Rabbit Care

  • Bunny basics to make your pet’s life sunny

    Rabbits can make excellent pets, provided they are given the correct care they need. It is important, therefore, to keep your rabbit as naturally as possible to keep him healthy and happy. A healthy and contented rabbit will be inquisitive, playful and fun to watch.

    Before acquiring a rabbit, it is worth remembering that they can live for approximately 10 years. Also, they are not low maintenance pets – they require as much attention as other companion animals.

    Rabbits are intelligent animals who enjoy playing and exploring. They are also sensitive, so they are not suitable pets for very your children.

    We hope the following advice will help you to give the best care to your bunny.

  • Companionship

    Rabbits are social animals. It is important to keep your rabbit with at least one other rabbit for company. Rabbits, who live alone, can become depressed and suffer with behavioural problems as a result. In the wild, rabbits live in groups of 8-15. This helps to keep them safe, as there are more eyes and ears to look and listen for danger from predators like foxes.

  • Feeding and water

    In addition to manufactured dry rabbit food, your rabbit will need to have fresh vegetables to eat, spring greens and carrots, as well as pieces of twig to nibble – e.g. from apple trees. Rabbits also like to eat short grass and other wild planets such as clover and dandelions. Rabbits kept in hutches can have problems with their teeth growing to long. A rabbits teeth can grow at a rate of 1-2mm per week! Access to grass, twigs or crunchy vegetables will help to keep this growth in check, otherwise the results can be very painful. So providing a natural diet for your rabbit will help to keep his teeth healthy. Rabbits also need access to fresh, clean water every day.

  • Housing and bedding

    Your rabbit needs to be kept in a comfortable, weather-protected and safe environment where he has plenty of space. Clean bedding is very important for your rabbit. One of the main causes of ill-health and suffering in pet rabbits is caused by living in unhygienic hutch conditions. A rabbit is as risk of mites, fly strikes (see Health Check) and urine scald, as well as maggot infestation if his housing environment is not kept clean. Although hay and wood shavings are often used for bedding, rabbits can find this itchy and may become allergic to it. Rabbits in the wild will live on earth, so the most natural bedding to use is peat which can be purchased from garden centres

  • Activity time

    Rabbits in the wild are active dawn to dusk. During the day, rabbits will stay in their warrens in complete darkness, only coming out for short periods. This is because as a prey animal its safer to live underground during daytime. Your rabbit will, therefore, naturally prefer to stay inside during the day. Rabbits can suffer from heat stroke, so your rabbit needs to be kept protected from excess heat, or cold.

    The closer your rabbit is to eating and living like a natural rabbit, the happier and healthier he will be and more rewarding for you.

  • Health check

    • Fur: Fur should be clean and shiny. As rabbits moult several times a year, it is important to keep your pet regularly groomed to help keep his fur in good condition.
    • Ears: These should bee clean and dry. See your vet if your rabbit shakes his head frequently and is constantly scratching his ears.
    • Eyes: Eyes should be clean and bright.
    • Nose: The nose should be clean and dry. If your rabbit frequently sneezes, or has a runny nose, take him to the vet.
    • Teeth: A rabbit’s teeth never stop growing. So ensure your rabbit has twigs and crunchy vegetables to chew to help control this. If your rabbit’s teeth grow too long, or you suspect a dental problem take him to a vet.
    • Nails: These should be kept in trim and living in a natural environment where your rabbit has access to digging, will help to control growth. However, if the nails become too long, seek your vet’s advice.
    • Tail and Bottom: It is very important that your rabbit’s bottom is kept clean, to avoid “flystrike” .If you find eggs or maggots on your rabbit, take him to the vet immediately.
  • Exercise and safety

    Your rabbit needs to be able to exercise daily in a safe, enclosed space with grass to eat. This will also help to keep his nails trim. Your rabbit will need a place to escape – a number of large pipes (from builder’ merchants) are ideal.

    Rabbits in the wild have unlimited access to open spaces to exercise and run around. They live in warrens and spend most of the day underground in almost complete darkness. The warren has many holes leading into it where rabbits can escape when they feel threatened.

