Petting a bunny is a great way to bond with your furry friend. Rabbits love being petted and will often sit still while you stroke their fur. Be sure to pay attention to your rabbit’s body language, as they may give you subtle cues when they’ve had enough. Petting your bunny is also a good opportunity to check them for any health problems, such as lumps or bald patches.
Every Bunny lovers need to follow some necessary steps in order to keep their bunnies healthy and happy.
1 Giving Your Bunnies Calories Friendly Food
Rabbits generally have a high sentient digestive system, and may grow obese if given large amounts of food. You shouldn’t simply give them what you might feed a cat or dog, so don’t do that. There is a problem for rabbits who may become overweight with too much food. The ideal diet for a rabbit includes hay and greens, rather than allowing them to rely on grain only.
The best way to feed a rabbit is provided with an immense supply of hay and a few cups of fresh greens per day. You should only provide your rabbit with small servings of pellets to supplement its diet. Provide the rabbit with about max ½ a cup of pellets per day. Your rabbit will be fine without the excess pellets.
2Avoid Holding Your Bunnies Frequently
Many people are surprised to find that rabbits are not cuddly pets. There is a misconception that bunnies are cuddly. Due to their natural instinct, rabbits all hate to be held, often causing injuries when lifted. Tending to live freely can make a rabbit’s life harder. As for rabbits, they are an animal with a limited number of survival skills. Rabbits naturally prioritize defense in their natural instincts. A rabbit’s defense of choice is its ability to move as quickly as it can away from danger.
However, when they are held captive, bunnies lose their ability to escape, as they become confused and panicked with the situation. It means when captivated by a human, rabbits experience panic due to the inability to escape if they sense danger. They’re unable to flee from your arms as you trap them in your grip, causing extreme terror.
This can be a huge problem, if you touch or hold your rabbit constantly over and over again at different times, then the rabbit will become fearful of you, even if it’s just for a little bit. If your rabbit associates you with something negative, like the feeling of being grabbed, they will start to be fearful of you and flee any time as soon as you get close to them.
It’s best to interact with rabbits in the way they are comfortable. For example, some rabbits like to be held, while others may enjoy sitting on your lap and cuddling. Through sitting on the furse and allowing them to approach you, you can begin to evolve a bond that can last a lifetime. If they are on their feet, they feel greatly secure. When they’re safe, it’s convenient to interact with them by petting them.
3 Try To Build A Hutch For Your Bunny
With new knowledge about rabbits and the dangers outside, it is becoming more clear that keeping them outdoors is not a good way to care for rabbits. It leads to anxiety, stress, and illness. The natural environment is full of dangers that occupy the rabbits’ minds, which is why indoor hutches are used in modern day rabbit apartments.
Unfortunately predators waylay outside, rabbits are prey for predators and anxiety is a result of the scary scents and voices that often occur in their environment. In overwhelming matters, ravenous are even captative to sneak into outdoor rabbit shelters and viciously attack pet bunnies. When wild rabbits live without the protection of a home and stay outside, they are susceptible to many illnesses and diseases. The exposed rabbits can be infected by mosquitoes, ticks, flies, fleas and many other insects that easily spread diseases.
Rabbits also need to deal with the dangers of hot weather, specifically, heat stroke. In their natural habitat, they would have cool burrows and shelter in the hottest hours during the day. In a hutch where they are likely confined, rabbits can run the risk of developing this condition (heat stroke).
Rabbits crave human interaction, and would be a much better choice as a pet if given the opportunity to socialize with our family. Rabbits are actually very social creatures and should not be kept outdoors. Keeping your rabbit indoors is a great way to provide them with care and attention, just like your pets such as dogs and cats.
4 Don’t Cage Your Bunny All Day
Many bunny owners create the mistake of considering that rabbits snuggled in cages all day are happier than those who are taken care of. Rather, rabbits need to interact with humans and have socialization in order to avoid depression and remain happy. Removing rabbits from their social groups causes them to become depressed and anxious, which makes the happy life often difficult for rabbits.
Single bunnies require a lot of affection, which can be difficult for rabbits who are kept without a bonded partner. Rabbits who are house pets should spend time with their caretakers on a regular basis. strive giving your rabbit time to interact with you, rather than just playing alone or watching television and studying. Just like humans, rabbits need social interaction. Providing humans and animals more time together will have a positive impact on their well-being.
This keeps your rabbit in the family for a longer period of time and this ensures your rabbit will live a happy and healthy life by giving it a social and physical outlet.
