all you mini-rex bunny rabbit owners.......?

Question

I'm going to get a mini rex from a breeder, do you have any tips on how to care for it like what cage i need, where to keep it, what i cannot feed it, and like stuff like that thankx

Answer 1

Congratulations! I love mini rexes! The biggest tip I can give you is make sure you never give your bunny a bath with water! It ruins their fur. Instead, there are dry powder bath products that you can get that work extremely well for mini rexes. Now, apart from that, the breeder should provide you with at least a day's worth of the pelleted food that he/she uses (preferably they will give you at least a week's worth, but I've known a few to just give a day's worth). If he/she only gives you a small amount, ask exactly what kind it is...you want the brand and what type. That way you can go get more. A rabbit's stomach is extremely sensitive to changes in diet, and any changes you make need to be done over the course of several weeks. Assuming that you're getting a baby rabbit, you'll need to know exactly how old your bunny is. The reason for this is because as a baby bunny grows, it's nutritional needs change. From the time a kit is weaned to the age of 4 months, a bunny needs to be free fed all the pellets and alfalfa hay it wants (no fresh veggies, fruits, or anything other than hay and pellets before the 4 month mark). Between 4 and 6 months of age, you want to slowly decrease the amount of pellets, and start very slowly introducing your bunny to fresh veggies. By the time a bunny is 6 months old, it should be getting no more than 1/4 cup pellets per 5 pounds of body weight (up to 5 pounds: 1/4 cup daily, 6-10 pounds: 1/2 cup daily, 11+ pounds: 3/4 cup daily), all the timothy hay it could want (hay should always be freely fed, but at the 6 month mark, you want to switch from alfalfa to timothy to avoid weight issues, as alfalfa hay is much higher in fat content--you can also use an orchard grass blend at this point, or mix the 2), and at least 2 cups of fresh veggies a day. Select at least three kinds of vegetables daily. A variety is necessary in order to obtain the necessary nutrients, with one each day that contains Vitamin A, indicated by an *. Add one vegetable to the diet at a time. Eliminate if it causes soft stools or diarrhea.
Alfalfa, radish & clover sprouts, Basil, Beet greens (tops)*, Bok choy, Broccoli (mostly leaves/stems)*, Brussels sprouts, Carrot (feed sparingly--high sugar content can make bunnies sick very quickly!) & carrot tops*, Celery, Cilantro, Clover, Collard greens*, Cucumber, Dandelion greens and flowers (no pesticides)*, Endive*, Escarole, Green peppers, Kale (!)*, Mint, Mustard greens*, Parsley*, Pea pods (the flat edible kind)*, Peppermint leaves, Raddichio, Radish tops, Raspberry leaves, Romaine lettuce (no iceberg or light colored leaf--high water content and no nutritional value)*, Spinach (!)*, Watercress*, Wheat grass
(!)=Use sparingly (No more than twice a week!). High in either oxalates or goitrogens and may be toxic in accumulated quantities over a period of time

For the cage, you want the largest cage you can afford, but it needs to be at least 4 times the size of your bunny (full-grown). Bunnies are best kept indoors, in a room that is kept between 65 and 72 degrees--cooler is better than warmer for bunnies as they are extremely prone to heat stroke, and once the temp hits 80, they'll be in trouble. Oh, and as far as bedding goes, you never want to use anything made from cedar or pine. The oils that make these two woods smell so wonderful to us are extremely toxic to bunnies and will lead to death within a matter of weeks. The best products to use are paper based, such as CareFresh. Get a litter box for your bunny's cage (you can use the bedding in that too). That way keeping your bunny's cage clean will be much easier, and when you let your bunny out for it's daily free runs, it will be litterbox trained, so you won't have to try to clean up bunny pee. A very good website for you to look at is the House Rabbit Society webpage. They have a lot of great info about rabbit care! Their website is: http://www.rabbit.org/index.html

Also, feel free to e-mail me directly at: [e-mail] with any questions you may have!

Answer 2

If you keep a bunny indoors with you, he'll really become attached to you, and you'll have a much more rewarding relationship with him. He'll also live much longer if you keep him inside. I've written an article on this too -
http://au.geocities.com/leaswebsite/bunnyhouserabbits.html
Not enough people know that rabbits can become really affectionate with their humans, if we just give our time and patience. Just remember that rabbits are very sensitive and feel vulnerable, and as a result want to be very aware of their surroundings. Just lay on the ground for a minute and look at the world from their eyes, and you'll understand better why they're so sensitive and a little insecure - everything looks so big from their viewpoint!

The very best way to get closer to your rabbits is to sit on the floor/ground while you let them explore, and they'll eventually come and explore you - and have some food with you, so that when they approach you, you can show them that you're a friend with this food - a little slice of carrot, or apple, or banana. But don't try to force them, wait until they approach you. Another thing you can try is laying on your stomach ... when we do this, our bunn comes right up to my face and sits on the floor in front of me. But this will only happen when they've had plenty of hours and days to explore first! The longer you have them in your company, the more they will become familiar with your room, and then will settle down, sit down and relax, and then you can pet them. Another tip, keep things the same around your room, so that they don't have to begin their explorations from scratch every time. Bunnies need their areas to be the same every day ... this is how they feel safest and become calmest and more interested in you.

Generally, before six months, bunnies' main diet should be hay, water, and lucerne pellets. But because you haven't adopted your bunny yet, you now know - you should ask the breeder/person what these baby bunnies are already eating, and what their mother was eating when whe was weaning them too - the breeder should be able to offer you suggestions on continuing the same types of food. Some say you can begin introducing vegetables at four months, some say not until six months of age. Most importantly, when you begin to introduce vegies, you must do it VERY slowly and gradually - begin with just one slice or one very small piece of your chosen vegie or fruit, and make sure it doesn't give her diarrhoea over the next 24 hours before giving any more. Please see my own website, where I've written articles on this, at
http://au.geocities.com/leaswebsite/bunnyfood.html

Also, NEVER give lettuce and NEVER give cabbage to rabbits - lettuce and cabbage are both very bad for rabbits, can cause diarrhoea and bloat which can kill them -
http://au.geocities.com/leaswebsite/bunnyfood.html#lettuce

And please check out my site at
http://au.geocities.com/leaswebsite/bunnyfood.html#safe&poisonous
for lists of safe and dangerous foods for bunnies older than six months of age, reproduced from the excellent "Rabbitlopaedia" by Meg Brown and Virginia Richardson.

Also, here's a few excellent articles on rabbit care, behaviour and communication -
http://www.muridae.com/rabbits/rabbittalk.html - this one is SO good - how to translate bunny behaviour and language.
http://exoticpets.about.com/cs/rabbits/a/?once=true&
http://www.tagyerit.com/hopline/cold.htm
http://www.rabbit.org/
http://www.houserabbit.co.uk/
http://au.geocities.com/leaswebsite/bunnyhouserabbits.html - this is my site - please have a browse and enjoy!

Answer 3

Don't go to a breeder! There are so many rabbits that are in shelters that need homes. Save a life. Mini rexes are like any other rabbit except that they need more padding under their feet because they have short hair.