I am considering buying a bunny and I'd like some advice from those who have experiene with them. I've done some research although if you have any good websites than I'd love to see them. I amplanning for an indoor bunny and I'd like to know some general things about the responsibilities, costs,envoronment, breeders or stores, breed type, and any other info you would like to add. Thankyou very much.
2007-02-23 08:47:22 · 7 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Other - Pets
There is a lot to know, but it's easy to gather knowledge quickly. Check out www.rabbit.org. It's the best site I've found and has a wealth of information. I'm SOOOO glad you are planning to have an indoor bunny... I feel so sorry for the ones that get left out in a hutch & ignored their whole life.
Check out local shelters (visit www.petfinder.com for ones in your area) and see if they have bunnies. There are TONS of bunnies in rescue, many of which are already neutered and adopted out for a VERY reasonable price. They're also likely to be MUCH more socialized than pet store or feed store rabbits.... plus you'll be giving a homeless bunny a great home!
I have an indoor rabbit that I rescued. He is neutered (which was done at around 4-6mo) and WONDERFUL. He chose a corner of his cage to "go" in, so I put a litter box there (one of the corner-type ones they sell for ferrets) and he's used it 100%. He gets to run around in my kitchen & dining room when I'm home. If you let yours run loose, make SURE there is nothing he can chew on that will hurt him (or destroy stuff)... because he WILL chew on it. Mine got some christmas lights (not plugged in!) and destroyed them QUICK! Pay special attention to wires (electrical especially, since that's dangerous). My phone wire hung down too far one day and he bit through it. :( Providing appropriate chew toys helps (phone books, cardboard boxes, apple branches, commercial chew toys, etc), but they'll still chew on other stuff.
As far as food, HAY (alfalfa if it's a baby, but switch to timothy around 6mo or it'll get fat!) and a quality PLAIN pellet. A lot of stores sell rabbit food with seeds and nuts in it, neither of which are good for rabbits (but it makes it look yummier to us humans). The website I listed has a good list of what veggies bunny can have too.
If you have any specific questions, feel free to email me... but I bet that site answers all your questions.
2007-02-23 11:01:46 · answer #1 · answered by kittikatti69 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
A couple of quick tips - bunnies will chew on wood, cloth, and wires! It is important to keep a close eye on the bunny while he is out and about in the house. Otherwise, you may find your couch is missing its leg, and the pillow has a hole in it...but that won't matter, because the bunny will have started a fire by chewing on the cord to the television set. LOL
They're a lot of fun, but they must be allowed out of their cage for several hours a day...and it has to be supervised. They can be litter trained, which is nice.
The more you plan on having the bunny in its cage, the larger a cage it needs to be. In the wild, bunnies are foragers - they travel miles a day while looking for food. The instinct to roam and run doesn't die out just because they are in a cage.
Be certain you don't use clumping cat litter for bunny's litter box. Bunnies eat some of their droppings, and if they ingest clumping litter, it will cause a blockage in their intestines and will kill them.
Bunnies like to play games. We had one that LOVED to play hide and seek with family members and our cats. They will toss around balled up paper and other toys. Often, the least expensive toys will be their favorites - a cardboard box, a piece of old cloth, or a wad of paper.
Just as with a cat or dog, you should have your bunny spayed or neutered. Doing so can prevent health problems, including certain cancers, and can prevent a male from spraying (peeing) all over the house.
Bunnies are very social. Some don't mind being an only bunny if they get plenty of human attention. Others prefer to have a bunny companion. Others will get along very well with cats. It depends on the bunny's personality, the sex of the bunny, and the other parties involved.
I would recommend that you look online for a bunny rescue in your area. Many people receive rabbits as gifts for Easter or other occasions, then decide that the rabbit is too much work. Too many bunnies are homeless!
It feels like I've written a book. I hope that helped some at least!
2007-02-23 08:58:10 · answer #2 · answered by Meg M 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You probably have already found this site, but in case you haven't... http://www.rabbit.org has a ton of good information, even if they are a bit more anti-breeder than I agree with. I congratulate you on seeking to have indoor bunnies, as you really get to know them so much better that way. Spaying and Neutering is one necessary cost for a house rabbit, as it will greatly improve their litterbox habits. It cost be $120 to spay my rabbit, and neutering males costs somewhat less. If you adopt from an animal shelter, however, spaying and neutering will be covered by the adoption fee, which will be much less than the cost of surgery. Please don't buy from pet stores, as it supports bunny mills, which wean the babies too early. Pet store bunnies often have more health problems than ones bought from responsible breeders. That is not to say that shelter bunnies will be unhealthy though, I have a 6 year old shelter bunny who has had hardly any problems, and my 2 year old shelter buns haven't had any issues at all.
2007-02-23 11:06:53 · answer #3 · answered by learning_to_live_616 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
well, there's so much to know about rabbits! wonderful little creatures they are;) do you want a big rabbit? Or a little one? If you like Gentle Giants, you should try to raise Palominos. They're the size of very large cats, but incredibly gentle and adorable. If you want small, you should go with something like a Newfoundland Dwarf, or a Harlequinne Dwarf rabbit. I would reccommend getting rabbits directly from a rabbit breeder, only because i personally like to know exactly where my bunnies are coming from. When you get them from a store, for all you know you may be getting them from the equivalent of a puppymill. Those rabbits have a strong tendancy to run into health problems later on down the road. No matter what breed you end up getting, rabbits need fresh water and food on a daily basis. you also need to change their litter 2 times a week. I used to be in 4-H, and we learned that you should never give a rabbit anything like lettuce or cabbage. it can be like poison. They love apples, carrots, pears, turnips...most kinds of fruits and vegetables are ok for them. They also need to be given a somewhat constant supply of Timothy hay, or the like...if i can think of anything else, i'll let you know:)
2007-02-23 08:56:38 · answer #4 · answered by m_turkoc 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
rabbits are wondeful pets, cost is usually low, except for feed, ( hint by 25 pounds at a time it's cheaper.) enviroment should be a cage about 4-6 times the size of the rabbit, all breeds are nice but it depends on what you like, if you live inNJ or PA, i will have bunnies ready to go in april. you can visit my rabbitry's website www.freewebs.com/creekside_rabbitry or more info.
2007-02-23 11:29:15 · answer #5 · answered by Olivia W 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
you may probly want them interior provided that there no longer used to the daily issues by way of fact they get spooked exceptionally common you get carry of to grant them a shower like 1nce each week if no longer each week andor 2twice each week I had a cuople of bunnnys in the previous and that i did the exzact factor your doing as quickly as I had them outdoors they have been given spooked and a million of them have been given realy scared and diddnt pull by using and basically stoped respiratory ): i do no longer want an analogous for you....
2016-09-29 12:58:22 · answer #6 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
umm well dutch are the easiest but there are also netherland dwarfs
2007-02-23 10:01:16 · answer #7 · answered by Dev 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