Tell me about rabbit ownership

[TecHNooB]

What should I know before I go out and get one?

 

[yowolabi]

They will chew any exposed wire that you have.
Personalities differ, but they aren't very interactive as a rule. They spend most of their time in dark hiding spots.

 

[imported_Baloo]

What yowolabi said, and they bite.

 

[digiram]

They're pretty tasty in a stew

 

[DrPizza]

When selecting the rabbit, see if you can cradle it on its back in your arms. If you can't because it struggles, don't buy that rabbit.

If you have an Agway or something like that near you, buy your rabbit food there. Rabbit food costs around $6 per 50 pounds these days. ($6.35 last I checked.) You can get it even cheaper if you get it in 100 pound bags. The markup on rabbit food at pet stores and in smaller bags is tremendous.

If you work at it, rabbits can be litterbox trained; actually, it's not that hard. Rabbits tend to prefer to use the same corner of their cage for going to the bathroom. Go from there (get a book.)

Get your rabbit from a breeder, rather than a pet store. If you want show quality, you're going to pay more. However, the breeder may sell you a pet quality rabbit fairly cheaply. (Serious breeders cull the rabbits that don't meet the standards of the breed.)

Most rabbits aren't worth more than 4 or 5 dollars, unless they're a pure bred. Most pet stores charge way too much for crappy quality rabbits. If you're paying $25 or more for a rabbit, it better come with the pedigree papers.

 

[monk3y]

Always support their lower half when handling them... They can kick and break their back.

 

[laurenlex]

They fvck like rabbits!

 

[TecHNooB]

Originally posted by: DrPizza
When selecting the rabbit, see if you can cradle it on its back in your arms. If you can't because it struggles, don't buy that rabbit.

If you have an Agway or something like that near you, buy your rabbit food there. Rabbit food costs around $6 per 50 pounds these days. ($6.35 last I checked.) You can get it even cheaper if you get it in 100 pound bags. The markup on rabbit food at pet stores and in smaller bags is tremendous.

If you work at it, rabbits can be litterbox trained; actually, it's not that hard. Rabbits tend to prefer to use the same corner of their cage for going to the bathroom. Go from there (get a book.)

Get your rabbit from a breeder, rather than a pet store. If you want show quality, you're going to pay more. However, the breeder may sell you a pet quality rabbit fairly cheaply. (Serious breeders cull the rabbits that don't meet the standards of the breed.)

Most rabbits aren't worth more than 4 or 5 dollars, unless they're a pure bred. Most pet stores charge way too much for crappy quality rabbits. If you're paying $25 or more for a rabbit, it better come with the pedigree papers.

What are pedigree papers?

 

[dbot]

Krunchykrome is the anandtech expert on owning rabbits, be sure to ask him.

 

[SSSnail]

Pick them up by the ears, yes that's right. Their bodies are easily bruised and if not handled properly could lead to internal organ bruising, then you'd end up with tasty hare stew.

Clean their cages often, they crap, and they stink. Feed them what you see in cartoons, and don't get them wet. They're very fragile. Oh, and pick them up by their ears.

 

[Cerpin Taxt]

Get ferrets instead.

 

[TecHNooB]

Originally posted by: SSSnail
Pick them up by the ears, yes that's right. Their bodies are easily bruised and if not handled properly could lead to internal organ bruising, then you'd end up with tasty hare stew.

Clean their cages often, they crap, and they stink. Feed them what you see in cartoons, and don't get them wet. They're very fragile. Oh, and pick them up by their ears.

Only by the ears? Boo...........

 

[DrVos]

My wife got a baby rabbit from a breeder about 7 years ago. She's been a pretty interesting pet. Our rabbit has shown to herself to have a good deal of personality. She loves being petted, coming out to play with the dogs, is potty trained, and yes, she loves chewing on wires. The dogs and rabbit get along remarkably well. They'll go up to her and sniff her, and lick her face, nibble at the fur on the top of her head and chase her a little here and there. She really doesn't seem to mind. If the dogs get a little too rough, she seems fully capable of voicing her displeasure by nipping at them to keep them in line.

