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At what age do rabbits become hard to Rehome.

halfpenny

Wise Old Thumper
I know older animals are harder to rehome generally?
Nobody wants 16 year old cats or 13 year old dogs and I have a general idea as to when these animals are not appealing for various reasons- short life span, health issues and perceived inability to adapt to new owners.
If adopting, at what age would you start to think the rabbit was too old, using the reasons mentioned above, possibly?

Rescues, do you notice a specific age where rabbits become less rehomable and wait a long time for someone to adopt them?
 
I personally wouldn't mind what age if I were looking, but I can imagine it would be maybe about 5 or 6 ish?

But then some Rabbits can be difficult to age if you don't know their history.
 
I don't think bunny rehoming issues tend to be in ages like cats and dogs, it seems to be more colour/eye colour, and bunnies who are already bonded (regardless of age) which makes it difficult!

I have a few times over the past few years tried to find older bunnies to pair with bereaved bunnies and have found it incredibly hard to find them in rescue, and those that are there are snapped up as soon as they come in because there are people looking for older buns to pair with existing bunnies, but few single oldies in rescue. The age profile of bunnies in rescues is totally different to cats/dogs, as rabbits tend to get given away much sooner (child's pet, children got bored, bunny got hormonal and aggressive, accidental litters etc etc) so there tends to be a glut of much younger buns and not older ones.
 
My local rescue says they're harder to rehome over 3. And even more if it's a pair with an age gap where one of the bunnies is over 3. I guess because the perception is that rabbits don't live very long.
 
The oldest bunny I have adopted was 5, but didn't know at what end of 5, ie just turned 5, or 5 going on 6. I have had her for 3 years now. I probably wouldn't adopt much older than 5 or 6. For me the biggest worry for getting an older bunny would be possible problems such as ongoing medical needs like dentals, which are expensive. I wouldn't care about taking on a rabbits with ongoing problems if I had the money, that would be the only issue for me.
 
I don't think bunny rehoming issues tend to be in ages like cats and dogs, it seems to be more colour/eye colour, and bunnies who are already bonded (regardless of age) which makes it difficult!

I have a few times over the past few years tried to find older bunnies to pair with bereaved bunnies and have found it incredibly hard to find them in rescue, and those that are there are snapped up as soon as they come in because there are people looking for older buns to pair with existing bunnies, but few single oldies in rescue. The age profile of bunnies in rescues is totally different to cats/dogs, as rabbits tend to get given away much sooner (child's pet, children got bored, bunny got hormonal and aggressive, accidental litters etc etc) so there tends to be a glut of much younger buns and not older ones.

I agree with this. But also I think it's harder to insure buns over the age of four, so that's an issue for some potential adopters.
 
I know I usually get odd looks when I say this to family and friends but I actually seek out the older, ill, less adoptable animals :D
My last cat was black, was 17 years old, had health issues, and was a very fussy eater. But as soon as I saw him I knew he was coming home with me! The rescue said he was about a week away from being pts because he'd been in rescue for so long with no interest and he had stopped eating because he was depressed and they felt pts would be kinder than letting him suffer but I got to him just in time.

So for me, an animal never gets to an age where I wouldn't consider adopting them.
I wish more people felt the same way.

I just adopted Henry bunny last year and he was about 6-7 years old.
 
I agree with this. But also I think it's harder to insure buns over the age of four, so that's an issue for some potential adopters.

That is the ONLY reason I would not want to take on an older rabbit. I adopted Dinky aged 5 when P@H started insurance for older rabbits and she, both health wise and personality wise, is the most amazing rabbit..*touch wood* the only health issue she has had is a slightly weepy eye... If I found her now I'd probably not adopt purely because I can't insure :cry:
 
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