Tell me about having a house rabbit! - Updated + pic!

[milyssa]

I know at least a couple of you have or have had house buns :) A and I are thinking about a pet (our hopes to have a cat fell through because our landlord is allergic, so when we asked he said no way), and a rabbit is definitely under consideration. We feel like we don't know nearly enough about having a house rabbit to really know WHAT we are considering. Apart from reading (I've found several great house rabbit sites), I was hoping maybe some of you could offer your experiences and thoughts?

Thanks in advance! :)
_________________
With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.

[featherstoryaniweda]

Well it depends on what kind of rabbit you get. If you can't spend a lot of time with it, get two.

They need a lot of space. They're really easy to feed though...they mostly eat greens...and it is not difficult to just give them fresh greens rather than buying pellet food...they also need hay. I can't think of anything else right now.
_________________
My personal blog!
Creativity!

[gemma]

I had a rabbit! His name was Ori. Little adorable black rabbit. He, unfortunately, died because of the hay he was eating. Long story short, I asked my vet about kinds of hay, bought two bales of it from a farm, and something about it made the bunny very sick and it died (apparently that can happen if the hay has been wet, which I did know and ask about, but it's possible the person lied to me or really did not know that it had been wet). ANYWAY. It was very sad.

I always viewed rabbits as sort of delicate - they have sensitive digestive systems, etc. I loved having Ori, but I was always worried about him getting sick or having a digestive block or something. However, one of my friends had her rabbit for around 10 years, and he never had any serious issues. I imagine if you're vigilant about his care, he would likely be happy and healthy.

Food was fun with the bunneh - he did eat lots of greens and carrot ends (not whole carrots) and things, which was simple - he ate what I ate! He also ate hay, yes. From what I recall you give them more of a certain type of hay when they're younger, and switch as they age. I got very similar info from the websites and books that I looked at - not a lot of conflicting information, which was nice and helped me be confident in caring for him.

I adopted mine from a branch of the House Rabbit Society, and they were great. They required me to get a book about house rabbits, a large enclosure, and a couple other things, and Ori was litter trained before he came to me, as well as fixed.

It really was fun, having him. I have a turtle, too, so watching them interact was funny and sweet, and he was very, very cute.

I do remember hay getting expensive - that's why I tried to buy it by the bale. If you could find someone you absolutely trust to give you hay in larger quantities, that would be more economical - they eat tons of it!

[knittykat]

Here's a more negative experience we had; we figured it would be kind of like a cat but slightly different. It was not. When the rabbit was a baby it was very nice and snuggly but after a few months it would kick wildly and scream every time we touched it. The vet told us it was because it had reached sexual maturity and needed to be spayed. I spent almost $500 to spay the rabbit and it continued the kicking screaming hating us behavior. At the beginning it would curl up with me on the couch, and sit next to people to be petted, etc. It was like one day a switch flipped (and it was well before getting the cat) and it was like "OMG I am prey something will eat me ahhhh ahhh!" and it was not interested in socializing at all.

We got an actual cat and then the rabbit spent its entire day cowering and twitching in the corner of the cage. Miao was a 2 lb kitten and the rabbit was 10 lbs but it was still terrified. I ended up giving it up for adoption because obviously our house was not the correct environment for it.

At the very least, be aware that fixing a rabbit is not the same as fixing a dog or cat; it was very expensive!
_________________
"Fun is where you find it" - jackierocket

[applesauce]

I had a bunny! I named her Marjorie after the author of The Velveteen Rabbit.

Cute! Soft fur! They eat raw vegetables, just like me! I also got rabbit kibble for her.

Bunnies chew everything! I let my bun run around my bedroom freely when I was home. It was cute, she could hop up and down from my bed and she liked to lay on me when I was sleeping. BUT that meant she'd also chew on my clothes, my bedsheets, the floorboards... Be sure to cover electrical wires so your bun won't gnaw on them and get electrocuted.

