Advice needed finding rabbits for beginners never had rabbits before

Hello everyone I am new to this forum and also new to rabbits in general. My 7 year old daughter is very keen on animals and would love to have a rabbit / rabbits as a pet. We have decided as a family to give two rabbits a loving home, and we're making preparations (hutch, run etc). We were advised by a rabbit lover friend to get a bonded pair as getting two babies might not work as they may not be well suited. Would you agree this is good advice for beginners? Does anyone have any other advice for us on how to go about finding the right rabbits for us, what to look out for, what to do and not do? Thanks so much in advance x

Hello and welcome! :wave:

I can say that getting two bonded rabbits from a reputable rescue is the best thing you can do. Rescues will know the rabbit's personalities and pick a pair that would suit you. They will also already be bonded, neutered, vaccinated and health checked. :thumb:

http://www.rabbitrehome.org.uk/ - This is a good site to find bunnies local to you needing homes. You can also search for a rescue closest to you and you could maybe give them a ring and discuss what you need to give a pair of bunnies the perfect home.


http://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/pdfs/RWAbrochuremaster.pdf - This is an excellent guide that tells you everything you need to know about keeping bunnies.

Yes, a bonded pair is always best! If you go to a rescue they can normally find a pair of rabbits that will be right for you, you will be told their temperaments and you will know that the bond is solid. Plus you will be a dream come true for those bunnies!

If you get 2 babies from a breeder/petshop you will either be sold a boy and a girl in which case you will need to separate them, neuter/spay them both when they are old enough and then rebond them back together. Or you will be sold 2 of the same sex, in which case it will be a balancing act of waiting for them to be old enough for their ops and hoping their hormones don't kick in and leave you with 2 fighting bunnies regardless of where they come from all female buns should be spayed, otherwise 85-90% of them will have uterine cancer by the time they are 5

Plus make sure that you are buying a nice big hutch, a minimum for 2 buns is really a 6ft x 2ft x 2ft hutch with a run permanently attached, the RWAF suggest that 48sq ft is the minimum space needed for a pair. And they need that 24hrs a day as bunnies are most active very early morning and late at night. Happy Hutch and Welfare Hutches are both very good companies.

Or you could always get a shed/playhouse instead of a hutch and then you can sit in with the buns, which is much warmer in winter plus means you don't get soaked when you need to clean them out in bad weather. There are some fantastic suggestions in a sticky at the top of the housing section.

As for general stuff, try to avoid wood shavings/sawdust as it can irritate their eyes/nose. Hay hay and more hay, they need loads of the stuff. They need to be vaccinated for myxi and VHD yearly, it is now one jab which costs about £30 depending on your vet. Find a good rabbit vet, they are worth their weight in gold as rabbits are classed as exotics and many vets are a bit clueless!

Finally (yes I'll shut up and go away in a sec) welcome to the forum :wave: rabbits are wonderful and intelligent little creatures and I hope to always have them in my life. I grew up with rabbits and loved it but they are not very good children's pets, they are a prey animal and as such can be wary and flighty, many do not tolerate handling well and when they scrabble they have very powerful hind legs. They are rarely a pick up and cuddle pet. But if you put the time in and take things at their pace they are so loving.

Have fun!

Wow thanks so much Vegan Bunny and Hele for the advice. I really appreciate it.


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Don't forget we love cooing over pics of bunnies on here so when you've got your buns don't forget to come back with an update and pics :thumb:

I had noticed re the pics Zoobec! Will definitely post some


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Newtorabbits said:

I had noticed re the pics Zoobec! Will definitely post some


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Click to expand...

:thumb:

:wave: Firstly, welcome to RU . Secondly, a massive "well done" to you on doing your research BEFORE getting bunnies. If only there were more people like you, there may be no need for rabbit rescues up and down the country. The information given above is excellent and you've been given links to some good reading.

Bunnies can make a wonderful addition to a family but do remember that children should never have sole responsibility for pets. With the best will in the world, most children have the attention span of a gnat and despite months of pester-power, usually get bored of their new pet within a few short months. Therefore, it is essential that you are the main care-giver but by all means, let your daughter help and learn the right way to do it from you :thumb:. Bear in mind that your bunnies could well still be bouncing around aged 10+, when your daughter is 17 and out with boyfriends - bunnies the last thing on her mind . That's why you have to consider the longer term implications and decide whether a bunny/bunnies are right for you. The very fact that you're doing your research in advance means that I'm sure you've already considered this :thumb:.

If you let us know what area you're in, we can let you know of nearby rescues, boarding facilities and rabbit-savvy vets. PLEASE post pictures of any bunnies you get as we always like to see them and DO come back with any questions you have and we're always happy to help .

Hello and welcome to the forum

I agree with the others, the best option would be to find a good rescue and to adopt an already neutered pair. While it is worth having a look at accommodation and getting a feel for what is available and what might work for you, I would recommend finding a rescue first and talking to them about their requirements, as they do vary. For instance some rescues will insist that the run is permanently attached to the hutch (this is best practice anyway), others will accept free range as a form of exercise but some won't, some don't like ramps or they aren't suitable for certain rabbits, etc etc. That way you can ensure you get everything ready well in advance.

From the sound of your post, the rabbits would be for the whole family and not just your daughter? I would say this is really important as rabbits are not actually very good pets for children as they are prey animals so tend to be happier with someone sat on the floor with them rather than being picked up and cuddled...and this means sitting outside with them in winter as they shouldn't go back and forth from outside to a heated house when there is a big temperature difference. I'm not trying to put you off, just to make you aware that one of the main reasons for rabbits ending up in rescue is that the children got bored, because on the whole rabbits don't want to sit and be cuddled and interact in the same way that for instance a dog might. So I guess just be prepared for the possibility that you end up doing all the work for several years (bunnies can live for 10+ years) while your daughter may in the meantime get bored with them. She may not, of course - but just don't be surprised if she does. Having a pair of bunnies is also great as they have each other so they have constant companionship, and it's fabulous just to sit and watch them interact with each other.

Whereabouts in the country are you? Maybe we can recommend a reputable rescue nearby for you to try?

[edit: I finally finished typing and pressed post only to find that mackers had typed almost exactly the same :lol:]

Mackers and Santa, thanks very much for the extra food for thought. I must admit I hadn't considered boyfriends getting in the way of her love for her rabbits but you are quite right! Yes I agree that I need to be prepared to be the main care giver, I think I will really enjoy it but it is a bit daunting. So good to get some expert support and advice on here. Re accommodation, my Dad is making a nice big hutch and separate run, and having looked at the 'sticky' about outdoor housing on here, I am thinking I should get a tube to connect them (runaround?) so our rabbits can get exercise all day but still be able to go back to shelter when they need to. Hopefully our local rescue(s) will be OK with that - if not it will be back to the drawing board for Dad!!! Will take your advice and talk it over with a local rescue before going any further. We are in Barnet, Hertfordshire, there seems to be an RSPCA rescue in Potters Bar which is very close so I will probably start there unless anyone has other suggestions? Thanks again for all the useful pointers xxx


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I can highly recommend The Rabbit Residence rescue near Royston (they have a website). Two of my bunnies came from Caroline and she has sooooo many bunnies looking for loving homes . Not sure about vets near you but there will be other people here who live in Herts and will be able to offer advice.

Thank you Mackers I will have a look at the website. It is sad how many rabbits need rescuing :-(


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