Rescuing a pair of rabbits.......

For the last couple of years now I've been thinking of adopting a bonded pair of rabbits but haven't quite taken the leap as yet!

I've just been having a look on the Wood Green website and seen a bonded pair of Lionheads that I've absolutely fallen in love with and I've decided to call up tomorrow to see if they're still available

I know literally nothing about Lionheads though apart from them needing lots of grooming - am planning to read up as much as possible tonight but wondered if anyone could point me in the right direction?

It does say in their write ups that they need someone experienced with grooming Lionheads which I'm obviously not but I thought it must be at least worth a phone call to find out if they'd consider me as a first time bunny owner but not sure what my chances would be?

I'm sure they'll be very happy that you're doing your research!

You're right about the grooming so it's just a matter of getting a set of brushes, I usually get ones that are the size for cats and grooming a couple of times a week.

Just make sure you're read up on diet, housing and social needs. Have you got your set up ready? They may want to do a home check so everything will need to be in place before buns can arrive.

Thanks for the reply Nope I've not got a set up ready - although I've done all the reading I'm still feeling a little unsure of what would be best to get and I thought if I found the buns then I could let the rescue guide me and get whatever they recommend

The other thing that I'm slightly worried about is that we also have 2 cats and one is a real hunter - not that she's ever caught a rabbit or that the cats would be able to get to the rabbits but I'm just a little worried about if they think that could be an issue?

I think that getting in touch with the rescue is a great idea - different rescues may have slightly different housing requirements so definitely ask them about it.

Do you plan to have them indoors or outdoors? If they are to be indoors then it will be a case of making sure you can keep them in a separate room to the cats I would think. My small animals are in their own bedroom - my dogs arent aggressive but I keep the door shut 'in case'.

If they are to be outdoor bunnies you'd need to be careful with mesh sizing etc so that the cats can't get to them. But the rescue will advise I'm sure. Its an exciting time - I remember it well though it was 5 years ago!! x

I *think* my idea is to keep them in for winter and out for the spring/summer? We've got a really big conservatory off the lounge with double glazed doors so they could pretty much have the run of that if it was bunny proofed and the cats couldn't get to them (although they could see them through the glazed doors) and then outside in the summer - which I know might be trickier with the cats about so need to make sure we get the set up 100% right.

If anyone has got any links to good sized hutches etc I'd be really grateful so I can perhaps at least show the rescue the kind of thing I'm looking at

I have used boyles pet housing for my hutches and they are great.

There's also Kernow pet housing, The Hutch Man (he's a user on here) and on Facebook there's Manor Pet Housing. They'll all do something custom for you which will last ages.

I'd definitely get in contact with Wood Green and have a chat and see what you both think about the lion heads - they might have other suitable pairs which aren't on their website too, rescues often don't have all their animals on their site. If you're near the Heydon/Godmanchester branch then another place to try might be the Rabbit Residence near Royston. Caroline always has LOADS of pairs so again might have somebun suitable I think it's a great idea to get in contact with them first so that you can be confident that you're going to prepare bunny housing in a way that meets their requirements and indeed can be tailor made to suit specific requirements if necessary (e.g. if you fall in love with bunnies who like being high up!)

Personally I would not recommend a conservatory; I'm not sure I'd rehome to bunnies living in one. The problem is the combination of glazing and no insulation means they tend to swing wildly in temperature between different days at the same time of year. So on a sunny winter's day they could get really very warm with the solar gain through the glass, but then at night and on a cloudy day it would be really cold. The cold in itself isn't a problem if the bunnies are used to it (and it wouldn't be as cold or draughty as outdoors), the problem is with the fact that on other days it could get very warm, so the rabbits would be less likely to be able to maintain a suitable size fur coat for the temperature. Personally I'd recommend deciding whether they'll be in or out and then working out a suitable accommodation from there.

I sympathise with your cat issue, I also have one exactly like that! All my bunnies and the rescue ones are outside and their enclosures are fox proofed which means they are also cat proofed! I occasionally have a bunny in the house e.g. after an operation, but I don't like it at all as I find it much harder to keep them separate from the cats. I don't know about yours, but mine don't like closed doors at all, so if I have a bunny shut into a room, they go mad at the door! So it's ok for a day or two but gets tricky after that. They seem to ignore them when they're outside though - they just don't like them in the house! I guess every cat is different though so you'll probably have a better idea of how yours will react.

Good luck with your bunny plans

Thanks for all the replies and recommendations I'm actually based in the same town as the Hutch Man so have given him a call as having something custom made and delivered sounds ideal

I've had a chat with Wood Green and they were super helpful and are sending me a leaflet on bunny care/general info. They did suggest that perhaps the Lionheads may be best as indoor bunnies as they have a tendency to get super messy outdoors apparently. I've also seen a rabbit on the website of my local RSPCA branch who looks like he could be perfect so I'm hoping to make an appointment to go and meet him Only problem is there's not a suitable bunny to pair him with at the moment but they did say if we adopted him they'd keep us informed of when a suitable partner for him arrives that we could adopt and bond at a later date so that sounds like an option

Hutch man is meant to be excellent so I am sure he can make your new buns a fab home

Rabbit Residence has a TON of pairs needing new homes, some pairs who've been waiting years
Http://www.rabbitresidence.org.uk

If you got the single from RSPCA they could do the bonding with one of their singles too.

There is a thread about rabbits that have been in rescue for a long time ... something to consider perhaps (if you are not already in love that is)!

http://forums.rabbitrehome.org.uk/showthread.php?438237-Long-term-rescue-rabbits

Thanks I've booked an appointment to go and meet Archie the RSPCA bunny on Sunday morning and there *might* be a young female rabbit who could be a possible match for him there but will just have to see what happens.

I have also sent an email to Rabbit Residence too as it looks like they have got lots of pairs and they're not too far away from us either

Meg and Jas said:

Thanks I've booked an appointment to go and meet Archie the RSPCA bunny on Sunday morning and there *might* be a young female rabbit who could be a possible match for him there but will just have to see what happens.

I have also sent an email to Rabbit Residence too as it looks like they have got lots of pairs and they're not too far away from us either

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Good luck!

Just thought I'd do a little update as I went and met Archie today I decided not to reserve him on the spot though as seeing the rabbits at the RSPCA really made me think that I need to have a better think about housing and allowing more space for the bunnies so I'm thinking of looking into an avary or some kind of larger accomodation that I can actually go and sit in with them rather than having a traditional kind of run and hutch set up.

The other thing is that I do definitely want a pair of bunnies and at the moment there's no-one they can pair Archie with unfortunately They did have another single male bunny (who I also loved!) but neither of them are neutered yet so they can't try and pair them at the moment - I think it would be a case of adopting one and then trying to introduce the other at a later date but I did think it might be easier for me as a novice only to go for a ready bonded pair.

My plan is that I'm going to do some more research and decide what accomodation is going to be the best thing and then if Archie is still available I'll give them another call (I have a feeling he might be snapped up as he's so friendly though) but I know they'll have rabbits coming in all the time so I think it's a case of watch this space.

I've also emailed Rabbit Residence and had a lovely email back from them too and it sounds like they also have lots of pairs so that might be another really good option

Thanks for the update!

Sounds to me like you'll make a great bunny mum! Set-up-wise its always best to get the best/ biggest you possibly can and to think it through carefully before spending any money. Too often many of us have bought housing then felt we needed to upgrade lol. Which costs much more overall!

Take your time, look around on here and ask as many questions as you need to!

I highly reccomend a shed/aivary set up. Its so great to be able to enjoy being with them in all weathers.