  • Vaccination and health care

    To protect your rabbit against killer diseases, such as Viral Haemorrphagic Disease and myxomatosis, it is important to get your pet vaccinated.

  • Neutering

    Neutering rabbits will mean that they can live with another rabbit without fighting or breeding. It is important to have your rabbit neutered at 4-6 months.

  • Insurance

    You may wish to consider pet insurance for your rabbit.

  • Bunny Basics Poster – Download

    You may want to have a poster to remind you about all the bunny basic care.

    Click here to Download / View a pdf file

  • The Rabbit Incident

    The Rabbit Incident

    One Saturday morning in May, I received a panicked text from Jacqueline – ‘There is a rabbit dumped outside my gate in a pet carrier. I go on holiday tonight! I don’t have any food for it or anywhere to house it. Can you help?’

    How could I say No.  We had a spare hutch having lost our 13 year old bunny a few months earlier.  I thought it could stay there until I could make arrangements to take it to a Rabbit Rescue such as Bobtails or Animal Lifeline where it would get a good chance of being re-homed.

    My husband offered to go and collect this rabbit, while I got the hutch prepared.  On his journey back he was deciding on names that could be easily changed from a male to a female one – Henry/Henrietta, Charles/Charlotte……

    On his return I said there is no way that we could keep it if it was female as a girl bunny would upset our other 5 neutered male bunnies.  I checked and it was a female and with much pleading from my husband we now have 6 bunnies again!

    Much to my surprise, my resident bunnies have taken no interest in her – perhaps she is not their type or pretty enough………..What do you think of Henrietta??

     

    Gill Osborne

  • Heartless Woman Throws Rabbit from a Car

    Heartless Woman Throws Rabbit from a Car

    A baby rabbit survived almost certain death on a road in Horley, when it was thrown in a plastic bag from the boot of a car by a heartless woman.

     

    The incident happened at Wheatfield Way, Langshott Estate on Sunday 18th October at around 3 pm and was witnessed by a member of the public who, at first, thought that the bag contained rubbish.  However on hitting the verge, the bag moved and to the horror of the man who witnessed it, a terrified white rabbit ran out into the middle of the road where it sat frozen with fear.  Luckily, the rabbit was quickly picked-up from the road by its rescuer.

    The witness, who does not wish to be named, said: “An old two-door, metallic aqua-blue Nissan Micra, with a 54 number plate pulled-up, a woman got out and went to the boot and took out a white plastic bag, threw it to the grass verge, got back in her car and drove off.  It was such a shock when the rabbit jumped out of the bag and ran into the road – it was a heartless thing to do.   Luckily I was able to rescue it before it got run over.  Then to my astonishment, the woman drove back and I pointed to the rabbit in my arms, but obviously she couldn’t have cared less.”

     

    The young ‘Lionhead’ rabbit is now being cared for by Animal Protection Trust.  Jacqueline Ward-Reel, chairman and co-ordinator, said: “This was a wanton act of cruelty. It would have been a terrifying experience and had the rabbit not been rescued so quickly, it would certainly have been killed on the road.  Luckily the poor little rabbit, which the vet has estimated to be under six months old, escaped injury and is now in the care of Animal Protection Trust.  If anyone has any further information about this awful incident which we can pass on to the RSPCA, please do not hesitate to contact us.”

     

    Animal Protection Trust is a registered charity, formed in 1984.  All the work carried out by the Trust is voluntary – no-one is paid.  Volunteers come from all walks of life but have one thing in common – the desire to help animals in need.   The charity does not charge for its services, or its animals and continues to be supported by public donations.  If you would like to support Animal Protection Trust, please write to: Animal Protection Trust, Coldlands Farm, Haroldslea, Horley, Surrey RH6 9PJ.  For further information, including animals needing homes, please visit the website: www.animalprotectiontrust.org.uk, or telephone 01293 782356.

     

    2nd November 2015                                                        

  • Story of the woman who threw a baby rabbit from her car makes the Crawley News

    Story of the woman who threw a baby rabbit from her car makes the Crawley News

    http://m.crawleynews.co.uk/Baby-rabbit-plastic-bag-thrown-car/story-28155519-detail/story.html?687