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Cats and bunnies?

Katastrophe

Young Bun
I've always wanted a house cat, since I was very young, and now moving away from home I have got the option.

My concern though, is for little Alfie. He's only just 4 months and whilst he's pretty laid back I'd be so concerned the cat might stress him out and of course he's my priority! He's never even lived with another rabbit.

So my question is - can rabbits and cats live happily in the same house? Would it be better to have a younger kitten? Or an older cat? Any advice on introducing them?

Thanks!
 
It's hard to say. Your rabbit could be fine, but then he could freak out or be panicked all the time because he can sense a puddy cat and you know how sensitive buns are to their surroundings.

Cats are predators and rabbits are prey.

Our cat doesn't see the rabbits but she loves them. The only rabbit I let her interact with is Poppy as she loves Roxy but even then it's close supervision and doesn't last long. The outdoor buns hate her and thump all the time if she is around. She is a house cat and they rabbits are only in the house when they're off to the vets in the carrier.

Cats might ignore the buns but they hit and it could be that a claw happens to be out in play mode, scratching a bun after they have been licking their bums, gone to the toilet or had their food then groomed and have all that nasty stuff on their claws that could get into a scratch on a bun.

I wouldn't, but that's me :wave: I might one day if I could safely provide for the rabbits and have a cat roaming around but at the moment I can't :D
 
Yeah, cat scratches are notorious for germs!

That's the other thought. The new house has enough space for separation, but I'm not sure that's fair on either party! Alfie is a house bunny and the space is his first (even over the OH...:lol:).
 
Hi ya.

I used to have a cat (he had to be put asleep due to illness) and a female bunny. My cat was a indoor cat, but went out into the garden when I was out there.

I then got a female bunny in May 2012. My cat and bunny got on fine although my bunny went up to my cat and humped him a couple of times. Other then that they got on just fine.
 
I have 2 outdoor rabbits and have recently rescued a cat. I think it depends on your setup. I know that when Lola (cat) is ready to go out then she won't be able to physically reach the buns in their hutch-run combo, so it's making sure they aren't stressed by the sight of her that is the problem. The rest of the garden isn't 100% rabbit proof so they are only allowed out to play when I'm out there with them anyway.

Does your bun free range inside? I wouldn't trust them together unsupervised tbh.
 
I can only speak from my personal experience, but my two cats are scared of rabbits, not the other way around.. :lol:.. which is odd, because the two rabbits I did have in the house were Polish breed... very small, and were under 6 months old..

My neighbours cat used to come into the garden when my buns lived outside, and she'd chase the rabbit into his pen. Then he would chase back and she'd run to the bottom of the garden to get away.. Then she'd chase him back in again.. and so on. I sat and watched one day and decided it was 'play' rather than 'fighting'. Then again, she also used to sneak into his hutch when he was out roaming in the garden, and she'd curl up to sleep on his hay.. so maybe she thought she was a rabbit too.. :lol:

I think largely it depends on the individual animals.. so there's no right or wrong answer really.

If you do decide to get a cat though, there are advantages to getting a kitten, as it will be raised knowing the bun is a part of the house. But, disadvantages too, because when kittens play, their claws are out all the time. :/

So, this post probably isn't very helpful at all. Sorry about that. :lol:
 
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