How to make free bunny toys from toilet roll tubes
Inside this article
One of the best toys you can give your bunny which is not only free but has an almost limitless supply is the humble toilet roll tube. From simply stacking them up so your bunny can knock them down and toss them around to snuffing them with hay and hanging them down with bits of string the toy you can make are only limited by your imagination.
To help give you some ideas we have made a load of toilet roll toys and tried them out on our bunny to see what he thought of them. In this guide we show you step by step how we built them and give you our bunnies opinion of what he thought of them.
Each example can be made in a few minutes, so start collecting old rolls and try making some for yourself.
Twig tree bunny toy
A twig tree bunny toy can be a great way of keeping your bunny interested in willow sticks
If your bunny like chew on twigs, then a great way of making them more interesting is to push then through a toilet roll to make a twig tree. This will help keep them together in one place, off the floor and stop them being pushed to the corners of the room, where interest in them can be quickly lost. Remember not all wood is good for bunnies so check it OK first or buy them from a pet store so you know they are OK for your bunny to chew on.
You will need
1 toilet roll tube
Some willow sticks from a pet store or another bunny safe twig
Pen or another pointed implement
Step 1
Take the toilet roll and push a pencil or other pointed implement through one side and out the other.
Step 2
Push the twigs through the holes and repeat in a different place.
What our bunny thought about it
This toy was a success with our bunny, he enjoyed tossing it about and within a few hours had chewed some of the sticks down to the roll where he would usually only nibble at them. We got the willow sticks from a pet store but going forward we will source our own. The only concern with this toy was that it could cause a problem if a careless bunny were to run in to it and poke themselves.
A great toy that makes the most of willow twigs
Treat tumbler bunny toy
A great way of making the treats last a bit longer
The only problem with giving your bunny treats is they often don't last very long. A way to keep your bunny amused for longer is to hide them in a toy like a treat tumbler. It may take a while for your bunny to get the hang of this at first but when their natural foraging instincts take over and they work out pushing the roll around makes treats coming out they will always go back to it.
You will need
1 toilet roll tube
Small pellet food or small treats
Some paper or tissue
Scissors
Step 1
Take the toilet roll and cut a small hole in the middle a bit bigger than the treats you are putting inside
Step 2
Take a sheet of paper or tissue and ball it up then wedged it into one end of the toilet roll
Step 3
Tip some treats into the open end of the tube, no need to fill it up just put in the same amount you would use for a treat, it can always be refilled
Step 4
Finally take another ball of paper or tissue and block the other end up
What our bunny thought about it
When we gave this to our bunny he loved it at first but soon lost interest in pushing it around when the treats started ran out. The next time we gave it to him he simply chewed his way into it which was fun while it lasted.
Hay ball bunny toy
For some reason only known to bunnies hay tastes much better when its in a toilet roll
If you don't mind a bit of mess and want to encourage your bunny to eat more fiber then a fun toy can be made out of a ball of hay covered with strips cut from a toilet roll tube. It probably won't last very long but will be fun for your bunny tossing it about and breaking in toit.
You will need
Toilet roll tube
Some course hay
Scissors
Step 1
Take the roll and cut it into 1 inch strips, this should leave you with about 5 rings.
Step 2
Take a hand full of hay and make it into a ball about the size of your fist.
Step 3
Slide a ring over the ball, you want it to be quite a tight fit or it will fall apart quite quickly.
Step 4
Repeat in different direction till the hay is covered up and it makes a ball.
What our bunny thought about it
Although this toy was quite tricky to make, it lasted a surprisingly long time when we gave it to our bunny. We thought it would simply be ripped apart, but he enjoyed knocking it about and chewing the hay poking out the sides. It made a lot more mess then simply stuffing a toilet roll with hay though!
A fun toy that your bunny will love, as long as you don't mind the mess
Hay roll bunny toy
A simple way of keeping your bunny busy and getting them to eat more hay
A simple way of providing an engaging toy and getting your bunny to eat their hay is to stuff the hay into a toilet roll. Its best to use course hay otherwise it can simply fall out. We found it was helpful to fold in the ends of the roll to prevent the hay coming out too easily.
You will need
1 toilet roll tube
Some course hay
Step 1
Take a hand full of hay, you are going to need enough to fill the roll. You can make this fit more securely by folding the hay over a few times.
Step 2
Next take the toilet roll and push the hay inside so it fits firmly.
Step 3
Lastly to stop the hay coming out to easily take your thumb and push down on the edge of the roll at the ends so it folds in making the opening smaller.
What our bunny thought about it
Our bunny quite liked this toy when we tried it out on hem, probably because of the hay which he could pull out and make a mess with. It was simple to make and was more interesting than just a toilet roll on its own.
