Foreword
So lately, a lot of people have been asking about rabbits as pets! I thought that this would be a good tool for anyone thinking about getting rabbits. In this guide I will cover housing, feeding, interaction, pairing, and basically everything else when it comes to bunnies! For more information on rabbits go check out my YouTube channel where I post every Sunday.
Housing
Housing is a very tricky subject when it comes to bunnies. Of course, never, ever, ever, house your rabbit outside. This is for many reasons such as; weather, predators, disconnection, insects, and the list goes on. So please, please, get a stuffed animal if you want to keep your rabbit outside.
Moving on, inside housing for a pair of rabbits must be at least 16 sq feet, so 4 x 4, or 8 x 2. Bigger is always better or course though! Some good examples of cages include;
Ex-pens are exercise pens that vary in size and heights. Ex-pens can be bought off of amazon or your local pet-store. They cost about 30-40 dollars. You will need to get a pen that is at least 36” in height so that your bunny cannot jump out.
C&C grid cages are great enclosures because you can make it any size or shape as long as you have enough grids. To make this enclosure you simply ziptie the grids together and you can also fashion a door. C&C grids can be bought at Walmart, Target, Amazon, and many other stores depending on your area.
DIY cages
DIY cages are great options if you are handy with tools because you can make them as big as you want. A simple DIY cage is chicken wire and wood.
Free Roaming
Free roaming your rabbits is where your bunnies live free roaming in a room or your whole house. I highly recommend this for multiple reasons. For example, rabbits have a lot of energy and will bar chew if kept in small enclosures. Also, having a free roam rabbit creates a stronger bond between your rabbits and you. If you cannot free roam due to personal reasons (ie, you have a dog and cannot keep the buns and dog separate, you do not own your home, etc.) then keeping your rabbit in a suitable, large, enclosure is a-ok.
Bonded or Single?
Whether one rabbit can live by themselves is a highly debated topic. In my opinion, I think rabbits need to be kept with one other rabbit.
A good example of keeping a single rabbit is the youtuber Lennon the Bunny. Lennon is a spayed female rabbit who lives free roamed in her owner's apartment. Her owner also works from home and when she does go out she usually takes Lennon with her. If you live a similar life, keeping a single rabbit may be ok. Still I highly recommend having two rabbits because rabbits are very social animals and can become deeply depressed and sad when kept alone.
If you have tried bonding your single rabbit multiple times with no success, first double check if your two rabbits are spayed and neutered, you have waited at least 4 weeks before starting the bonding process after your rabbits got spayed/neutered, and that you have tried bonding for at least 3 months. If you have gone through the bonding process multiple times with multiple rabbits, your rabbit may be one of the rare buns who prefers to be alone.
In my experience, I started off with my one rabbit Binky, a spayed female rabbit. She was kept alone for the first 6 months I had her. She quickly became depressed and antisocial. I soon realized that she needed a friend! Ever since I got my second rabbit, Bugs (a neutered male bunny) she has never been happier and they are always right by each other. So I would highly recommend two rabbits.
Litterbox
If you didn’t know, rabbits can be litterbox trained once they are spayed/neutered. This makes cleaning much easier and free roaming possible! Covered litter boxes have pros as well as cons the same as open litter boxes. Also, you need to put your rabbit’s hay in the litter box because rabbits will eat and poop at the same time.
Covered Litter box
~ Skittish rabbits (like my boy Bugs) do better when they can feel more protected and covered
~They need to be cleaned out more to avoid too much of a smell.
~Some rabbits may go to the bathroom on the top rather than inside
~You don’t need to see their waste and smell it as much
Open Litter boxes
~ You can use a hay feeder
~The smell and sight of the waste is more in the open
Hay Feeders
Hay feeders/bags/racks are used to hold the hay for your rabbit(s) to eat out of. Whether you use the hay holder or just put the hay into the litter box, is entirely up to you.
Feeding
Rabbit’s diet consists of 80% hay, 10% leafy greens/veggies, 5% pellets, and 5% treats.
Hay
Hay is extremely important in a rabbit’s diet and your rabbit needs unlimited amounts of it. The most common type of hay is timothy hay, this hay is pretty rough and course which is good for wearing down your rabbit’s teeth. Botanical hay and orchard grass hay make great treat hays and are much softer than timothy.
Leafy Greens
For my rabbits, I feed them one salad a day that consists of two cups of different lettuces. I also provide bell peppers, celery, and a bunch of different veggies every time they get their salad.
Pellets
Pellets are not necessary in a rabbit’s diet but always check with your vet before removing them from your bun’s diet. My rabbits get one tablespoon of pellets each, every morning and night.
Miscellaneous
I wanted to point out how much work rabbits are because a lot of people adopt them thinking they will be cute and easy pets. The reality is quite the opposite though. For example, my rabbits have chewed through multiple chargers and headphones, ripped out lots of carpet, and I have gone through multiple cages until I realized that my rabbits would always chew on the bars of a cage until they were free. Adopting a rabbit into your family is a long time commitment and they are also a lot of money. When getting a rabbit think everything through and be prepared to reorder your priorities.
), and would need an insulated shelter to go in as well. Besides that, it's also important that bunnies are NEVER kept alone when living outside (or ever), which leads me to my next point.
