Keeping a rabbit indoors..

callie35

Does anyone have advice about keeping a rabbit indoors...? Is it better for the animal to be indoors or out..? I've just been looking at rabbit hutches online and horrified at how small they are...rabbits like to run after all!

star-pants

I'm sure others will be along to give advice, but I would assume, if you have the space in your garden, you could set up a run of sorts, for the rabbit. Thus giving it a good sized area to live in/to run around in.

mayordenis

I have 2 rabbits, and yes they're pretty happy house pets, from my experience you'll need to toilet train them first though, and yes giving them suitable space outside is very important toothey both have an open door policy in there cages, so just pop in for an eat and crap, then they run about the house.

Only problem I've had is one of them eating basically everything but has calmed down a huge amount lately, that was more luck than anything, the other one is docile and easing going runs around getsworked up a bit then gets sleeps and just mooches about.

http://tweetphoto.com/5507021

Sigma Force

Indoors is far better for rabbits especially at this time of year, esp. if a rabbit is coming from a warm shop or other home it wouldn't be good to place them outside straight away without weathering them first.

Although at this time of year no rabbit should be left outside they need to be at least in an insulated hutch covered at night or a warm shed but ideally indoors.

Only thing is to rabbit proof the room that the bun will be in, and to wear no shoes in the house because they get underfoot a lot and could be stepped on by accident.

Toilet training it easy enough and once spayed/neutered at 5 to 6 months toilet training will be even better. Rabbits can't help pooping everywhere but they can be easily trained to pee in a tray..be careful what type of litter is used ideally one that is obviously safe and isn't the same as what's used for their bedding. There's more info. on my site below on rabbit care and neutering etc. and links to rabbit sites.

Most hutches are too small but they do need somewhere they can hop to any time they get spooked or want to chill for a while, or if they need to be put in for their own saftey.

A cheaper option if you plan to have a rabbit free range is a large dog crate although smaller baby buns might be able to get out through the bars older buns can't.

Loads of options for cages though check out zooplus.co.uk

A bit of sunshine and fresh air is good for rabbits though, and fresh untreated grass is one of the best things they can eat so a run for spring and summer ish is great to have handy. I would tend to bring rabbits indoors at night even then..too many horror stories of cats, dogs and foxes getting in at even secure runs at night even in built up areas.

Runs should be wired top and bottom as long as the rabbit has a few places flat to sit on to rest the feet there's no bumblefoot issues.

I could go on and on but I'd better not.

Any more ques. though just ask.

Don't forget they need 2 sets of vaccinations two weeks apart for Myxomatosis and VHD very important. There's rabbit insurance available now in Ireland which I highly recommend getting. They're also social and should be kept in pairs (neutered and spayed at 5 to 6 months).

callie35

Wow thanks guys for replying so quickly!! This baby is an unwanted Xmas gift my sister received.... I have an option of a home with a work colleague but it would be outdoors and solitary so i'm thinking of taking him myself. I do have lots of hungry outdoor cats alright though so i'll have to be very careful. I'll post updates to let ye know how it goes

Sigma Force

Poor bun, sounds like he/she would be better off with you. They do make brilliant house pets perhaps once this one settles in and is neutered/spayed (even vets can sex a rabbit wrongly so it's a good idea to choose a name that suits either) then perhaps a wee friend would be an idea, some rescues have neutered/spayed rabbits looking for homes. Main thing now is to get him to a home where he'll be looked after well.

Don't forget fibre..vital for rabbits so plenty of good quality hay and don't trust a vet that says a rabbit has to be fasting before having an anesthetic they can't throw up and their guts need to keep moving so they need constant access to hay. Not eating is a serious issues with rabbits.

There's so much fun stuff for rabbits too but cardboard boxes are just as fun for them and free..I'll shut up now.

the_syco

Guineapigrescue wrote: »

Runs should be wired top and bottom as long as the rabbit has a few places flat to sit on to rest the feet there's no bumblefoot issues.

I don't know where you live, an estate, or not, so here you are... ensure the wire is at metal. Plastic can be chewed, by the rabbit, and predators. Ensure the holes in the wire is not too big, to ensure nothing can get in (or out).

