[asd1]

I have wanted to keep rabbits for a few years now and OH has said he will get me a hutch in the summer, iv been told to keep at least two together and thats what i intend on doing.
i would like to get some from an animal rescue but need to get everything set up first so they can do a home check, could anyone help me out with size of hutch and run, also feeds etc? i have bought some books and looked on internet but there is a lot of conflicting advice??

[Mulberry1990]

I got all four of mine from the RSPCA and they recommended what hutch/run I should get for them, they also said I should feed them Burgess excel as it is a complete mix of everything they need.
=)

[Jamie Butterworth]

Weve got one and it just stays in its hutch through the night (about 1 metre by half a metre) and gets left out through the day, it has a bowl of feed which is topped up each day and a few treats each day, and a carrot every 2 days, it has a water dispencer thing which we have on rotation as it freezes every night so it gets swapped each morning and evening while it deforsts through the day. It has been fine for other 3 years now.

However, today we went out to find it being chased around the garden by a huge cat trying to get dinner, we werent aware that cats would target rabbits but it realy did go for it and the poor rabbit was literaly scared stiff. Needless to say now the cat knows the rabbit is there it has returned twice since to check on its dinner. So know the rabbit will only be allowed out with supervision

[evie2]

Our cats are used to our rabbits and have never bothered with them but I never leave them   alone together.

On Friday we brought the baby rabbits in to give them a once over, they're about 6 week old now, Loki was just sitting, no tail twitching, the rabbits were just sniffing about when suddenly out came his paw.

Rabbit was fine, Loki was put out but I know if I hadn't been there he would have killed it, we've had rabbits brought in as presents before

The cat will keep coming back Jamie now it knows there's a bunny around.
An enclosed run that can be moved round the garden will solve the problem though

[maxyboo]

The last time I checked, a six foot by two foot hutch was the minmum recommendation  for a bunny. It should also be tall enough so they can stand up on their hind legs I would urge you to get a run as well. Basically the bigger space you can give them, the better. My bunnies live in sheds with runs attached but I appreciate not everyone can do this. If you can get a pair already bonded this should stop any territorial problems. If you have a run, unless it is extremely safe, ie.foxproof, it might be better to shut them in the hutch overnight.

In a hutch a water bottle is probably better than a bowl as they kick it over very easily. As for food, hay should be the main part of their diet which you can supplement with dry food. (yes burgees excel is a good one but more expensive than most. It will almost certainly be recommended by the RSPCA). Greens and carrots are normally appreciated too! I feed mine a mix of burgess excel with a cheaper bunny brunch but I have 9 to feed and need to keep costs down! You should feed them the same diet they had at the rescue centre and introduce other items one at a time over a few days in small amounts. Bunny tummies can be very sensitive to change.

Have a good look around to see what sort of hutches are available as many of the ones sold in pet stores are poorly made in my opinion and expensive. If you or hubby are good with a hammer you could build your own! Good luck.

[asd1]

Thank you all for your help, I was thinking about having a large hutch with a run on our patio then having a spare run to put out on the grass during the day would this be okay? Also I have seen that PACT have just taken in 75 rabbits! One last question who to go to for pet insurance ? My cats are with pet plan is it best to stick with them for rabbits too?

[Mulberry1990]

To be honest, I wouldn't insure rabbits. We have four, none of whom are insured.
Having had rabbits most my life i've only ever had one that needed an operation (she got her leg trapped and had to have it fixed)
We find that by having a savings account and putting the money in there that we would be paying to an insurance company (we do this for our four dogs as well), there's always more than enough to cover all vets visits.
With my current rabbits all they've had is booster injections, and one had an antibiotic injection, but other than that haven't had other vets bills so the fund is building up.
This has proven to be effective especially with the dogs, one of my dogs has had to have two operations that cost £1000 each, and by saving from when we got them we were able to cover these costs from the funds, without facing insurance premiums on him later.
Just my personal opinion though =)

[maxyboo]

I'm kind of with Mulberry1990. I did insure my first bun but have had countless ones since without insurance. I suppose it depends on your finances. As you are already with petplan you might get a discount for multiple pets so it might be worth finding out the cost.

My bunnies haven't needed operations so far and if they are seriously ill, they don't hang around for long (in my experience). Maybe have savings set aside just in case. You should get them vaccinated against myxi at least once a year. Where I live myxi is a real problem so mine are done every 6 months. I don't get mine vaccinated against VHD at present but would if I heard it was becoming a problem in this area.

Your idea for 2 runs sound like a good one. Make sure they are nice and sturdy and can't be knocked over easily. If you put one on the grass be aware that they may dig their way out so may be do this when you can supervise. I'm glad you aren't just sticking them in a hutch. They will have a better life and you will get much more enjoyment out of them if they have plenty of space to play.

[Mulberry1990]

Just to mention, on the home visit's they like to know what you plan on doing with them over winter! We had to agree to keep ours in the shed when it got too cold (In the end they've all ended up moving inside the house in indoor hutches this winter because it was so cold) =)