Probably the most popular bunny toy people make
Hanging hay roll bunny toy
This toy is great fun if a little messy
If you really want to give your bunny a special treat you could try making a hanging toy. If you set this up just above your bunnies head height it guaranteed to keep your bunny amused reaching for it. We stuffed the roll with treats hay and even some greens and hung them of clothes dryer.
You will need
1 toilet roll tube
Some course hay
Pen or another pointed implement
Scissors
Step 1
Take a pencil and make a small hold halfway along the tube.
Step2
Next pass a length of string through the hole and tie it off on the inside so it won't pull through.
Step 3
Next stuff the toilet roll with some hay, greens or other treats.
Step 4
Next find somewhere to hang this so it dangles down at head height
What our bunny thought about it
This was probably one of the best toys we have made for our bunny. Every time he came in the room, he would go up to it and have a little nibble. Although it takes some setting up it was worth the effort and is a toy we would make again. The only down sides was the mess that it made and we were a bit worried he may get tangled up in it so we only used it when we could supervise this.
Skittles bunny toy
Perfect for bunnies that love tossing things about
Bunnies love to knock things down, turn things over and toss them about. The simplest things to do with a few toilet rolls is to stack them up on top of each other. Now all you have to do is wait and eventual the temptation will become too much, and you bunny will inspect them and knock them over. Once your bunny gets the hang of this, this game that can go on for just about as long as you want to play it.
You will need
At least 5 toilet roll tubes
What to do
All you need to do is build the stacks up, wait and your bunny will not be able to resist knocking them over.
What our bunny thought about it
We always have lots of fun playing this game, it seems our bunny cannot let them stay standing in the room for very long and feels compelled to knock them down then toss them about. We did admittedly hide some treats under them to make this more fun. It worth having a stack of these for when you want to sit on the floor and play with when they get tired of petting.
This simple toy is a great was of playing with your bunny
Treat hider bunny toy
A great way of letting your bunny exercise their natural foraging instincts
A simple toy you can make that will keep your bunny busy foraging is to pack a bunch of toilet rolls inside another toilet roll so treats can be wedged inside the folds at the ends. Simple but effective.
You will need
At least 5 toilet tubes
Step 1
Take the first toilet roll then roughly fold another roll along its length and slide it inside.
Step 2
Repeat this until the first roll is packed out will a number of rolls leaving a few gaps.
Step 3
Finally push some treats into the folds at each end.
What our bunny thought about it
This toy was a lot more fun than the treat tumbler we built, and the smell of treats kept our bunny interested. Surprisingly he didn't just eat the treats be also enjoyed tossing it about as well. We keep all the toilet roll tubes in our house and tend to leave them on the floor for our bunny so this was also a good way of tidying them up when he was getting bored of them.
The ultimate toy for a bored bunny
Spiral bunny toy
An easy and fun toy especially if you hang it up somewhere
If your bunny likes to reach up and tug at things for instance pulling magazines on coffee tables then this toy could be for you. By cutting a toilet roll in a spiral you can make a simple kind of spring that can be placed just above your bunnies head height so your bunny can reach up and tug on it.
You will need
1 toilet roll tubes
Scissors
Step 1
Take the roll and start cutting into one edge at about 15 degrees.
Step 2
Continue cutting in a spiral till you have made spring like shape.
Step3
You can just leave this out as it is, but it's more fun to hang it down just above head height.
What our bunny thought about it
We tried this toy out on our bunny and although easy to make he soon lost interest and eventually is was left untouched. We tried hanging it down but compared to the hay rolls didn't prove interesting so we left it on the floor where our bunny tried to toss it about, but he didn't seem to find this much fun either.
An easy toy to make but may not be your favorite thing to play with
Rattle bunny toy
A great toy if your bunny likes making a noise but not too much noise
Bunnies love playing with toys they can toss about that they can make a noise with and this toy does both. It's a simple idea to slice up a load of old toilet rolls tubes then thread them on a string however the toy has a lot of appeal. It's also a good way of keeping the mess together and as the rings get munched off you can keep adding more.
You will need
3 toilet roll tubes
Step 1
Take the toilet roll tubes and cut them into slices about 1 inch across.
Step 2
Cut a length of sting about 8 inches long.
Step 3
Thread the slices onto the string and tie the ends together.
What our bunny thought about it
Out bunny loves noisy toys so liked playing with this and got quite animated tossing it about. It was also good for us as we could leave it out at night as the rustling it made was not so loud that it will keep us up compared to some of his other store-bought rattles and balls with bells in.
A simple way of keeping your toilet rolls toys together