Goto B&Q's site, and do a search for "chicken wire" and you'll find some Galvanised Wire Netting that may do the trick. If putting it down, remember to dig up squares of grass, and lay some of it a few inches below the grass, and then put the squares of grass back over it. This ensures they don't dig their way out of the rabbit run.

TooManyDogs

I have 2 indoor rabbits, both toilet trained and neutered. During the summer months they live outside cos we spend most of our time outside and are afraid they're lonely in the house but the rest of the year they live in the sitting room.

They make excellent house pets, great personalities and generally very clean. Just make sure to rabbit proof your house, they love to trim cables for you and reshape your carpet if they can get away with it. Very nosy animals and will happily explore as much space as you give them and then settle down for a snooze. My first house rabbit used to sleep on his side with his eyes open, very freaky! I used to have to re-assure everyone he wasn't dead

Sigma Force

I found 1/4 inch aviary wire the best, keeps out the mice and still large enough for the grass to grow through the wire to be eaten.
It's not as cheap as say chicken wire but much much stronger and won't rip like some chicken wire can.

If you Google non toxic plants for rabbits to ensure there's nothing in your garden the bun can get at that would be toxic if in doubt don't feed a certain veg or plant.

One of our buns used to be a bit of a climber, right little monkey he was.

callie35

Quite a lot to think about there lads - thanks again. Buster came home with me today and so far so good! He's pretty much been in a small enclosure for these first two months or so of his little life but since running around my sittingroom this evening he's doing the cutest, spontaneous jumps in the air.

He loves brussel sprouts and lettuce but unfortunately also the fringe on my fireside rug and the bristles on the fireplace brush! He's found a safe place under the coffee table and when i say 'ah-ah' he comes away from the tv wires.

In time i'll get him a bunny-buddy and fix up an outdoor home for them but for now he's great company here.

mayordenis

callie35 wrote: »

he's doing the cutest, spontaneous jumps in the air.

He loves brussel sprouts and lettuce but unfortunately also the fringe on my fireside rug and the bristles on the fireplace brush! He's found a safe place under the coffee table and when i say 'ah-ah' he comes away from the tv wires.

In time i'll get him a bunny-buddy and fix up an outdoor home for them but for now he's great company here.

Those little jumps are the funniest cutest things ever.

I'd be careful with lettuce it can cause major issue in young rabbits.

Sigma Force

callie35 wrote: »

Quite a lot to think about there lads - thanks again. Buster came home with me today and so far so good! He's pretty much been in a small enclosure for these first two months or so of his little life but since running around my sittingroom this evening he's doing the cutest, spontaneous jumps in the air.

He loves brussel sprouts and lettuce but unfortunately also the fringe on my fireside rug and the bristles on the fireplace brush! He's found a safe place under the coffee table and when i say 'ah-ah' he comes away from the tv wires.

In time i'll get him a bunny-buddy and fix up an outdoor home for them but for now he's great company here.

That's brilliant and the jumping about is a good sign..means rabbit is super happy. Brussel sprouts are fine but just be careful not to give too many romaine lettuce is ok but iceberg or other lettuce can cause the runs and can make buns ill.
Stuff like carrot and cauliflower, the occasional grape or apple is grand. Basically not too many green veggies darker cabbage is ok but anything that kind of makes us humans bloaty and farty go easy on with rabbits lol.

Post some piccies btw!!

callie35

Really? Oh i've been feeding him lettuce all night...thought i was being a good bunny-mammy! How about cabbage, brussels, carrots?

TooManyDogs

Try not to give him too much free room initially, it can make litter training harder, they'll pee in several areas. The best way is to corral off a small area and see where he goes to pee, then put a litter tray there. When he always goes back there to pee you can make the space a little bigger and gradually give him the whole room, he'll always go back to the litter tray to pee. That's how I did it with mine and it works well, the smell of rabbit pee is cruel :eek: I use wood pellet based litter and it's great, no smell.

eden_my_ass

callie35 wrote: »

Really? Oh i've been feeding him lettuce all night...thought i was being a good bunny-mammy! How about cabbage, brussels, carrots?