 

[yowolabi]

Originally posted by: TecHNooB

Originally posted by: SSSnail
Pick them up by the ears, yes that's right. Their bodies are easily bruised and if not handled properly could lead to internal organ bruising, then you'd end up with tasty hare stew.

Clean their cages often, they crap, and they stink. Feed them what you see in cartoons, and don't get them wet. They're very fragile. Oh, and pick them up by their ears.

Only by the ears? Boo...........

I would usually cradle it like DrPizza described or hold it against me with one hand on it's bottom and one on it's chest. You have to be absolutely sure that the rabbit cannot kick it's back legs, because it can easily injure itself if it tries too hard.

Also, it is easy to toilet train a rabbit. Also, you should have a big cage for it, for the times you don't want it running free. If you train it right, the rabbit will see the cage as a place of security and will have no problem relaxing in there. If you train it wrong, you will have to chase it for an hour before you can get it into it's cage.

 

[0roo0roo]

lousy pets i'd say unless you have a large yard and want to install a fence they can't dig under.
some say you can potty train them but i doubt most could. they poop like clockwork every couople minutes so playing with them inside is basically a no no. so basically they just get to live outside in a cage like a prisoner. ..or inside in a cage like a prisoner.... a stinky cage.

bunnies are cute if other people get to take care of them.

they don't really recognize people either so its not much fun there.

 

[DrPizza]

Originally posted by: TecHNooB

What are pedigree papers?

They are the papers that certify that the rabbit is a purebred. (What breed is up to you.) They'll include information such as the parents names, the grandparents names, etc. The rabbit would be able to be (or would be) registered with whichever rabbit association does that breed. If you want it strictly as a pet, then get it without papers. Some breeders sell them cheaper without papers. (We sell goats though; and it doesn't make a difference to us if you want everything or not; we still have just as much time and money dedicated to the animals.)

 

[WildHorse]

Since you love animals like I do you'll let those cute little guys run free in the yard, out of the cage.

So that means you'll need some special tools.

You'll want a good chainsaw & shovel for that morning when you find the bark & living layer your rabbits chewed off several trees last night, girdling the entire circumferences, thus murdering them. You?ll need those tools to remove the several trees.

You'll also want the strongest maximum tornado hurricane perfect-storm typhoon vacuum, since nothing I mean nothing sheds like your rabbits. Ah-ah-ahh-chooo! And you even get an extra free benefit: rabbit hair in all your food!

Not that easy to find a vet who tweaks rabbits. They need shots, neutering, eventual teeth-trimming, all costs a lot, you have to buy tiny-Tim bales of Timothy hay that gets everywhere, then they croak. Cute little rabbits! Yet another use for that shovel.

But the fur they shed lasts forever so you?ll always have that to remember them by.

Always.

 

[DrPizza]

obligatory rabbit pictures:
big f'in rabbit
(that's my mom holding the rabbit)
oreo cookie anyone?
grapes!

Somehow one of the other fainting goat breeders mentioned picking up English Lops for her while my wife was in Michigan (on a goat purchasing trip.) Unfortunately, virtually all of the reputable breeders have waiting lists -- none have any English lops for sale. Now, somehow, my wife has also decided to start raising English lops.

English lop info and here

From the second site, you can read about the standards for many of the breeds; i.e. what constitutes a good specimen of the breed.

 

[DrPizza]

Originally posted by: scott
Since you love animals like I do you'll let those cute little guys run free in the yard, out of the cage.

So that means you'll need some special tools.

You'll want a good chainsaw & shovel for that morning when you find the bark & living layer your rabbits chewed off several trees last night, girdling the entire circumferences, thus murdering them. You?ll need those tools to remove the several trees.

