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How long have you kept rabbits?

MightyMax

Banned
Just interested ....

I know some people don't have them any more, but I'd love to know when you got *into* them :D


........ and why and how, if you have the time to spare :)
 
Well my very first encounter with rabbits was apparently when I was around 3 or 4 and I kept letting my sister's rabbit Timmy out of his hutch. He would then go and hide in between the side wall of the garage and the fence at my parents' house, which meant my sister and my parents had to spend several hours trying to coax him to come out with lettuce leaves :lol: Not funny really.

Then starting from about 35 years ago when I was a respectable married woman with young children we had lots of rabbits. As is often the case they were "my rabbits" rather than the childrens'. Although they probably took more of an interest than some children do. I'm afraid they were all kept in single hutches. None were neutered. They were fed muesli and their bedding was sawdust. But they were fed forage and they very often were allowed to run round the garden. When the children left home, we didn't have any more rabbits.

Then when I was living by myself and fighting cancer, my daughter told me she had something for me in her bathroom. It was a gorgeous lop-eared, black and white baby rabbit sitting in her bath :love:

Since then I've always had rabbits.
 
I never had rabbits growing up and was never particularly interested in them. Honestly we got them on a whim and we thought they'd be like big hamsters. How irresponsible!

That was two and a half years ago and I think that I'll be a crazy bunny lady for life now. They have taught me a lot!
 
Well my very first encounter with rabbits was apparently when I was around 3 or 4 and I kept letting my sister's rabbit Timmy out of his hutch. He would then go and hide in between the side wall of the garage and the fence at my parents' house, which meant my sister and my parents had to spend several hours trying to coax him to come out with lettuce leaves :lol: Not funny really.

Then starting from about 35 years ago when I was a respectable married woman with young children we had lots of rabbits. As is often the case they were "my rabbits" rather than the childrens'. Although they probably took more of an interest than some children do. I'm afraid they were all kept in single hutches. None were neutered. They were fed muesli and their bedding was sawdust. But they were fed forage and they very often were allowed to run round the garden. When the children left home, we didn't have any more rabbits.

Then when I was living by myself and fighting cancer, my daughter told me she had something for me in her bathroom. It was a gorgeous lop-eared, black and white baby rabbit sitting in her bath :love:

Since then I've always had rabbits.



Omi, how fascinating! Did that lovely baby ever become a house rabbit? ;)
 
I never had rabbits growing up and was never particularly interested in them. Honestly we got them on a whim and we thought they'd be like big hamsters. How irresponsible!

That was two and a half years ago and I think that I'll be a crazy bunny lady for life now. They have taught me a lot!


Big hamsters :lol:

I wonder how many grey hares they've given you though :shock:
 
Omi, how fascinating! Did that lovely baby ever become a house rabbit? ;)

No, I've never had a rabbit, who lived in the house. Most of my rabbits, apart from the current three, have spent several hours at a time in the house when I've been home though. I never gave any thought to change of temperature :oops:
 
I was 23, lived alone in a flat & wanted a cat. However loads of reports of cats being poisoned locally & it wasn't fair to keep one inside so I got a rabbit from my local pet shop :shock: I didn't know much about bunnies but had learnt you could keep them in the house. I didn't have regular internet access so most of my learning was from a few books, namely the House rabbit handbook. I instinctively knew she needed space (I've always had free rangers) but I dread to think how much muesli I fed her...ultimately that lead to dental issues & in turn to Frances Harcourt Brown who did much of my rabbit education.
 
I was 13, so 8 years ago. I had guinea pigs at the time and had done since I was very young, but my parents helped care for them. I went to the garden centre and saw Beano, as a tiny, very cute baby! I nagged and nagged my parents for her and the condition was I did all caring for and paying for her myself, so she came home with us :love: I didn't know anything about rabbits, which is why she was put in a small spare cage we had in my bedroom (although she was let out very often). She was vaccinated straight away though and fed good hay etc. I soon found this forum within a few months of having her and improved her set up and daily life, and adopted Gordon soon after. :D
 
Since I was 2 I had my first rabbit.
I done the cleaning, feeding everything care wise. My parents just provided the cash and signature for vets, food etc.

I had a break for a while after Neya died and just had the ferrets. Got my current two almost 2 years ago.

Always been interested so always been studying their behaviour etc.

So it's been about 20/21 years. If we minus off the time without bunnies it's around 13 odd years.

I should add though, I don't think I'm bunny mad. I love all animals and honestly my ferrets were my favourite pets. They just brought me so much joy.
I've already decided once Daphne and Phoebe pass I won't be getting any more rabbits.

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I was about 14 and my 11 year old sisters friends dad (!) bred rabbits so we got 2 sisters, Tammy and Clover.

Our next rabbit was when my Daughter was about 8 or so. Her friend wanted rid of their rabbit, a beautiful Dutch who we named Daisy. She freeranged our garden for around 2 years until one night I went to get her in and she was nowhere to be found. I assume a fox got her :(

Then followed Thumper who we got from an awful rescue centre and she only lived for 6 weeks with us and passed away.