Another drawback: bunnies aren't as affectionate as dogs and cats. They're naturally fearful because they are preyed upon in nature, so bunnies are nervous. But I had lots of tender moments with Marjorie. I think if you get yours as a baby bun (omg cute!) you can condition her or him into being more sociable.

[milyssa]

All of these experiences are so helpful! Thank you!

IF our landlord okays an animal that isn't a cat, we are looking at adopting from a shelter or our local house rabbit organization, which gives us the advantage of being able to choose a rabbit that will fit into our household/lifestyle (i.e. be more cuddly and social, and be less fearful), PLUS they come already fixed :)

From the reading I've been doing, though, it's clear that rabbits are more fearful than most animals, and chew like crazy, and have the GI dangers....so your downsides aren't surprising, but are good to be hearing from people, too,

Thanks and keep them coming! :)
_________________
With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.

[Sleepyhouse]

Ooh, we had a rabbit when I was in middle/high school!

His name was Chewie (after Chewbacca since we already had a Yoda) but boy did the name fit!! He really did chew everything - clothes, baseboards, shoes - and he bit all the buttons off our TV remote controls!

We mostly let him roam around the house, but caged him while we weren't home and at night. We had 2 cats at the time too and they all got along great. (Um, the rabbit would frequently try to hump the cats!) We got him fixed and he was just fine. Oh, and he took to using the litterbox on his own! He had a small one in his cage and would use the cat's if he was out and about.

He loved to run and jump around and we put chicken wire around a deck so he could go outside and run around. He LOVED to push his way through the snow in the winter.


We fed him EVERYTHING. He loved loved loved grapes and bananas. Veggies. He loved Trix cereal too (which we loved to feed him so we could say "Silly Rabbit, Trix are for kids!") Though we did mostly feed him pellets and alfalfa blocks for his teeth.


I do not remember if he would sit on our laps or anything much, but I do know you could cuddle with him on the floor and he'd lay on the bed with you. My dad used to lay on the floor with him and he'd lick his face (probably salty!)


Loved that bunny!!

[erin]

I love bunnies. Right now I have a really sweet girl who is very affectionate, but a little afraid of new people and situations. We got her from a rabbit rescue which is connected to the House Rabbit Society. Adopting from a rescue is a wonderful idea, because not only do you get to meet a few rabbits to see their personalities, you also get education and (at least where I live) a network of people who can help you if you need it. My bun has had some tummyaches and whenever we call the rescue, they either send someone to the house, or invite us to bring her to them. They are really good at taking care of uncomfortable bunnies, and it saves us a vet visit...also they'll clip her nails and stuff. I don't know if all rescue groups are like that, but I assume most are.

Ok, so about actual rabbit care - it can take a lot of work...they need a rabbit-proofed area to run around in (mine has a big dog crate attached to a dog playpen, but if you can give them a whole room that's better). They love to chew on things. Especially wires and anything unfamiliar to them. They eat a lot of hay, some greens, and some pellets. They eat pretty much the whole time they are awake, and if they stop eating for more than a few hours, it indicates a problem called stasis, which can be deadly if not corrected. It's really important to have a good rabbit vet, because most vets don't know much about buns. The rabbit rescue should be able to give you a recommendation for a vet, and they'll probably give you a lot of info about basic rabbit care.

So, about actually owning a rabbit, besides all of the work (hay gets everywhere! you have to make sure they always have hay and water, etc), having a bun is awesome. My bunny is a constant source of laughter and joy for me and my whole family. She is the cutest little girl, and she can be a little spoiled...if she wants to be pet and you're too busy, she will thump to get your attention. If you walk by her and she wants to get pet, she will turn the cuteness up to 11 and basically stick her entire nose through the bars of her pen in a desperate attempt to get some attention. It always works. I just like to sit with her and pet her, or just watch her play. I love her very much, and I do think a rabbit can fulfill that need to have a pet that you can interact with. But it does vary from bun to bun. Most of the rabbits we met at the rescue were adorable, but wanted nothing to do with us. When we met our bun, she ran up to us and when we started petting her, she sat down in front of us to indicate that she was happy. So my bun loves attention, but some bunnies don't care as much, so you can choose based on your preference.

