Buying a Rabbit, need a bit of advice.

warehouse

My 8 year old is 9 in early January. We would like to buy her a rabbit as a pet to be kept in the garden. We will buy a hutch before the end of December and when the weather warms up a bit I will create a largish run in a sheltered corner. I have a couple of questions that I hope the experts can help with...

Where is the best place to buy a rabbit? I really would like to get one from a breeder rather than a pet shop, but then how do I find a nearby rabbit breeder?

Can we simply put the rabbit straight outside into the hutch? If it's fairly young then is it better to keep the hutch in the conservatory, (which is still quite cold in this weather), until spring? Does it need to be outside to "harden up" to the weather? I understand the need for the hutch to have plenty of straw to snuggle up in and that we'll probably have to insulate it a bit better during harsh winter weather.

My elder daughter is also after a guinee pig to share with the rabbit, but I've heard stories of this not being suitable when they get older. Would another rabbit of the same sex be a better idea? If it is, which is the best sex to share, and can another rabbit be added later on this year?

So many questions! Any advice you can give would really help us out. Thanks.

Loopy_Girl

Get a pair of rescue rabbits...there are literally thousands needing forever homes

And be warned...it's not as easy or cheap as people think to look after a rabbit. They are actually not really suitable pets for kids as they don't really like being manhandled.

Never ever ever put a rabbit and guinea pig together...it's a myth that they can live together

Don't use straw for insulation as it's too harsh and can scratch their eyes. Hay is much better. Get a cover for the hutch when you buy it.

Make sure the hutch isn't near the ground and is well off it.

Personally if it was me, I wouldn't get a rabbit in the dead of winter and would wait till the Spring. Where is it going to exercise?

Don't buy the muesli type food and start off on pellets from the start. Plenty hay and fresh water should always be available.

Read up on what herbs and veg are dangerous to rabbits. Make sure they have a bowl of 'greens' a day.

Never ever give a rabbit lettuce

Loopy_Girl

Sorry...wasn't meaning to be so 'blunt'...was in middle of cooking dinner and was typing as things came into my head!!

If it were me (I have a Netherland Dwarf who is 2 and I have had him since 12 weeks old), I wouldn't put a very young rabbit out in the cold. A garage would be a better option. They are pretty hardy wee things and they do 'toughen up' to the cold but I would worry for a baby bun being in weather we have now.

Max is an outdoor bunny and I have a hutch hugger on his hutch. he also has tons of hay in his bedroom (not to mention his lurvley fur coat;)). In weather like this, he tends to stay in his bedroom alot but I go out several times a day to check on him.

'Mini' clean out every other day (i.e lift all the droppings and wet sawdust and replace) and a big clean once a week where you disinfect the hutch. I would personally recomment the spray 'Clean and Safe'...you will get it in all pet shops. It's a green liquid and bottle, costs about £3, spray bottle which lasts ages.

You will have different care needs in the summer months but no point going on about those now as summer is ages away *sigh*

Please give the rescue bunnies a thought. I know baby bunnies are oh-so-cute but they actually grow very quickly and there are lots of bunnies who are still very young in rescues as kids have got bored or people don't realise how much work is involved in caring for them.

2 males together are the favourable sexing and, if rescued, they will be already neutered (which cost me £45 for mine!!).

Rabbits also get jabs. They get Myxa jab twice a year and another one, once a year (V something...it's slipped my mind) and each jab costs £20 odd.

Rabbit overgrowing teeth is a huge problem so make sure they have plenty hay and also a 'toy' bought from pet shop to chew on and grind them down. Insure if you can possible afford it.

I think that's all but if I think of anything else I will add to it or if you think of anything else

bobbytooshoes

We got our bun in January 2008 from a pet shop. They asked us where we were planning on housing our bun (he is a house bun) and they did say that if he was to live outside then they would rather we waited for a few months for the weather to warm up.

Rabbits are very sociable animals and are best kept in pairs. I often worry that my bun is lonely when we are out at work but we make up for the missing bun on an evening, he gets lots of attention and is very affectionate. We often refer to him as 'parker' (nosey parker) as he loves to be into everything and follows me round everywhere.

As for keeping it will a guinea pig this is an absolute no no, they both have different dietary needs and it is often said that a guinea pig caged with a rabbit will become vitamin C deficent. They are also at risk of getting injured as some rabbits do grow quite large and are prone to binkies (kicking out and jumping) which could cause harm to the guinea pig if he is caught in the way.

I would second the point about the feeding - start them on pellets and avoid the musleli type food as this leads to the rabbit been selective and only eating the bits that they like and not getting all the necessary nutrition. Be careful how much of the nuggets you actually feed the rabbit though as they can become overweight very easily (as we found out) Our vet told us that the nuggets are merely packed with nice tasting things that are not neccesarily any good for your rabbit so should only be used in small quantities almost as a treat. They are better off with good quality timothy hay, greens the greener and the coarser the better. Our bun also has alfalfa bars once a day. Pay particular attention to make sure your rabbit doesn't become overweight if it is to be kept outside as it won't be able to reach certain areas to clean them and this will lead to flystrike (very very unpleasant and sometimes fatal).

Be sure to buy a sturdy cage I have heard far too many horror stories about foxes gaining access to poorly built hutches. Would you consider letting your rabbit live in the conservatory permanently? Rabbits are very clean animals and can be litter trained very easily. Always buy the biggest and best cage you can afford

You'll have lots of fun with your rabbit but they are slightly more complex than most people think. If you need to know anything else then I am happy to answer your questions.:)

Kinski

I've not had rabbits for a while but the way I ended up with one was because he had been bought for a friend of my mums granddaughter, the girl soon got fed up with him and I was pestered into taking him. I was given a hutch with him but it was far to small he also came to me un-neutered and with sores on his mouth and genitals. I took him to the vet only to find that the wee soul had syphilis, I had him treated for it and also had him neutered. We bought a large hutch for him and also an indoor hutch, in one week my ''free rabbit'' cost me over £300. They are not cheap pets to keep and do need a lot of attention, they also do best in pairs and we got a lady friend for our one. The other jab that Loopy girl was talking about is for VHD which is a killer, you also have to be very careful that your rabbit doesn't get fly strike which is also very nasty.