Ali’s Bunny Crossing

What’s involved -

“A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast”

Do you have what it takes to keep a pet rabbit?

Pet rabbits need daily and weekly attention. If kept indoors they must be kept away from drafts and young feet. If kept outdoors they must be sheltered appropriately and given enough attention. The following is a general outline of what owning a rabbit would involve.

Once a day:

Feed (morning or evening)

Check water supply

Tidy any things that have gotten in cage

Handle for at least five minutes and check to make sure all is healthy

Refill hay rack with fresh hay

Once a week:

Clean tray at bottom of cage (if you have a plastic floored bottom it must be changed everyday so don’t bother to get one!)

Give fresh water

Make sure the shelter is adequate

Let rabbit run around for at least an hour in a supervised place

Give fresh chew toys

If this sounds like too much please put this down and consider getting gerbils, if you think you can do this and more….read on!

Male or Female?

Many consider male rabbits to be friendlier but un-altered female rabbits can be just as friendly. Good care can make any shy rabbit friendly, and bad care can make the best bunny terrible!

Housing

Some does, that is, female bunnies, (from the same litter) can be kept together with enough space, otherwise you need to house all bunnies separately. An altered buck and doe duo will do fine together.

All cages need to be at the least 24”x18”x14” and preferably larger.

In this case, more is better.

Indoor cages can be purchased for Petco or Petsmart. Outdoor cages are harder to find. Sometimes breeders (like me! ) have them avalible, please be very careful when purchasing outdoor cages! They must be durable, safe, and comfortable!

Indoor or Outdoor?

Indoor rabbits get the most attention and shelter but they also need peace and constant smell control. The cage space is probably the biggest issue though. Outdoor rabbits can be just as good as long as you get a secure cage with shelter from wind, rain, and storms, as well as a steady supply of loving visitors. The temperature needs to be kept below 90 degrees at all times. On a hot day you can spray down the cage with mist, set up a fan, or give the rabbit a frozen water bottle to snuggle against.

Litter Box Training

Rabbits are the most easily litter boxed trained animals (even easier than cats!). By the time the rabbit is six months old they will have developed a corner that they go in. All you have to do is put a litter box in that corner. In about two weeks the rabbit will make the connection and you can practice by putting the rabbit outside in a run with a litter box somewhere and see if it works.

Feed

I use Nutriphase rabbit food mixed with some oatmeal on special occasions. Dwarfs should eat between ¼ -1/2 of a cup of food a day. I give you a sample of my food when you buy one of my rabbits. NEVER give your rabbit more than 17% protein in the food! You should also give your rabbit timothy hay to eat. It is fun for rabbits to do and helps their digestion – a must! When introducing fruits and veggies to your rabbit do it slowly, and never give more than ¼ of a cup of veggies and/or fruits a day to your rabbit. It can give them life-threatening diarrhea. Rabbits don’t like quick changes in diet so be aware of that when you feed them.

Water

Rabbits should have access to unlimited water at all times. A bottle or a crock are the dispensers to use, make sure they are always filled and working properly.

Toys

Rabbits aren’t stupid; they enjoy playing. You can give them cat balls, tennis balls, empty toilet paper rolls, oatmeal containers and anything they can pick up, roll, chew, or run around with. No one can be with their rabbit 24/7 and they get bored. A simple paper towel roll will provide hours of playtime.

Note: Rabbits (other than a light misting) should never be gotten wet unless you are willing to blow dry them thoroughly and the face and ears of a rabbit should never be gotten wet. Never overfeed greens to a rabbit. Be aware of plants that are poisonous to bunnys. Rabbits have delicate backs do not pick them up or allow other people to pick them up if they do not know how to handle them. Along with this never pick up a rabbit that is struggling, instead cover its eyes, darkness calms rabbits. If a rabbit starts to struggle when you are holding him put him down ASAP!

Any other questions? Feel free to ask me!