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When Is a rabbit classed as old?

It depends on the breed. A big bun such as a French lop would be classed as old around 5 but a smaller bun I think it is around 7 :? I'm sure everyone has different options though
 
It depends on the breed. A big bun such as a French lop would be classed as old around 5 but a smaller bun I think it is around 7 :? I'm sure everyone has different options though

:thumb:

Giants can only live ~5-6 years say, dwarf lops for example ~10 yrs. So old age is based upon perspective of that breed :)
 
Since larger breeds live shorter (Unless I got them mixed up :lol: ) I would say 4-5
For a smaller breed I would say 7-8
 
My vets seem to think Molly is old at 5:cry: As for Dylan who is 8 - they seem amazed. Apparently, most of their bunny customers die at 4/5 (I hope that's not due to their treatment). The vet said yesterday a lot of them have come from PAH.
 
I don't think I would count my nethies as old until 8-9.

Larger breeds do die earlier but normally because their heart gives out and can't cope with their size. As far as I know, but I might be wrong, their body doesn't actually age faster, just the heart is the same size as that of a smaller bunny, so it fails more because it has to work harder. So I guess, if that is true, then how old a bunny is is not the same as projected lifespan or exceeding that projected lifespan.
 
My vets seem to think Molly is old at 5:cry: As for Dylan who is 8 - they seem amazed. Apparently, most of their bunny customers die at 4/5 (I hope that's not due to their treatment). The vet said yesterday a lot of them have come from PAH.

My vet once said something similar but his take on it was that at that age you start to get the more long term health problems developing and previously vet care was not good enough and owners not good enough or vigilant enough to get them the care they needed. Now, with vet care coming along, rabbits are living longer with those chronic condition.
 
Well Boris isn't technically old at nearly 5 years old since he's a small bunny, but he's outlived both of his parents, who both died before the age of 2 :cry: I think this was due to neglect rather than genetics though since all of Boris' 3 siblings are alive and well also. These people clearly had no idea how to look after rabbits properly :( Not sure at what age Boris would be considered old, but as he's only a tiny bit larger than a Nethie I'd say around 7 years perhaps.
 
I don't think I would count my nethies as old until 8-9.

Larger breeds do die earlier but normally because their heart gives out and can't cope with their size. As far as I know, but I might be wrong, their body doesn't actually age faster, just the heart is the same size as that of a smaller bunny, so it fails more because it has to work harder. So I guess, if that is true, then how old a bunny is is not the same as projected lifespan or exceeding that projected lifespan.

:love::love::love: Im hoping that Sebastian will live forever :love:

I'd say around 7 for a small or medium sized bunny but 4/5ish for a giant :wave:
 
My vets seem to think Molly is old at 5:cry: As for Dylan who is 8 - they seem amazed. Apparently, most of their bunny customers die at 4/5 (I hope that's not due to their treatment). The vet said yesterday a lot of them have come from PAH.

mmm - not a good starting point for a vet - mine expect 'average size' buns to get past 10.
 
:love::love::love: Im hoping that Sebastian will live forever :love:

I'd say around 7 for a small or medium sized bunny but 4/5ish for a giant :wave:

I told my vet it was not up for discussion but that Sky has to live forever.

I think my vet felt a bit of pressure at that point :lol: Sadly, I was serious.
 
I don't think my lionhead cross Bracken is only 5 and he has been showing little signs of aging for quite a while now, sadly i don't think he will live till he is 10 :(
but he will probably prove me wrong and live till he is 20 :lol:
 
I told my vet it was not up for discussion but that Sky has to live forever.

I think my vet felt a bit of pressure at that point :lol: Sadly, I was serious.

:lol::lol::lol: Im sure my vet will do everything possible to get Sebastian to live forever :love:
 
Sadly, I think 4 or 5 is seen as 'average' by most members of the general public too :(. I daresay this is down to the majority of pet rabbits not being cared for properly, un-neutered females, death from untreated GI stasis etc etc. Most people I speak to are amazed when I say rabbits can live to be 10 or 12 years old. I have a great rabbit vet so he's not surprised by Flora and Parsnip now aged 9 and tells me they are quite capable of making double figures (*prays*).
 
I agree with 7/8 for a small/medium bun.

People are always shocked when I tell them that buns are actually a good 10 year commitment. Schumi was 11 or 12 when he went to the Bridge, and I think Eddie was about 10.

:wave:
 
An OAP.....old age bunny of mine called Barnaby lived to be at least 11 years old.
He was fully grown when he ended up in rescue, they had him for four years and I had him for 7 years.

He definitely was old in every way.
Here's a photo of the old fella.

Barnaby. RIP. xxxx

2010_0324etcpiggiesrabbits0050.jpg


Barnabysleepyhead-3.jpg
 
I shouldn't read these threads as they remind me that my crew are getting old - all of the mini lops are 5yrs +, my frenchie is coming up to 7yr, my nethie is 11 yrs, and my giant is 5.5yr......:(
 
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