We then had Sooty, who lived until 7, Simba (another rescue from someone who didn't want him) and who we then bonded with a garden centre nethie called Tinkerbell. They both passed away around aged 3.

Then we had Louie who passed away aged 5.

And I've now been bunnyless for 2.5 years :(
 
I was 23, lived alone in a flat & wanted a cat. However loads of reports of cats being poisoned locally & it wasn't fair to keep one inside so I got a rabbit from my local pet shop :shock: I didn't know much about bunnies but had learnt you could keep them in the house. I didn't have regular internet access so most of my learning was from a few books, namely the House rabbit handbook. I instinctively knew she needed space (I've always had free rangers) but I dread to think how much muesli I fed her...ultimately that lead to dental issues & in turn to Frances Harcourt Brown who did much of my rabbit education.


Those were the days of the Houserabbit Association!

I was an advisor and when they redesigned the magazine my boy heralded in the new format. I was so proud :D I have him on the wall, on the magazine :lol:

Isn't it wonderful you found Frances so long ago?
 
As a child my mum wouldn't let me have pets. My auntie always had various pets, cats, dogs, rabbits, guinea pigs. i loved them all and seemed to have a bit of an affinity with them.
When i first met my hubby,in 1981, he had 2 rabbits. I had a tank of goldfish, a cockatiel and my son had a hamster. when we moved in with my now hubby, we've always kept rabbits, fish and anything else....stick insects, toads, axylotils, birds, hamsters, rats,dog, tortoise, etc.
So we've really kept bunnies since 1981.
It's only been in the last 10 years or so that the veterinary science has caught up. Thankfully.
 
My mum had rabbits before I was born. So I grew up with them :love:

She had an old English rabbit, a doe, and she looked after a friends rabbit whilst they were on holiday. He was a buck, and escaped his hutch and mated with Newsie my mum's doe :shock: the result was a litter of rabbits which she managed to rehome to other people and they all stayed on the street.

We kept one, she called him Thumper. He was a gorgeous agouti. He was very friendly and free ranged in the garden with us and came in the house. He used a newspaper for a toilet inside, and a tray in his hutch! He was my original soul bun :love: he lived until he was 11 - I was 9, he fractured his leg twisting awkwardly and the vet tried to operate but he was lost under the anaesthetic:cry:

Mum had a few more rabbits over the years but doesn't have any anymore.

Our first rabbit since I've been an adult was a Rex rabbit who was called Sooty. I bought him at a show I went to, out of pity. My toddler son wanted a rabbit and so did I so it was a good excuse ;) He was very grumpy and hated any contact!(Sooty that is :lol:) He would charge at anyone who went up to him. He had a hutch and run combined, and I had him neutered but it didn't help with his moodiness. He died suddenly aged about 3 and back then I didn't know about vaccinating and it was probably VHD. We were very upset but my son was distraught.

Some time later he then went through a book and said he wanted a white angora rabbit :lol: somehow we came home from the garden centre with a lionhead doe who he called Miffy. She was mainly white with brown spots. By this time I knew about vaccinating and she was done with the combo vaccine. Sadly despite being vaccinated she got myxomatosis, the vet said it was the worst case they had seen and they advised that she be PTS. :cry:

I couldn't face telling my son the day before we went on holiday that she had died :cry: when we got home I said that the man who had been looking after her had got her at his house :oops: and I started hunting for a lookalike :shock: I found one who was a good enough match to fool my young kids but she was not fully grown. They never guessed or asked but my son did call her little Miffy once! When we eventually lost Miffy,

Then came Apricot and Ginger, 2 lion head girls I bought from a back yard breeder. I didn't know about RU or rabbit rescues, I found RU when I googled 2 girl rabbit humping :lol: I had them spayed and they stayed together. I realised how many rabbits were in rescue and got Dandy and Beano (brothers) from the RSPCA. I eventually bonded the 4 into a quad.

Whilst we still had the quad, I met Boots at the rescue and fell in love with him. He was a housebunny and my Soulbun. When I lost him, I was buniless for the first time in 13 years. I didn't think I could have another but I then realised I couldn't do without a house bunny and we were chosen at Manchester and Salford RSPCA by Frosty :love:

Sorry that is so long :oops::lol:
 
J&B was one of the first of the "rabbit people" to find Frances, so she told me.. did you know that J&B?

Frances told you that? or me :lol: My friend actually found her for me. She had to subscribe to RWAF (I think) to get a list of decent rabbit vets & FHB was close ish & I think one of two in the country. I think everyone else caught on quick cos in the old days you couldn't move in that waiting room ...bunnies everywhere & many traveled far to get there.

MM - yes it was wonderful, I had to join here once she retired
 
I got my first bunny when I was 9, 29 years ago!! My best friend's cousin used to use their barn to house the rabbits he bred, and one day we went to look at them, and I fell in love with a little grey Nethie :) I have been obsessed with rabbits ever since! Just a 2-3 year gap with no bunnies, I think, in all that time...
 
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