• Forum/Server Upgrade If you are reading this you have made it to the upgraded forum. Posts made on the old forum after 26th October 2023 have not been transfered. Everything else should be here. If you find any issues please let us know.

Why is it Acceptable for Breeding Rabbits to Have Small Hutches ?

Jack's-Jane

Wise Old Thumper
As the thread title says really.
What makes it OK for Rabbits used for Breeding to be kept in blocks of tiny hutches. Obviously alone unless they are a Doe raising a litter. Probably with no exercise time. Why does the Animal Welfare Act consider this to be acceptable ?
 
because they are livestock? because the accomodation is 'temporary' where the kits are concerned? The RSPCA minimum is a guideline only, its not a legal requirement. I doubt breeders would be investigated/fined/prosecuted if their rabbits are kept in small hutches if they are clean and well maintained.
 
because they are livestock? because the accomodation is 'temporary' where the kits are concerned? The RSPCA minimum is a guideline only, its not a legal requirement. I doubt breeders would be investigated/fined/prosecuted if their rabbits are kept in small hutches if they are clean and well maintained.

Yep, I really cant see the point of 'recommendations'. IMO there should be set dimensions for minimum hutch sizes.
Looking at blocks of 3-4ft hutches is like looking at a prison :cry:
 
Yep, I really cant see the point of 'recommendations'. IMO there should be set dimensions for minimum hutch sizes.
Looking at blocks of 3-4ft hutches is like looking at a prison :cry:

Yes, there is nothing the RSPCA can do if a bunny is kept in a small hutch but fed properly
 
because they are livestock? because the accomodation is 'temporary' where the kits are concerned? The RSPCA minimum is a guideline only, its not a legal requirement. I doubt breeders would be investigated/fined/prosecuted if their rabbits are kept in small hutches if they are clean and well maintained.

sad thing is we all know these hutches are not temporary :( i hate the look of 3 ft square hutches stacked on top of one another all uneutered smelling each other must drive hormones nuts surely
 
The RSPCA minimum is a guideline only, its not a legal requirement.

This is the problem with the Animal Welfare Act. :roll:

It has no power at all. If it did; then all the people selling 3ft hutches could in theory be prosecuted (as these are not big enough for guinea pigs either).

I do not think the Rspca would do anything about pet rabbits living in 4ft x 18ins. x 18ins if you reported it if the said bun' had food and water as the AWA is just a set of 'recommendations'. It has no teeth. :?

It isn't just rabbits that suffer in this way. Rodent Farms are horrendous places. I have seen pictures of rodents being bred in a rodent farm and they are sickening. :cry:

Plus cages are sold all the time that are not big enough for hamsters and mice etc to live in. I could cry when I see some of the so-called 'pet cages' on the market such as the Ovo range, the Rotastak range etc as they are simply unsuitable for any creature to live in and be happy. :(
 
I can't see the appeal at all about keeping hundreds of them all stacked up. Wasn't there something a while back where a couple got their rabbits taken away, and they claimed that they loved them. If they loved them, then why would the keep them stacked up like that
 
I too don't understand why it is deemed to be acceptable. Any rabbit, be it for breeding or as a pet, should still be given the freedom to display natural rabbit behaviour. How can that be possible in a 2,3 or 4ft cell?

Why should the 6ft recommended MINIMUM size not apply to rabbits merely due to them being bred? Surely a rabbit that has babies in with her needs larger not smaller? :?

I long for the day when it becomes illegal to keep a rabbit in anything smaller than 6ft, long for the day when petshops are only allowed to sell 6ft and larger.

It will never happen though and breeding rabbits will always get the worst deal :(
 
I too don't understand why it is deemed to be acceptable. Any rabbit, be it for breeding or as a pet, should still be given the freedom to display natural rabbit behaviour. How can that be possible in a 2,3 or 4ft cell?

Why should the 6ft recommended MINIMUM size not apply to rabbits merely due to them being bred? Surely a rabbit that has babies in with her needs larger not smaller? :?

I long for the day when it becomes illegal to keep a rabbit in anything smaller than 6ft, long for the day when petshops are only allowed to sell 6ft and larger.

It will never happen though and breeding rabbits will always get the worst deal :(

Well Said
 
because they are livestock? because the accomodation is 'temporary' where the kits are concerned? The RSPCA minimum is a guideline only, its not a legal requirement. I doubt breeders would be investigated/fined/prosecuted if their rabbits are kept in small hutches if they are clean and well maintained.

This is the whole problem. It NEEDS to be made legal. If only something could be done about it :( xXx
 
Smaller hutches, as in how much smaller?

well know people who keep (very small, not just pet shop small;) ) nethies in 3ftx2ftx2ft and they can act perfectly normally.


Mine are currently in 5ft by 2ft. going in thier 8ftx4ftx2ft run everyday for about 4-6 hours (the whole day on weekends).
 
Last edited:
well know people who keep (very small, not just pet shop small;) ) nethies in 3ftx2ftx2ft and they can act perfectly normally.


Mine are currently in 5ft by 2ft. going in thier 8ftx4ftx2ft run everyday for about 4-6 hours (the whole day on weekends).

I am sorry but I fail to believe that.

Our Nethie, Geronimo would be miserable as sin if we did that to him :( He requires just as much room as our Dwarf Lops IMO.

That is really sad :(
 
because they are livestock? because the accomodation is 'temporary' where the kits are concerned? The RSPCA minimum is a guideline only, its not a legal requirement. I doubt breeders would be investigated/fined/prosecuted if their rabbits are kept in small hutches if they are clean and well maintained.

This is the case, if the rabbits are classed as 'livestock' and moreso if they are culling and eating them aswell, they only need to adhere to Defra guidelines. This is the bit that I cannot fathom-animals are entitled to a higher standard of welfare because they are pets:? Even this isn't enforceable in the case of rabbits because of the law surrounding the 'farmed' ones. The Defra legislation needs to state minimum requirements for keeping rabbits in terms of size of enclosure, amount of exercise and natural light, diet and companionship before you stand a chance of imposing it on ordinary pet owners. It is back to front at the moment, breeders/farmers should be exceeding the standards and setting the standard - this would assume that they care about their 'stock' though and that is not the case 99% of the time, money is the motivation the animal's welfare is way down the list of priorities for most if not all back garden breeders, they are selfish people with little or no compassion at all in my opinion.

The legislation that is in place at the moment is equivalent to battery hens, cattle kept in milking sheds, rabbits in breeding hutches- all well below what is actually necessary to be humane and provide a reasonable standard of living for the animal whatever their demise is likely to be or however long it is likely to have to endure the conditions it is born into and forced to lived in. I also think there needs to be leglislation to prevent people 'choosing' to kill their own animals, it is not acceptable that you can kill any animal in this country providing you don't cause un-necessary suffering. It is completely ridiculous to leave it to people to determine 'suffering' when clearly people can't even work out in their own minds what is humane in terms of accomodation for an animal in this country. It is also ridiculous to assume that people will infact try to ensure there is no suffering involved, surely if someone is capable of that act in the first place it is indicative of a lack of humanity/compassion?

What is interesting Vikkivet is that potentially in this country vets could go out of business if everyone were to be like breeders/farmers and not vaccinate or neuter their pets and instead of getting them treated we just went round whacking them round the head with a spade or breaking their necks-a judge found someone not guilty of cruelty because he decided to kill his cat himself by whacking it with a spade rather than pay a vet to PTS. I mean come on - which way do they want it in this country? Something has to change because animals do deserve protection from cruelty and suffering and if you make a commitment and take on an animal I am sorry but, in my view it is your responsibility to use a vet when the animal needs medical attention or needs to be PTS. People who want to be 'slaughtermen/women' should have to attend a course and demonstrate their ability to do it properly and get a certificate to ensure it is being done humanely.

The whole thing is completely inadequate and out of date and frankly whoever is advising Defra wants locking in the equivalent size enclosure for a month - then see whether they think the size ratio is condusive with mental and physical well-being.

Sorry to waffle on but, this is very sensitve for me at the moment, it has quite recently come to my attention and I am so disappointed in the human race and their attitude towards defenceless animals at the moment, it's appauling and shameful.
 
Last edited:
Normal rabbit breeders (i.e. breeding in their back garden) have to meet exactly the same requirements as pet owners. DEFRA guidelines only apply to commercial ventures.

The reason that breeders get away with small hutches/cages is exactly the same reason that a pet owners get away with small hutches/cages...because the law doesn't state a minimum size!
 
while there are many breeders who keep their breeding rabbits in small hutches, where i got Lilli-Mai from all the rabbits were kept in 2ftx2ftx2ft hutches with the rare occasion in the 1 run they had in the garden.

However i have seen some breeders who keep all their breeding rabbits in hutches with runs attached and some giant breeders have each of their giants in its own shed with perminant acess to a run attached to the shed.

I think it depends entirely how many rabbits a breeder has some breeders will have 100's :( and with 100's of rabbits they cant exercise them or even socialise with them... that in no way makes it right though just sad :(
 
Just look at the size of so called "bedrooms" in many British houses. How can you expect them to do anything sensible for animals, if they can't even provide enough space for humans??? Even if there was a law, it would be tricky to enforce it. You could make shops sell a minimum size, but breeders often build their own hutches, and if no one reports them, it wouldn't work.
 
Yes, there is nothing the RSPCA can do if a bunny is kept in a small hutch but fed properly

From my experience, they don't even have to be fed "properly", they just have to be fed :roll::shock:

VickiP - I agree with everything you said and I feel equally disillusioned and frustrated at the moment.

It just feels such an uphill battle - all animal welfare issues, not just rabbits, because it doesn't seem to be deemed important enough to make any legal requirements regarding care and welfare :cry:
 
Back
Top