Ok, this is really long and probably incoherent, if you have any other questions, I'll be watching this thread!

[milyssa]

So the landlord ok'd a bun, and we are planning to go to a local shelter to meet some on Thursday! We feel like to really know whether or not a rabbit will be right for us, we have to meet some (and I am eyeing a little 5 year old mini rex at the shelter -- his info says he likes to cuddle :) -- of course our local rescue groups will be other places to look, go see some bunny set-ups, etc.

I'm thinking either an ex pen or a homemade bunny condo would work for us.

Last night we went to our local pet store to price out some supplies: toys, hay, pellets, litter, etc. Hubs felt better that it was less expensive than he thought...
How much hay/bedding/etc. would you say you go through in a month's time? I'm sure it varies from rabbit to rabbit, esp. depending on size, but a ballpark would be helpful!
_________________
With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.

[scaredsi11y]

My dad had a HUGE house rabbit. Not overweight, just giant. The vet said he was one of the largest rabbits she had ever seen, but that he seemed to be at a healthy weight. He lived for 10+ years (not sure of his age when he got him) and just passed away last summer.

Food was not terribly expensive because the rabbit ate so much fresh stuff. He usually got a carrot, half a banana, and 1/4 cabbage head every day... along with plenty of pellets other random veggies that were on hand. From what I understood, the important thing was not to feed him any overripe fruits, since those can be harmful. My dad had a copy of the House Rabbit Society's book and would double-check to see if things were okay for the rabbit to eat. So, while he did eat pellets/hay, the majority of his diet was fresh and inexpensive. Cabbage was definitely his favorite, and my dad could usually buy two or three heads for $1.

He was very friendly, but didn't enjoy being picked up. He liked people to get down to his level and sit with him. He would bounce around happily and do that cuuuute rabbit thing where they stretch out super long and lay on their sides. Because he didn't enjoy getting picked up, nail-clipping was kind of a challenge. My dad would just take him to the pet store for that, since the at-home attempts were pretty stressful for everyone concerned! I'm sure you could train a younger rabbit to tolerate it better.

My dad's rabbit didn't have a cage or specific bedding - he was able to freely move about one level of the house because he used a litterbox. He always had a few blankets and soft towels that he could move around and kind of dig/arrange to make his own sleeping place. Often he would just stretch out on a soft piece of carpet, though. He liked to lay underneath things, so my dad made him a couple of little nooks to hide in. He especially liked to hop under the stairs and stretch out there when he wanted to be left alone... but shaking a box of Wheat Thins or Cheerios would always bring him bouncing right out. Haha.

ETA: Rabbit temperments obviously vary tremendously, but this rabbit was always very friendly and curious. He liked to be petted, even by strangers and was just a sociable as a cat. He liked other pets, too. He never bit or scratched anyone, except for one time when my dad was trying to clip his nails at home. (Like I said, that just didn't go well with this particular bunny because of his size and age.) Other than that incident, he never showed even the slightest inclination to be aggressive.

[knittykat]

[Sleepyhouse]

I don't recall us ever using bedding- just his cage + a litter box.
Maybe we were doing it wrong!

[milyssa]

Well, we're taking the plunge! Thanks for all of your stores/tips/etc. as they really helped me improve my bun knowledge.

Thumper is coming home with us later today! (sorry the picture is so big)

+ View larger


He is a 1-2 year old male rabbit (not sure what type, although I think he's probably 5-6 pounds) who apparently loves to cuddle and watch TV. The hard part is that we think we need to just let him adjust to his new home in his condo today, but we're going to wish we could cuddle tonight!
_________________
With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.

[IrmaVep]

MrVep says "he's like a story book bunny!"

[tinyrock]

Eeep! So cute. I hope your adjustment period goes smoothly.