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Top Ten Things You'd Wished You'd Known Before Getting Rabbits

What Do You Wish You'd Known Before Taking On Rabbits?

  • what accommodation they need and the minimum space needed for a healthy happy life

    Votes: 57 50.4%
  • rabbits need friends and must have company

    Votes: 49 43.4%
  • how to feed them and how much is involved

    Votes: 26 23.0%
  • the time you need to spend each day with your rabbits

    Votes: 16 14.2%
  • what veterinary care is required and the costs involved

    Votes: 44 38.9%
  • rabbits don't like being picked up

    Votes: 23 20.4%
  • basic health care

    Votes: 21 18.6%
  • Importance of neutering

    Votes: 31 27.4%
  • Life span of rabbits

    Votes: 14 12.4%
  • Other

    Votes: 12 10.6%

  • Total voters
    113

The Duchess

Wise Old Thumper
As many of you will already be aware, Make Mine Chocolate! is the campaign to stop the impulse purchase of bunnies.

One way we are trying to make people realise what they are taking on before they buy is by producing our own set of leaflets that would be available to the public before they get to the counter at the garden centre or pet shop. We all know that many people purchase on a whim, with many regretting it later, resulting in them giving up their rabbit or leaving it to lead a miserable existance without the correct care for the rest of it's life.

Now, everybody on here obviously cares about their buns or they just wouldn't be here, but I'm sure that for some, you may not have taken on a rabbit or rabbits if you'd known what was involved.

There are some very obvious topics such as accommodation and diet, but what do you wish you'd known before you had rabbits that might have made you stop and think whether you should take them on or not?

I'll list the main topics, but if there is something specific that you feel would be worth new owners knowing before they commit to taking on rabbits?

We'd love to hear your opinions.
 
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How amazing they are with their personalities and intelligence, if they are treated right and given all the things to keep them happy and safe (space, diet, healthcare, neutering, a neutered friend, toys, interaction etc) then they are just as rewarding as cats or dogs, if not much more so. :love::love::love:

Sorry thats totally the wrong angle but I didnt realise how much they would bring to my life :love:

The biggest consideration for us was definitely space, we did get a double hutch but had bought a Pets at Home run and attached it permanently to the front but it was still no way big enough for them, IMO.
 
How amazing they are with their personalities and intelligence, if they are treated right and given all the things to keep them happy and safe (space, diet, healthcare, neutering, a neutered friend, toys, interaction etc) then they are just as rewarding as cats or dogs, if not much more so. :love::love::love:

Absolutely - very important because most people think that they just sit all day.

What heading would you put that under if you were going to create a leaflet about the subject? Or would you put it under another subject?
 
The main thing that would've made me stop and think is knowing that

- rabbits hide pain

SO many people think that if their rabbit is ill it will "tell" them that it's ill like a dog. It doesn't happen like that ,and thus causes lots of unnecessary suffering.

I ticked knowing the veterinary care needed and how long they live.
 
Cost of veterinary treatment for a dental, vacs etc. I love my buns to bits but having taken two on from people at work and both needed a dental,emergency care and claws clipped it just ehmphasises this point. They're not an animal to be brought and just fed/cleaned out every so often and then left to their own devices.
 
That you can with a bit of thought and work have rabbits living indoors, like a cat does. By doing this they have far more interaction with their owners than if they lived down the bottom of the garden, owners can pick up health issues quicker. ... etc
 
Importance of neutering. When I was young we didn't realize that 70-80% of females get cancer if they aren't fixed.
 
Absolutely - very important because most people think that they just sit all day.

What heading would you put that under if you were going to create a leaflet about the subject? Or would you put it under another subject?

Yes true. :D The amount of people that laugh when you talk about bunnies -there is such a misconception about them.

I dont know how I would get that across in a leaflet, I guess it covers so many areas as well, because your bunny will really only be happy and interactive if you make sure you cover all those aspects of rabbit care and welfare. It could almost come at the end of a leaflet to say, if you provide these 10 things, I will reward you so much with licks, nudges, binkies etc etc.

But I think its about getting the message across that they are intelligent and communicative and need interaction.

"I may not bark, or miaow, but I am just as intelligent". Something like that anyway :oops: ETA: in relaton to what Candiflare has pointed out soemthing like "I may not bark or miaow so I cannot show you I am in pain. If you get to know me, you may learn what I need. When I am happy I may binky, lick or beg. When I am sad or in pain, I will be quiet, still and may not eat".

