Hi all, Well, while out in the garden today my husband mentioned something about rabbits as pets and that was it, my mind was off:wink: I was wondering if some of you rabbit owners could give me any advice please? I have looked back at some of the threads on here but there doesn't seem to have been any since 2008. Do they manage ok outside in the winter? How much work are they? Is there such a thing as a rescue home for rabbits or would it be a general animal sanctuary? Does one get lonely? How much (roughly) does a hutch/run cost? Now you may be wondering why I'm considering getting one when we have Joyce, well I've wanted another pet for ages but didn't want anything in the house (gosh, that sounds hard hearted doesn't it? I don't mean that way:flag Also, I feel it will give me someone to concentrate on (hubby doesn't count :D)when Joyce goes, which I hope isn't for years yet. So I was thinking a pet that wouldn't need walks etc but that I could give a cuddle to. Reading this back I think I come across as someone who shouldn't really have a rabbit, but you who know me on here will know that it will get as much fuss & love as it can take - and then some:D So what do you think? cheers
hi borrowers i had rabbits years ago, you cant leave them outside in the winter the hutch has to be brought indoors maybe your garage, hutches vary in price from £30 upwards and they have to be cleaned out every week, also there claws have to be watched as they get long so it will need to go to the vet every so often to get them clipped also you have to watch there front teeth as they can grow long. hope this information helps before you go out and buy a rabbit
Rabbits have two purposes in life. To destroy everything I plant, and to go in the pan. Don't be fooled by the cute fluffy appearance. It is all part of their disguise. Behind that cute face is a mind working out how best to destroy all your hard work.
My neighbour (had) 2 Rabbits Sandra and they regretted buying them, The kids soon lost interest, they burrow under fences and hop from garden to garden, eating all the lovely new plants, and they had to get a Rabbit sitter when they went away (usually me ) many a time we were running round the garden at midnight trying to get them in the hutch They were males and used to fight, untill she had them (done) :D And there dog used to go mental trying to get them.. So i would say NO dont get a rabbit unless you make a Run for it, dont go away even for one night, and guarintee Joyce wont go mental :D..
s00k:ntwrth:Thanks for that info, think maybe not then:hehe: Could just imagine my next door neighbours with their veg patch & immaculate garden:rotfl: No I'm not laughing really! may have a think much later on. Thanks all. cheers
Rabbits can be house trained, just like a cat or a dog. They're actually every clean animals, preferring to use the same area for doing their business, hence the ease of house training. There are some beautiful breeds available and they can become quite friendly. A secure house and run is needed though. They can also become easily bored, so lots of attention is essential.
Get a cat or dog, far more inteligent and great companions. Rabbits are short lived pathologically stupid creatures, we had one when I was a kid and I always found it boring, never so with a cat or dog.
They can be kept outside except maybe in extreme weather and they do need cleaning regularly. They can bite, scratch and sometimes thump in the middle of the night (particularly when startled). They must never run out of water so going away even for a day has to be sorted. Rabbits can live up to 12 years, as long as some dogs.
Pro - are you trying to be naughty? Wind someone up maybe? Don't call animals stupid, they do what they have to do that's all. I've heard (look on here and think before you speak:D) that they can be house trained, come to call etc. I don't want an animal in the house now (at the mo that's how I think, how I will feel when Joyce has been gone for a while who knows), so was thinking of an outside pet. Strongy - that's what I was worried about, creating a secure garden. May look secure to us humans but.... Anyway the rabbit wouldn't be let out unless one of us was out there too. Don't care what 'sort' it was, just to rescue one would be nice but have to think about other things like if we went away. We don't go away now cos of Joyce, that sounds horrible again doesn't it:dh:, but if & when we get a chance we would like a pet easily looked after. Blimey, I'm not looking good am I but as I have said to rescue anything would be lovely, just realise the limitations. cheers
Not really Sandra, although it may have come across that way. House training and coming to call are easy things for most animals to pick up, coming to call is easy to associate with treats/ food and for most animals the basics of house training are instinctive. The thing with a rabbit though is other than eat and allow itself to be stroked it wont really do a lot, A cat on the other hand or a dog will often make its own amusement and can learn to do advanced tricks. My tuffty can now open shut doors aswell as holding a hand up on command, he has about three or four different mews and will do clever things like alerting me when I'm outside to the fact the oven timers going etc. i have a ping pong ball in the hallway and he will play for hours with this, chasing it around the house. All the rabbit would do was sleep eat and sit still whilst you groomed it, no real personality it lived to four and passed away when a fox got it, sad to say but looking back none of us really missed it. My Cat however i have a real bond with and when he pases will be deeply missed.
hmmm i own and run a rabbit forum, should i stop there?? lol :lol: i have 3 rabbits, all house trained , all do thier business in litter trays and all very much have personalities. If you keep a rabbit in a hutch and never interact with it then yes it will be boring, you wont get to know its personality and you miss out, its that simple. my rabbits live in pairs ( had 4 til recently) and have large dog crates with second shelves put in for indoors in winter time, for now the dog crates are in a standard shed with run attached, and they still come indoors for visits and get runs in the garden. they are very enjoyable animals and if you take time to learn about thier body language and bahaviours they are really quite interesting.
Thank you for that L plate. I'm still undecided - have so much going on right now that I can't think about it but it's still in my mind Can you 'rescue' them the same way you do dogs & cats? Is it better to have 2? cheers
Just caught up with this one after being on hoilday. I'm alergic to rabbits , so i would check that out first. You can't leave them outside here the foxes kill them. We have had 2 in this road taken from there hutches. They are a lot of hard work if looked after properly the same as any pet. With the feeding cleaning grooming etc. Vets bills. Then you have to think about holidays. They don't winter well outside. Depending where you live. We had rabbits as children until i developed my reaction to them. They are lovely, but as all pets I would say think very carefully.
We had a rabbit once. It took a fancy to our then Labrador, Boris. he wouldn't let anyone near the dog. Every time you approached he leapt in the air and sunk his teeth in. I still have the scars.:hehe:
