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[clio]

Just wondered if any of you ladies have pet rabbits? Ive offered to take two in for someone whos daughter is allergic. How hard are the to look after as ive never had rabbits before.

[Taz2]

We used to have rabbits. They are great pets but they do need quite a lot of care and attention. There is useful info here about how to care for them http://www.rspca.org.uk/allaboutanimals/pets/rabbits/environment

Taz x

[CLKD]

Allergic - never heard of anyone being allergic to rabbit fur.  Might have a dust mite allergy if they use straw as bedding 

Our bunnies were great.  There are several members here that own rabbits.  Our Buck weighed 11 and a half pounds in his PRIME!

Have these been handled.  If not using a soft brush on a long stick might be one way of getting them used to being touched.  Never pick up by the ears, always grab the scruff, a quick up into the arms and support under the tail.  Rabbits KICK - HARD!!! so make sure that the back legs are firmly held.

They must not have any lettuce or watery grub as it can cause fatal bloat.  They love brussels sprouts/stalks; rabbit grub; carrots; cabbage ..... bramble, rapsberry canes - think what a bun would eat in the wild 

Are these large rabbits or dwarf size?

[honeybun]

My kids had rabbits for years and I was a bit sneezy around them. They are really not the best pets for kids as they can be grumpy a nd bite but despite that I loved them. I used to bath ours twice a year. Got some great photos of that.
I would suggest getting them immunized against mixamatosis [sp] it's a nasty disease.
Ours had a huge run with pipes to hide in and also logs to nibble and climb on.

Don't keep them shut in a hutch as they can get very depressed.

Honeyb
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[ariadne]

It bothers me still that when I was little, I had a white rabbit that was kept in a hutch. I didn't know any better then but now I feel so bad about that. How cruel to keep an animal that should be running around,  cooped up in a hutch. Poor thing.

A colleague of mine has always kept rabbits and is very knowledgeable about them. She always allows them free run of her garden (having secured the garden of course)

Just do plenty of research to make sure you do right by them. Are they used to being handled?

ariadne xx

[Trey]

My mini Rex, Harvey has a three story cardboard condo and a large litter box and he busies himself in our kitchen.  He never leaves that area even though not gated. He gets two mini carrots and only romaine lettuce, good quality and variety of hay and pellets. Only Timothy hay,  NO alfalfa after six months old!!

Fresh water and cage chaged daily.  I line cage with paper towels as easy to throw away and chage as needed.  High maintenance in some ways.  Low in that they can be in cage as needed and they don't bark.

[karenw]

I have 12 large-breed rabbits and they're wonderful. 

They'll need the correct diet, suitable housing (are they indoor or outdoor buns?), annual combined myxomatosis/VHD vaccination, neutering if they're a mixed-gender pair (but spaying of girls is advised), lots of fuss, exercise and TLC. 

I have a rabbit care website and have written bunny care books and produced an interactive rabbit care DVD - send a PM for details but these include all you'll ever need to know.

Enjoy your new rabbits.  They are buntastic pets when cared for correctly!

[Taz2]

I would agree with you Karen about having females spayed. I failed to do that years ago for my gorgeous Californian Grey/New Zealand White bunny and her womb became infected and despite an emergency hysterectomy she died due to blood loss. In those days you weren't advised to have females spayed but I really wish that I had - it would have saved her an awful lot of suffering.

Taz x

[karenw]

This is very true.

One of my girls who'd had 3 litters in her 4 years suddenly became unwell with mysterious symptoms which didn't match any typical illness, then she passed some blood.  Her vet investigated and found a massive tumour the size you'd normally find in a dog, and removed it.  This was a good 6 months ago and the bun was very lucky.  Just a few hours following her op she was hopping around, eating and looking so much better. 

I would always recommend spaying.  Uterine cancer is very common and even in its advanced stages there can be no obvious symptoms although the bun must surely be experiencing some discomfort.

I included a pic of the removed tumour on the DVD care guide.  I've had rabbits for over 40 years but never seen anything like this before.

[CLKD]

Interesting 

I know it is essential to have female ferrets spayed but never thoguht about bunnies

[Taz2]

This explains why it is necessary. My rabbit died of pyometra :-( http://www.rabbitnetwork.org/articles/spay.shtml

[CLKD]

Pyometra is common in un-spayed bitches

[honeybun]

I had a Irish Setter who had this. Nasty thing and I felt so bad i had not had her spayed. I learned my lesson and have had all subsequent dogs done when they were young.
I did not know it was something rabbits suffered from. My rabbits seemed to live to a ripe old age. I got caught in the cycle of not wanting one to be on its own so I would buy another companion....and so on it would go. We went through a stage of having a rabbit and a guinea pig. They make good companions. I learned how to clip nails and teeth and all the other bits and bobs that needed doing. They were supposed to be for the kids but we all know how that goes. They ended up being mine along with the hamsters and the gold fish.
I always fancied and still do...a chinchilla. It's the keeping them in cages that bother me. My hubby won't have birds because he says unless we can have a cage as large as a town then it's cruel. I have a friend who breeds budgies and is forever asking me to take a pair.


I just love animals and would love another pet that my very barky Bichon would not terrorise. She rules the roost in this house   

Maybe a tortoise.


Honeyb
X

[karenw]

We went through a stage of having a rabbit and a guinea pig. They make good companions.

Erm, actually, no they don't and it is no longer advised to keep them together (unlike in the 60's and 70's).

Rabbits and guinea-pigs are very different mammals with different needs.  They need a different diet (eg GPs need daily vitamin C), GPs like a warm environment while rabbits cannot tolerate too much heat, they communicate in different ways and GPs are often bullied by rabbits and retaliate by giving the rabbit a well-deserved nip which can lead to abscesses. 

It is not a good idea to pair the two together but to pair like with like - GPs in small groups (females get on well together) and rabbit in compatible, neutered pairs ideally male-female or two females together as a second choice.

Pairing rabbits and GPs is rather like keeping a polar bear and elephant together simply because they are both large animals - they have very different needs!   

[honeybun]

I am sure you are right but I kept the two together for years. They had separate hutches and could come together when they wanted. I am sure they were happy and healthy and when separated the GP used to cry. They groomed each other and snuggled up. I can't see the problem if they are introduced at a very young age. Perhaps I had chilled out pets. 

It's like cats and dogs.....some hate each other and others don't.


Honeyb
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