper from it and chewing away at it to create new entrances.
The shelter it provides can help your rabbit feel more secure and offers them a space to call their own in a room you share.
If you have a large rabbit we recommend getting the biggest castle available so your rabbit can move around comfortably inside it.
We wouldn’t want to be without a cardboard box for our bunnies to play in. They often become so attached to the dens they create that they get upset when the boxes eventually fall apart.
While you can use any suitable cardboard box, we prefer these options because there's no need to worry if it's safe, and they look nicer.
Lastly, it's worth noting that box munching can be noisy so you may want to keep this out of a bedroom.
There are many ways a cardboard box can help with the bunny proofing you do around the home.
Rabbits love shredding and tearing things up with their teeth, and a cardboard box will give them something to satisfy this need. It will also help distract them from chewing on your wallpaper or other soft furnishings.
It will offer an acceptable alternative that will satisfy your rabbit's instinctive need to tailor their environment. This can be a good way of stopping your rabbit from tugging up your carpet or chewing under your bed or behind your sofa.
It can also be used as a simple defense against chewing furniture, baseboards, or wallpaper. Simply place it up against areas of your home you want to protect.
Overall, a Cardboard house rabbit toy is the best choice if you're looking for a chew toy to keep your rabbit entertained for the longest time
Fun:
Value for money: Great value
Mess:
Noise: Annoying
If we had to recommend any toy to keep rabbits endlessly entertained, a cardboard box would be at the top of the list.
Cardboard boxes make ideal hideouts, and that's why most rabbit owners have one at home. They provide a spacious shelter where rabbits can feel safe and relaxed. They also make great chew toys and rabbits enjoy shredding the cardboard and customizing the box to their liking, keeping them occupied for hours.
If you give your rabbit a box to play with, there are a few considerations.
First, choose a box that is large enough for your rabbit to turn around in. If it’s a larger box, ensure it’s sturdy and can be secured tightly to avoid it collapsing if your rabbit jumps on top of it.
It's best to choose a box made of plain cardboard without heavy inks or colors, and avoid boxes with plastic or shiny finishes.
Ensure the box has not been used to contain chemicals or other materials that could be harmful. The safest boxes typically come from supermarkets and are used for food.
Before letting your rabbit play with the box, remove any staples or tape, as these can be dangerous if swallowed. Boxes held together with glue are also unsuitable.
Finally, fold the flaps over to secure them tightly and prevent your rabbit from falling through if they jump on top. If you’re concerned about finding a suitable box, you can always purchase one online.
We wouldn’t be without a cardboard box for our bunnies to play in. rances can become bothersome.
We now collect boxes and seize every opportunity to gather them, especially if they are double-skinned.
Box munching can be noisy, so we usually avoid keeping a box in our bedroom.
A cardboard box can be particularly useful for bunny proofing.
You can use it to block areas where your rabbit has developed a chewing habit, covering up sections of carpet they are tugging at.
It can also be positioned against baseboards or wooden furniture to prevent soft wood from being chewed.
Since rabbits can be determined when they find a chew project, you may need to weigh the box down to prevent it from being moved aside.
Most rabbit owners find that a cardboard box provides all-around entertainment for their rabbits, and the best part is that it’s free!
Fun: Irrisistable!
Value for money: Very expensive
Mess: A bit untidy
Noise: Annoying
Cardboard scratch toys are similar to a cat scratching board, but they are designed with rabbits in mind.
These toys are made from multiple sheets of corrugated cardboard sliced across the grain. They come in simple packs of sheets or as a freestanding block.
More elaborate toys come with a wooden frame that has a rotating ball covered in sisal rope.
Your rabbit will enjoy digging into and chewing the soft corrugated cardboard. However, it's essential to ensure they don’t consume too much, as this can upset their stomach.
If this becomes an issue, you might consider using a grassy mat, which serves as a more natural chew toy.
Our rabbits love wearing down their teeth on the corrugated cardboard, so this toy was an instant success.
We found that scattering treats on the pad allows them to discover hidden goodies in the folds, making it a simple foraging toy.
This method lets them enjoy treats longer, as they had to forage for them.
You can never have enough new toys to keep your rabbit occupied as their novelty can wear off quickly.
These scratch pads are excellent distractions and help curb some of your rabbit's unwanted chewing behavior.
It is the perfect toy for rabbits that enjoy shredding and digging. They come in packs of simple scratching boards or more sturdy wooden-framed toys.
Fun: Very exciting
Value for money:
Mess:
Noise: quiet
Keeping your pet rabbit healthy and happy is crucial, and having plenty of toys to play with is an essential part of achieving that. However, toy expenses can add up quickly. This is where cardboard toys come in handy. They are inexpensive and can often be obtained for free.
Cardboard boxes and castles make great shelters. Your rabbit will love customizing to suit their own needs. Chewing cardboard can also offer a source of fiber and help wear down their teeth.
They also can act as a great distraction from unwanted behavior such as chewing carpet, baseboards and wallpaper and wooden furniture.
When it comes to choosing the right cardboard toys for your furry friend you really are spoiled for choice however, there are some old favorites that every bunny patient keeps to hand as they have proven to be invaluable to keep your rabbit's teeth in good condition and stop them getting bored.
Toilet roll tubes can be lots of fun to nibble on and toss about and nearly always to hand. Cardboard boxes and Castles can become a much-loved hideout for your rabbit that will enjoy customizing into the perfect hideout.
In this guide we review the most popular types of cardboard toys, many of which are free and try to give you an idea of what to expect from the toy and your rabbit's reaction to it. We discuss their pros and cons to help you choose the best toy for your rabbit.
Cardboard toys have many benefits to your rabbit's health and this is at the center of our reviews. We consider how good they will be in providing Fiber to help your rabbits tummy, how helpful they are in wearing down your rabbit teeth and the positive and negative behavior they could cause when you introduce them.
We examine what each toy is made from and guide you on how good the materials are for your rabbit to digest. We would not review toys that are glued together or constructed from materials we consider harmful.
Every rabbit is different, and we understand they will treat the toys in different ways. Some rabbits will overindulge when eating a toy which may be a problem if they eat too much, other rabbits may simply ignore the toy.
In this guide we help you understand how quickly they can be consumed and whether this may be a problem.
In this guide we also show you the many ways each toy can be used to help you rabbit proof your home, this is after all our specialist subject.
Some toys can be good at providing the digestive fiber you rabbit may be seeking out by chewing your baseboards, wallpaper and wooden furniture.
Others can help satisfy your rabbits instinctive need to tailor their environment and can be good at stopping your rabbit tugging up your carpet or chewing under your bed or behind your sofa.
Others can simply be used as a way of protecting areas of your home that are a focus of this unwanted behavior.
In this guide we match the rabbit proofing problem with the toy so you can make sure you are providing a safe and acceptable alternative that will satisfy your rabbits instinctive needs and avoid expensive repairs to your home.
We have been house rabbit owners for over 20 years and have tested out all of these toys here at Bunny proof HQ with our own bunnies, they didn't seem to mind too much. We share their reactions and tell you how these toys performed over time.
We know every rabbit is different, so we have gathered lots of advice from our rabbit proofing Facebook group which has over 50K members at the time this article was written.
This has helped us to discover what toys seem to be a success and what toys have caused unexpected problems.
To help you compare each toy we have given them a rating on three criteria, Value for money, fun and mess.
Value for money - How expensive they are compared to how long they will last
Fun - How much time your rabbit will spend with the toy compared to its other toys
Mess - How much mess may spread about and how hard it is to clean up
Noise - How much of a nuisance this toy may become especially if left out during the night
We created these reviews to help other likeminded rabbit owners with help and advice. We are not affiliated with any other companies or organizations.
We chose these cardboard rabbit toys based on our own experience and that of the 50K members of our bunny-proofing Facebook group.