Advice on Rabbits

Silly_Sally

hey !!

just got a rabbit 4 my birthday an well don kno anythin bout them!?!

also have cats (gggrrr hate em) an ppl wer saying they wud eat poor mr rabbit? is this tru?

an like what do rabbits eat?!

Help!! clueless!!

Puddleduck

Is this real???
Google is your friend, as is your local vet. Im presuming that you have proper rabbit housing? So long as this is enclosed the cats shouldnt bother it, but it may stress the rabbit, so make sure he has a place to hide away.

kerrysgold

OK, I'm no expert on rabbits, but. You need 2 of them, they cannot be kept alone.
you need a proper cage for it to be put in at night if it is going to be kept indoors, you can let it have the run of your room as long as you make sure there are no wires etc. that it could chew. You will also need to build a little run outside as it will need to be put outside in warm weather.

Is you're current rabbit a male or a female? whatever it is, get it neutered and get a member of the opposite sex as a companion. (i.e. if you have a male now, get him neutered and get a female rabbit)

as for the cats, they may get used to him or they may see him as potential lunch! to be safe, keep them away from you're rabbit unless you are there to supervise.

as for food, you need to get some proper rabbit food from the petshop and you can also feed them fresh things like carrots, lettuce & apple every day as a snack.

feel free to ask questions anytime, there are lots of people to give you advice for the good of the animal.

animalcrazy

They need a large cage to and need to have a space to run around also. You can make your rabbit into a house rabbit and they can be trained to use a litter tray. For food go to a pet shop and buy the bag of food that says ''rabbit food'' it's very simple. 95% of their diet is hay too, the hay they eat needs to be bought in the pet shop. They can't eat the normal hay from farms. Veggies are also important in a rabbits diet. www.fosterbunnies.com/food.htm this link will let you know all about rabbits diet and their is a rabbit food pyramid too. Rabbits are not like cats and dogs and have different behaviour and aren't suitable as pets for children under the age of twelve as they don't like noise and most don't like to be picked up no matter how tame. It can take a long time for a rabbit to bond with you, I like to think of it this way, rabbits are just over grass in the food chain so they think everything is going to eat them until they learn to trust it. To help gain your rabbits trust. Sit in a small room on the floor with your rabbits, read a book and ignore the rabbits. They are curious animals and when come and investigate you. Let them crawl over you, but don't pet them! This way they will know you can be trusted do this for a few days and then give them treats when they investigate you eventually exchanging for head pats.

Most house cats won't harm your rabbits but some will, depends also on the size of your bunnies. Introduce them and watch out for the cats behaviour, taking away the rabbits if things get rough. I know alot about rabbit behaviour and rabbit care, too much to write out so let me know if your want anymore info. Ideally you should have researched before you got them.

A companion for your rabbit is important as they are very social creatures. I would recommend getting it neuteured and getting it a companion of the opposite sex. Never house them with guinea pigs, even though many people will say it will make a good companion it won't. Some people even believe chickens make a good companion.

mollydolly271

we had a rabbit years ago and my mam toilet trained it she had like a large roasting dish with wire mesh over it small enough holes in it so her feet didnt go through and large enough so her droppings did ( u get the idea) and she use to go in there very handy for cleanin

Sigma Force

Well first things first keep the cats away from the rabbit, I love cats but instinct can take over.

First thing your rabbit needs is a health check by a vet who knows their stuff.
Your rabbit needs a vaccination against Myxomatosis and then two weeks later a vaccination against VHD these are important. It is important that you leave 2 weeks between each vaccination.

Your rabbit must have hay and water at all times..very important never deprive a rabbit of food even if they are going under anesthetic. If you click on my guineapigcottage link below you will find more info on rabbit spaying/neutering and before and after care.

Be careful what you feed your rabbit some foods a toxic and can make your rabbit ill or even kill it. Never feed chocolate or sweets, avocado or rhubarb or iceberg lettuce..just avoid lettuce altogether is best. Go easy on any other dark green vegetables.

Safe foods to feed are carrots, broccoli, apple, pear, cauliflower. Safe herbs are oregano, thyme and rosemary. Ensure all these things are really well washed if you can pick organic fruit and veg. Also you can in some supermarkets get free veg for rabbits if they have a section where they cut off the ends of the broccoli and cauliflower you can bag it up. In Superquinn they call it a bunny bag.

Keep an eye on the rabbits poop it should be solid although they also produce a soft poop which they eat..this is normal. Eyes should be bright, skin and fur clean and clear of scurf or dandruff etc. Nails trim. Ears clean, teeth are important if your rabbit looses waits of refuses food the first thing to have the vet check is the teeth. If they are overgrown the rabbit can starve. Hard veg and wood gnaws you get in the pet shop and good quality hay will keep teeth trim.

Space also give the bun space to run around you could i possible provide the rabbit with an outdoor run with wire on the top and bottom that way the rabbit can run free but not be harmed by cats. Provide a warm shelter but be careful in summer, check rabbits bum for dirt as they are prone to flystrike in warm weather. Ensure the rabbit doesn't over heat as well.

Rabbits love cardboard boxes cut some holes in them and watch bun play.

Loads more but prob best getting a good bunny book also check out the links on my site for more info.

Noopti

One other tip, try and use Burgess rabbit food (in the green bag). It is pellet food that contains all the nutrients your rabbit needs. If the rabbit is unimpressed and picks at it, just persist. It will eventually get used to it and eat it.

Try not to use the mixed food bags, that is, the one with all the differant colored nibbles in it. Your rabbit will pick out the ones it likes and ignore the rest. It is a waste, and more importantly, it will not meet all it's nutritional needs.

And don't feed them lettuce, not matter what anyone says.