Butterhead, Round and Romaine/Gem are all fine, never had problems with them...it seems that iceberg and iceberg like (white, crisp) lettuce is generally whats advised against. Carrots are supposed to be high in sugar so only good occasionally...haven't used brussels or cabbage myself but might do, I'm sure they like some variety too!

callie35

I'm learning of the smell...perhaps it's worse because he's male and leaving his scent? Right a trip to Petmania is in order as soon as the roads are drive-on-able again! Thanks for the tips!

TooManyDogs

I find feeding too much brusell sprouts or cabbage does them same to them as us - farts are very smelly!! So I feed them in moderation for my comfort! Plenty of other veggies

Sigma Force

Agree it's better to slowly increase the living space but I'm sure the wee fella was delighted with finally having some freedom. If you pop a litter tray in a corner and leave it in that spot though that might be enough sure see how you go. Vinegar can help with rabbit pee.

Deffo. leave the lettuce out of his diet not good for him esp. iceberg..can cause serious health issues. You're ok with carrot (it changes their pee colour so don't be alarmed if he pees and orangey red), tons of veg that's suitable for rabbits but introduce one new thing a day to avoid tummy upset.

Give him a kitchen roll cardboard insert and watch him go wild lol.

eden_my_ass

Guineapigrescue wrote: »

Agree it's better to slowly increase the living space but I'm sure the wee fella was delighted with finally having some freedom. If you pop a litter tray in a corner and leave it in that spot though that might be enough sure see how you go. Vinegar can help with rabbit pee.

Deffo. leave the lettuce out of his diet not good for him esp. iceberg..can cause serious health issues. You're ok with carrot (it changes their pee colour so don't be alarmed if he pees and orangey red), tons of veg that's suitable for rabbits but introduce one new thing a day to avoid tummy upset.

Give him a kitchen roll cardboard insert and watch him go wild lol.

A quick google online will show you that a) many lettuces are fine for rabbits, i use them with no health implications and b) carrots are not fine as a staple food, only as a treat...as I already stated...please check your advice first before posting.

the dee

A rabbit's diet should be mostly hay, supplemented with veggies and, if you want, a rabbit mix or pellets. Only feed a mix or pellet that is low in sugar. Hay and water should always be available. I feed my two indoor rabbits corn, green beans and bok choy as well as carrots. Mine have never been too interested in fruit but they can have some as a treat sometimes. They also love dandelions, the leaves and the flowers. I sometimes pick some if I've been out for a walk. Be sure they're from an area not sprayed with any chemicals though.

I got my two to leave my cables alone by clapping my hands to scare them off if they were looking interested. And they both litter-trained themselves to a large extent - we had quite a few accidents in the beginning though.

They get along best in mixed gender pairs and desexing is a must to aviod unwanted babies and many kinds of cancer.

Hope some of that is useful Enjoy your bunny!

the dee

This is Ruby (black) and Leopold (seal point lop)

Sigma Force

A quick google online will show you that a) many lettuces are fine for rabbits, i use them with no health implications and b) carrots are not fine as a staple food, only as a treat...as I already stated...please check your advice first before posting.

A quick Google isn't always the answer, my advice comes down to experience. I never said keep feeding carrots if you read my post correctly it said carrots are ok to give as well as lots of other veggies.
Never said they were fine as a staple food.

I also told op to check out the links on my website which will give more detailed info, I'd be here forever if I went through all the lists of safe foods and what to do and what not to do.

As Dee said hay is the main part of a rabbits diet, fibre is vital. Grass is very good for rabbits as well but there's not always enough available so the main thing in a buns diet is hay, then a small amount of dry food like Burgess rabbit (green bag) and veggies ..varied and daily..certain herbs are also fine. Veg should be fed daily, doesn't have to be a huge amount but variety is important..and more interesting for the rabbit. Herbs should be a treat.

Other foods like dried grass and timothy hay is very good for buns. Alfalfa should be fed very sparingly.

