Bunny Care 101
Rabbits are unique creatures who require extensive care, love, and dedication. While cuddly and adorable, adopting a rabbit and giving them an enriching and healthy life can be a lot of work! This is nothing anyone can’t handle, as long as you are properly educated and motivated to give the very best life to your furry friend
Rabbit Setups
It is recommended that the minimum size indoor habitat for one rabbit is 16 square feet, with three feet of vertical length to allow your rabbit to stand on their hind legs and be able to stretch towards the ceiling or top of an enclosure. Housing rabbits indoors (with exceptions for supervised outside playtime) is very important. Statistically, rabbits who live outdoors have shorter lifespans and are at risk for more viruses, parasites, and bacterial infections in comparison to their indoor-living friends. Rabbits are also extremely sensitive to temperature, with the lowest tolerable temperature of about 40 degrees F, and the highest temperature of around 80 degrees F. It is incredibly important when adopting bunnies to consider your methods of cooling and heating your home. Do you have air conditioning, fans, heaters available?
Note that in each of the selected picture each bunny pen is tall enough to prevent them from hopping over, meets the square footage requirements (or better, exceeds them!), has multiple forms of enrichment, clean water, hay, and a litter box. There are infinite ways you can create a wonderful bun-home! Or maybe a whole bun room, which is featured above. All commercially available “rabbit cages” or hutches sold online or in pet stores are extremely small and confining for rabbits. Our rule of thumb is to use those small plastic cages and deconstruct them into litter boxes! It’s a creative way to repurpose old rabbit cages that are way too tiny!
Litter and Litterbox training
Did you know that rabbits can be litter box trained just like dogs and cats? These intelligent creatures can use their own personal potty box with absolutely no issue at all and learn incredibly fast. That being said, there are certain things you can do for your rabbit during potty training to set them up for success. The size of the litter box and the type of shavings used is important!
We like to provide our bunnies with a plastic litter box that they can easily hop in and turn around in every direction. Rabbits like to poop and pee while they are eating, so to promote the use of a litter box, we clip their hay up in baskets hanging above the box, or form a convenient and large pile of hay in the corner of the box.
Certain types of litters and shavings for potty boxes can be harmful to rabbits such as:
- Cedar
- Pine
- Certain softwoods
- Dyed and scented papers
- Unbleached, unscented recycled paper bedding
- Aspen softwood
- Potty pads
We have found the most success with lining boxes with at least an inch of bedding after they are cleaned and disinfected every morning. Natural bedding can be dumped in the yard debris, saving you space in the trash can. It’s important to clean and refill litter boxes on a consistent and timely basis to avoid buildup of ammonia, or bacteria that would otherwise cause infections. Some bunnies love to chill in their litter boxes too! Make sure to keep an eye on them and make sure they aren’t snacking on the hay that they poop and pee on if you choose to line your boxes with hay.
Toys
What we avoid:
Toys that are dyed
Toys made from unnatural fabrics or materials that a bunny could ingest
Toys with fine fabrics or threads that can pose a choking or blockage hazard
Dyed papers
Toys with stuck on seeds, fruits, nuts
Edible hides
Toys we use:
- Organic apple branch chews
- Undyed wood chews
- Willow balls
- Natural pinecone chews
- Hay/grass-based mats
- Toilet paper roll hay stuffs
- Baby stacking cups (for pellets)
Shopping for your New Bunny
This list is a rough outine of everything you will need for your new bunny:
- Exercise Pen (at least 36″ tall): example sold on Chewy
- Litterbox(es): generally the larger the better; Amazon or Home Depot
- Hay: fresh timothy, orchard, or oat hay. Do not buy alfalfa hay for bunnies under 6 months old, as it is too high in calories and calcium. Hay can be purchased in bulk in compressed cubes at your local feed/farm store. Place the small bale in a storage container for an economical way to buy hay.
- Pellets: Oxbow adult pellets for all bunnies over 6 months old. Avoid pellets labelled “fiesta mix” or ones which contain dyed particles, excessive wheat, corn, fats and oils, dried fruits, nuts, and seeds.
- Water Bowls: rabbits hydrate themselves best with water bowls instead of water bottles. A sturdy ceramic or glass bowl is best to prevent tipping if a bunny puts their front paws on the bowl. Use a water bowl meant for the size of a large dog to ensure your bunny always has enough to drink.
- Blankets, toys, and places to hide: every bunny deserves a comfortable place to hide in their setup if they want some privacy. Unlaminated and plain cardboard boxes work great for this. They can also safely chew on cardboard homes. Stick to shorter fiber blankets for them or even quilts in case they decide to nibble. This is the safest for preventing gastrointestinal blockages. Natural chews, such as hay balls, are favorites for most bunnies in regards to toys.
- Underneath/Flooring for Exercise Pen: we like to buy and cut linoleum to use for underneath our exercise pens. This makes any potential spills or accidents easy to clean. Hay is very easy to sweep off of linoleum. Baby foam play mats are also a great choice as long as your bunny isn’t a chewer. Make sure that if your flooring is carpeted that it is regularly vacuumed to avoid excessive hair and dust accumulation.