I forgot to say money as well, buying appropriate accommodation, good quality hay, and ensuring they are neutered, vaccinated and any health problems are treated, means time and money at the vets. People need to be aware that they can cost just as much as another pet to ensure they are healthy, and its not just a case of buying the rabbit and putting it in a hutch then feeding it muesli and carrots. Sadly, when I talk to a lot of people they see the price tag at Pets at Home as reflective of a rabbit's value :(:cry:
 
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The main thing that would've made me stop and think is knowing that

- rabbits hide pain

SO many people think that if their rabbit is ill it will "tell" them that it's ill like a dog. It doesn't happen like that ,and thus causes lots of unnecessary suffering.

I ticked knowing the veterinary care needed and how long they live.


That is so important, absolutely.
 
My biggest errors came with accommodation and more devastatingly, food. I had a rabbit who was super fat so on vets agreement we cut out hay and she had a small bowl of muesli once a day. She did so well on that and only died after said vet overdosed her on some medication. Had she managed to live another six weeks (when I learnt about the importance of hay) I could have transformed her life.

The other things that blights my past with rabbits is poor vet care. I didn't know that rabbits were exotics and didn't know my vets were incompetent and that I was losing rabbits because of their lack of knowledge. That's why I've gone out and learnt so much myself. I want to always agree with what my vet is doing and understand why, and thankfully now my vet is far superior.

If I had the knowledge now, that I had then ('then' being various times) then for sure many of those rabbits would have lived longer. Flash, Moon and Ozzy, in particular, may even still be alive. That breaks my heart every day and I hold that guilt daily because whilst it hurts, it makes me a better owner and I will never stuff up like that again.
 
What wasn't an issue for me but other people are so surprised by, is that each rabbit has its own personality and each rabbit is different with their likes and dislikes, habits, attitudes, etc.
 
Accommodation, food and vets for us. I wish I'd known how important hay is when I got Mischa.

Other - how stupid people can be about rabbits. Rabbit fur is fine cos they are can be eaten indeed. What tosh. :roll:
 
Sorry to keep hogging this thread but is it possible for something like "Thinking of buying a rabbit for your child? Think again!"

When I think of my childhood rabbit it must have had quite a miserable life, but my parents didnt take any more responsibility than I did, something which pains me so so much. A leaflet might at least make a parent think about the commitment a bit more and make it clear it is their responsibility too.
 
Accommodation.

Pets at Homes largest hutch is not large enough. I guess it's a good thing that they now advertise that rabbits should be in pairs but they don't sell six foot hutches. :?

And neutering. People either don't know it can be done or don't think it's necessary.

And diet. People don't know rabbits need hay. That's 90% of their diet! How can you buy a rabbit and not be told that?!
 
would have liked to known that they are like little people:lol: Lola listens to everything i say and always does what i tell her to do:love:
 
I think a lot more people need to know about Rescue Centres.

So many people buy from Pet Shops and see this as the 'easy option'. Although not ideal, I think people can be told that getting rabbits from a rescue centre will be kinder on their purses (rabbits already neutered/vaccs/health checked etc).
 
I wish I'd known how much it hurts when your bun dies......
On a more practical note I wish I'd known more about a buns dietry needs as my first couple of buns had dental problems due to me giving them the wrong diet with no hay.:(You live & learn but that doesn't help my early buns only my present ones.
 
Sorry to keep hogging this thread but is it possible for something like "Thinking of buying a rabbit for your child? Think again!"

When I think of my childhood rabbit it must have had quite a miserable life, but my parents didnt take any more responsibility than I did, something which pains me so so much. A leaflet might at least make a parent think about the commitment a bit more and make it clear it is their responsibility too.

So maybe a leaflet describing why rabbits aren't the best pet for children? Common misconceptions about rabbits for kids. I'm not saying that children shouldn't be involved, but maybe pointing out all of the pluses and minuses could be a leaflet in it's own right?
 
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For me, the main thing I would have liked to have known in my childhood when I first had rabbits was how delicate they are.

I was always conscientious when it came to their health but they are so different to other pets (cats, dogs etc).

Since having rabbits in adulthood, I have learnt how to pick up on even the smallest signs that something is wrong.

People need to understand that you can't just 'wait and see' with a rabbit - if you are worried, go to a vet. Don't wait!
 
Yes, diet also. If I had a £1 for every person who has said to me, "I took their bedding out (hay) cos they kept eating it!!!", I would be a VERY rich girl! :roll:
 
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