5 Making Your Home Bunny Friendly
Bunnies can get into a bit of trouble, when left unsupervised. They tend to like anything they can get their teeth into and will go deep into things that like crypted furse. If you want your rabbit to roam the house, make sure you are prepared for the repairs because If you let the rabbit roam freely, she or he is likely to break something that will be precious one day to change.
To intercept your house from being destroyed by a wild and exterminatory rabbit, you will first want to cover any naked cables with separate loom cable tubing. In order to avoid that, one should put up wire netting or use hanging clips for wires around the outside of the home. Else they might cut those wires apart with their strong teeth.
However the two most important parts where you should consider covering are your baseboards and your carpet. No matter what kind, many rabbits will choose these spots.
Instead of letting your rabbit chew on your baseboards, cover them. Place fencing along the perimeter of the room to keep your rabbit from getting to those areas. Covering up carpet areas where your rabbit tends to dig will get rid of the dust and muck that accumulates there. Plastic mats used for desk chairs are usually durable and make for a good solution.
6 Avoid Feeding Them With Unhealthy Pellet Mixes
Many bunny food mixes are affordable and easy to find, but the advertising campaign uses colorful images of well-fed rabbits to make consumers believe that these pellets are healthy for their bunnies. The reality is, most of these feeds have high calorie and fat content which is not good for your pet and can make your bunny sick.
These products often contain inappropriate ingredients, such as corn, sugary pieces and pea seeds and these can all cause weight gain, digestive issues and other illnesses such as GI stasis in rabbits.
Selecting the type of food your rabbit will eat is rather simple. You want to choose a healthy, high-quality brand that has been tried and tested. My proposal would be Oxbow’s Garden Select line. The company is well-known within the rabbit care industry and produces quality products that are affordable and have balanced nutrients and a healthy diet.
7 Keep Your Bunny Spayed or Neutered
Spaying or neutering rabbits is necessary to prevent overpopulation and keep your rabbit healthy. Additionally, pet rabbits need to be spayed or neutered once they grow old enough. It’s an extra expense when adopting a young bunny, but it’s essential for your rabbit’s health and maintaining peace with house pets.
In rabbits, uterine cancer is a highly fatal and common condition. When the rabbits are not spayed or neutered before they are mature, they have a high chance of developing reproductive cancer and Unspayed female rabbits have a high risk they have an 80% chance by the age of six. Unfortunately, this type of cancer is often incurable.
There are many behavioral issues that arise after a rabbit reaches maturity. Spaying and neutering will help with these problems that can arise when an animal becomes more aggressive and territorial, but they’ll become more regional or rampant if they haven’t been spayed and neutered on the time.
8 Don’t Give Them Regular Bath
Rabbits don’t need to be bathed, and if they are kept in a clean environment, rabbits are good to keep themselves clean. It means rabbits have the power to thrive in their natural environment without baths. Because bathing can cause a variety of unwanted health problems.
Firstly, with the risk of “shock,” this would be a dangerous condition for your rabbit and lead to death, where their body turns off. Next, their coats hold on to the water and take a long time to dry out. Throughout this time period, bunnies are faced with two health issues. Their fur coat is unable to begin to dry and is less effective for keeping them warm. Also, their skin can quickly develop cuts if it gets wet.
If your bunny ever becomes muddy, there are different ways to clean up your bunny’s fur, but these are the most common ones. Use a dry brush to brush over the fur (dry bath), or you can give them a butt bath when they need it.
9 Avoid Giving Your Bunny Too Many Meals
An investigation found that regular consumption of sugary foods, such as vegetables and fruits, can cause health problems in rabbits. Specifically, they should only be given as contingent treats with small crumbs. This means that despite what the media may advertise, carrots are not an essential component to a rabbit’s diet. They are still enjoyable when given this way, so give your rabbit fruits, veggies or both on occasion.
With the right amount of treats, rabbits can provide you with enjoyable company and purposeful activity- maintaining a healthy weight. This includes how much they eat, as well as how often and it is enough, 1 teaspoon per pound of body weight.
Think twice about the pet store marketing. Most of the brightly-colored bags of mixed treats at the store contain very bad food for your pet. Instead, give them fresh or dried fruits and vegetables or hay-based treats with a less quantity of sweetness. With a line of healthy rabbit snacks known as Simple pewters, Oxbow makes it easy to provide your pet with top quality care.
