Cheapest way to look after a rabbit?

karendb

Hi,

Our neighbour is giving us one of her rabbits, including a small cage, as she can't look after it properly anymore. Our kids are delighted as they've been on at me for months to get a pet. However, I do realise it's a responsibility and I am taking it seriously!

What I would like to know right now is where are the cheapest places to get straw and other supplies? Also, is it necessary to give the rabbit commercially bought food or would it be better to give it fruit & vegs we buy already from the market? I would imagine it's cheaper to do this as well.
Any help on this would be appreciated

Thanks!

Lazy Woman (in my dreams!)

lynzpower

i have never kept a rabbit, but tesco value do straw for less than a pound. using old newspapers is another bedding thing you can do.

culpepper

Its a good idea to give a mixture of foods,the commercial type (looks like museli) and some fresh too.
Handling him gently everyday will mean you can clip his nails yourself(we used to wrap our bun in a towel to save scrabbling).
We used to get our straw at wilkos but i have no idea if they are the cheapest option.
Do keep his cage very clean to avoid parasites and make sure his water bottle doesn't dangle in the straw or it will empty into it and leave him sitting in a mess.
We used to let ours run about in the house.
He was like a little cat and would sit on our legs if we sat on the floor.

tru

Lots of veg - but not lettuce. Don't use flaked food, bunny will just pick out the bits she likes, buy pellets instead. Don't use straw, use hay, it's safer - I pay £2.50 for a huge bale from the local farm shop.

One more thing - have you got a photo?

tru

Cross-posted with culpepper

culpepper wrote:

He was like a little cat and would sit on our legs if we sat on the floor.

Ours does that too And you won't believe this - she makes the beds

Rachie_B

we give our rabbit deluxe fruity rabbit food from wilkinsons

its the only one he doesnt leave any of lol

also some bits of carrot etc every other day or so ,he also eats leaves and pine needles from the garden ?!

hay we get from wikos aswell usually ,we use wood shavings,if we use newspaper to line the floor of the hutch he just chews it ?!!!

we bring him in in the evenigs too ,he loves having a cwtch

aurorahelios

We used to keep rabbits, to supplement their food save all your potato peelings, boil them up, drain and mix bran into it so the peelings are lightly coated. You can give it to them while its still warm and not only is it cheap but they love it.

katglasgow

I grew up with a pet rabbit and 2 guinea pigs. They loved eating all sorts of left over bits of veg: e.g the cot off stalks from borccili, outside leaves from cauliflower and we even used the given them our corn on the cobs when we'd finished with them - they'd whittle them away down to absolutely nothing. I remember my mum used to go into our local veg shop and get bags of greens for nothing (just outside leaves from cabbages I think).
My mum always made sure they are they were the children's pets we always took responsibility for feeding them, and cleaning them out regularly she only ever did it if we were ill.

helen0103

Don't buy little bags of hay/straw from pet shops

Sweet talk your local farmer/horse owner and see if they will sell you a bale (straw is about £1 a bale and hay is about £2.50 a bale - these will last a bunny ages)

Miss_Behaving

If you use shavings for bedding also get them from an equestrian supplier - they will be dust extracted and you can get a huge bag for about £5. Our equestrian supplier also sells rabbit and guinea pig food now in the same size sacks as horse feed. This will work out cheaper in the long run.

mandi_moles

I once had 9 rabbits ! Im down to 1 now but I still managed to keep them cheaply.
1. The best food for them I have found it the plain old boring Pellets. Everything they need is in them, which is basicaly grass ! Most pet owners think this is boring and but the more colourful mixes but in my experience pellets are the best. Most veggy scraps are good, stay away from lettuce as it is not good for them and cabbage will make their hutch a bit stinky. Carrots, apples and a few dandlelion leaves go down well. If they get a runny bum from a change of diet, blackberry leaves are natures remedy !
2. As someone posted before..Take a trip out to the countryside and grab your self a bale from a farm, usually only £1. This Bale can be stored in a shed and will probably last you months and months. However, this is not advisable if you have a dwarf rabbit or a rabbit with protruding eyes as it can be rather coarse. In which case go for a hay bale as it is softer but be aware that they will eat the hay so it wont last as long.

Have fun with your bunny