You'll also want the strongest maximum tornado hurricane perfect-storm typhoon vacuum, since nothing I mean nothing sheds like your rabbits. Ah-ah-ahh-chooo! And you even get an extra free benefit: rabbit hair in all your food!

Not that easy to find a vet who tweaks rabbits. They need shots, neutering, eventual teeth-trimming, all costs a lot, you have to buy tiny-Tim bales of Timothy hay that gets everywhere, then they croak. Cute little rabbits! Yet another use for that shovel.

But the fur they shed lasts forever so you?ll always have that to remember them by.

Always.

Yeah, I forgot to mention that. You should see it out here in the country where rabbits run loose. There are no more trees. The vicious rabbits chewed them all down. (sarcasm; I've never heard of this problem.)

They do shed a bit though; nothing at all like the amount that my dogs shed though.

 

[Mermaidman]

Rabbit live you long time! Our bunny lived almost 8 yrs.

 

[krunchykrome]

I got one a while ago with an ex gf. It was "our" pet. Well, we eventually broke up, and I got6 stuck with the rabbit. It was a pain in the a$$ and it didn't play with you. It was a boring pet. I tried to find people who would take it from me for free. No takers....So one day I took it out of it's cage, tied a little water bottle to it along with a sack of pellets and I let the rabbit go free in the woods.


j/k about letting it go free. I eventually found a preschool that took it off of my hands.


Anyways, I thought they made lousy pets.

 

[Mermaidman]

Originally posted by: yowolabi

Originally posted by: TecHNooB

Originally posted by: SSSnail
Pick them up by the ears, yes that's right. Their bodies are easily bruised and if not handled properly could lead to internal organ bruising, then you'd end up with tasty hare stew.

Clean their cages often, they crap, and they stink. Feed them what you see in cartoons, and don't get them wet. They're very fragile. Oh, and pick them up by their ears.

Only by the ears? Boo...........

I would usually cradle it like DrPizza described or hold it against me with one hand on it's bottom and one on it's chest. You have to be absolutely sure that the rabbit cannot kick it's back legs, because it can easily injure itself if it tries too hard.

Also, it is easy to toilet train a rabbit. Also, you should have a big cage for it, for the times you don't want it running free. If you train it right, the rabbit will see the cage as a place of security and will have no problem relaxing in there. If you train it wrong, you will have to chase it for an hour before you can get it into it's cage.

Or grab a bunny by the scruff--That's the loose skin behind the neck.

 

[Flyback]

Why not just buy a small dog? (Small as in Jack Russell Terrier, not those ugly purse dogs)

 

[DrPizza]

Originally posted by: Mermaidman

Originally posted by: yowolabi

Originally posted by: TecHNooB

Originally posted by: SSSnail
Pick them up by the ears, yes that's right. Their bodies are easily bruised and if not handled properly could lead to internal organ bruising, then you'd end up with tasty hare stew.

Clean their cages often, they crap, and they stink. Feed them what you see in cartoons, and don't get them wet. They're very fragile. Oh, and pick them up by their ears.

Only by the ears? Boo...........

I would usually cradle it like DrPizza described or hold it against me with one hand on it's bottom and one on it's chest. You have to be absolutely sure that the rabbit cannot kick it's back legs, because it can easily injure itself if it tries too hard.

Also, it is easy to toilet train a rabbit. Also, you should have a big cage for it, for the times you don't want it running free. If you train it right, the rabbit will see the cage as a place of security and will have no problem relaxing in there. If you train it wrong, you will have to chase it for an hour before you can get it into it's cage.

Or grab a bunny by the scruff--That's the loose skin behind the neck.

Depends on the size of the rabbit.

 

[heathertre]

My brother and I had rabbits growing up. We could keep them on one condition...we had to take care of them. Well, we didn't. So our mom fed them to our 2 very large Boa Constrictors. At least the snakes ended up happy.