10 Avoid Put Your Bunny In A Short Cage
These are additional ways in which new pet owners subconsciously suffer from pet shops’ marketing. Even vendors try to vend short cages for your bunny, without taking into consideration the quantity of space that rabbits need in order to be happy and healthy.
Rabbits, especially small types of rabbits, require a wall that is at least three times the length of the animal, and cages that are this size are unlikely to show up. Instead, get an exercise pen for your rabbit, and use it as his habitat.
In a standard rabbit cage, your rabbit might not have enough space to move around, as the cages are narrow and arranged in a linear fashion. In addition, it can be difficult to keep these cages clean. However, by using an exercise pen that gives your rabbit more space and freedom, you can keep your pen clean by simply moving their pens apart and vacuuming around them.
11 Giving Them A Bowl Of Water Is Better Than A Bottle
Bottles make it difficult for bunnies to access water, so many veterinarians recommend that pet owners give their bunny a bowl of water rather than a bottle. A more natural way to drink and more hydration can be stimulated.
Making sure that your animal will only drink from the designated water bowl, even during the day time hours bunnies turn over their bowls and foods, is an important part of being a rabbit caretaker. However, to prevent some troubles and save on care, you can use heavy ceramic bowls for your animals as they are unable to pull up the heavier bowls.
12Better To Provide Them A Small Litter Box
Litter boxes that are designed for rabbits often lack the space and sanitation needed to perform their function well. These are actually better favorable for other, smaller types of pets such as rats.
Most rabbits will not use a litter box unless they can fit completely. You need a litter box that allows your rabbit to get in, turn around and still be comfortable while they are eliminated. The box should be deeper than the rabbit’s length and wider than their body in order to provide some safety and prevent accidents.
If you’re in the market for a litter box for your rabbit, don’t miss out on some of the larger designs that are more spacious. Look for large litter boxes in the cat litter segment. These make it easier for your rabbit to use and rounded corners or a cover can make it difficult for rabbits to use them and lead to confusion, so avoid this type.
It pays to switch to a safer option, like soil based litter. Most soil-based cat litters are not good for rabbits and can lead to respiratory problems or block them from accessing their food. To get the best results with your rabbit, you can use a paper-based litter for both their litter box and their living area.
13 Maintain A Checklist For Their Health
Rabbits have evolved to be less-visible prey animals, so they’re very difficult to spot when they are sick. This can lead to predators thinking that the rabbit is an easy match. However, this means it’s really hard for us humans to determine what a sick rabbit looks like and whether they’re sick or not.
Our bunnies are not going to tell us when they are sick, So daily observation of your rabbit’s health is essential to getting help when they are sick. Keeping a watchful eye on their appetite, pooping and general behavior will help you to predict when they might need more care.
If your lovely bunny is showing signs of not eating or doing their business everyday for more than 10-12 hours, it’s a critical condition. You should not hesitate to get your bunny to the vet. For a better understanding of your rabbit’s behavior, try tracking their general energy scales. From this metric, you will be able to notice when something changes and bring your rabbit in for a check up”.
14Just Like Dogs, They Need Exercise For Good Health
Rabbits need to be allowed time outside of their enclosure for exercise. With multiple hours a day allotted for movement, they stay healthy and avoid boredom, which means having enough space in the house or an exercise area to explore.
Allowing your rabbit to exercise for a long time will result in more physical growth. Rabbits are athletes and not long-range runners, meaning that they use up energy quickly after exercising 10-15 minutes, they take a break for half an hour by hopping around. If you limit your pet rabbit’s time outside to only one hour a day, they will likely be exercising for about half of that hour. So if you don’t do this, they won’t be getting much exercise.
It’s most convenient to let your rabbit out in the morning and evening hours, as they are usually most active throughout these hours. Rabbits get a lot of fun exercise during these times, so it’s recommended to make sure your pet gets enough attention.
15 Taking The Bunny To The Specialized Vet
Rabbit health is different from a cat or dog because of the anatomy of the animal. To be taken to a specialized vet that knows how to treat rabbits is necessary in order to provide the best care possible. You need to bring your rabbit to a vet who only treats rabbits or an exotic animal vet in order to keep the bunny healthy and living without the fear of it becoming sick.
When you need a vet, but don’t know where to find one in your area or you are not able to find vet nearby, here’s what you can do, in this case start your search with google by typing in ‘exotic animal vet’, and look through the list of clinics near you to find someone who will recommend one for you.