Oh and I also think I mentioned romaine lettuce being ok, but at the end of the day lettuce is full of water and has little nutritional value so it's not a veg I would really bother with with rabbits of guineas.

eden_my_ass

Guineapigrescue wrote: »

A quick Google isn't always the answer, my advice comes down to experience. I never said keep feeding carrots if you read my post correctly it said carrots are ok to give as well as lots of other veggies.
Never said they were fine as a staple food.

Glad I could help you clarify your advice, from carrots are ok to carrots are ok but not a staple (if you were the novice reading your original statement and the only veg named were carrots, what would you take from that?)...also you seem to have glossed over your lettuce ban, something so commonly available and acceptable to a rabbit shouldn't be ignored, as no doubt you've learned from your broad experience some rabbits are bad drinkers and lettuce is very useful to hydrate them

OP, do stick with google though, a well researched article from a reputable source is far safer than some quickly thought out words from us posters!

Sigma Force

Oh stop nit picking, if you had read my posts I had mentioned grass etc. and given links as I said with more information. If someone asks advice about dogs you aren't going to give a long drawn out list of safe foods and treats.

I have already type long posts to other posters about rabbit food etc. and wasn't going to go through everything in long detail again.

Perhaps your time would be better spent giving a big long list of links of suitable websites and books and safe veg etc. than nit picking over every little detail.

eden_my_ass

Guineapigrescue wrote: »

Oh stop nit picking, if you had read my posts I had mentioned grass etc. and given links as I said with more information. If someone asks advice about dogs you aren't going to give a long drawn out list of safe foods and treats.

I have already type long posts to other posters about rabbit food etc. and wasn't going to go through everything in long detail again.

Perhaps your time would be better spent giving a big long list of links of suitable websites and books and safe veg etc. than nit picking over every little detail.

Perhaps you could have saved more of your time and helped the op more by just linking to your previous long instructive posts? I don't need to teach anyone how to google "caring for rabbits", and I'm not nitpicking, just correcting some vague misleading posts to save the op some confusion....

star-pants

If we can stop the to-ing and fro-ing please

callie35

Just a little update on bunny - now re-named Dennis (he doesn't seem too bothered...). He has the run of the kitchen when i'm away and joins me in the sittingroom every night. He seems as happy as the proverbial Larry, still doing his bunny hops, loves to eat anything paper/cardboard as well as his own mixed veg. Seems to have a penchant for broccolli He's also litter-trained himself in that he does his pee in the same place which now has a litter-tray so he's no bother at all. The only minor thing is that he's long haired so i think i might have to start brushing him soon...he'll probably try to eat the brush!!

star-pants

excellent!! (my dogs lie like that too!)
Glad to see you have a new friend

meow

My Kermit and Oscar live in my bedroom- as long as they're kept very clean it's okay. They have their hutch but its open all the time I'm in my bedroom (which is alot). Can't leave it open when I'm not there because Kermit likes to jump on my bed and leave me liquid presents!

They're very happy indoors, and when the sun comes (if it ever does again) they'll come and sit outside with me everyday.

You probably know by now they eat everything- EVERYTHING!!
Kermit has chewed through 2 phone chargers, almost went fully through my laptop cables and the 2 of them love to gnaw my skirting board, mats, toilet paper.....

You can get flavoured hay which they love, I've only come across it in vets though. Make sure you get him vacinated and once they start getting sexually frustrated they tend to bite- in my experience. Castration will sort him out.

They're funny creatures, they're much better than watching tv!!

Hope he brings you lots of joy

cucoigcrice

Hi Callie35, i actually had rabbits a few years ago and mine stayed in hutches in my shed at night and then during the day they had another hutch outside with a run around it. they love being outside in my opinion and grass is very good for them. You could take them inside too but personally i think outside is better because they get to develop their natural behaviours. if you require a run and hutch i have a contact in wexford, he makes these to the clients wishes. i can pm you if you want with the details

callie35

Hi Cucoigcrice, that'd be great if you could send me his details although i won't be ready for a few months yet... Gotta say i'm loving having Dennis indoors now, he's so good but definitely in the summer he'll be needing a friend and a safe place to run. Thanks a million for you help!