Care and Feeding
This page is for the care and feeding of your rabbit long term, and when you first bring your bunny home, lots of question you may have for me are most likely answered here.
What to know when you first bring your bunny home:
Young bunnies are prone to sensitive tummies, and when you
abruptly change their food it can cause an upset stomach, or diarrhea. I will
send starter food for you to mix with your new food to make the switch of food
much easier on their tummies.
We would suggest mixing plain oatmeal in their food while they
are switching foods it helps upset stomachs, and helps with stress of switching
homes.
We also suggest giving timothy hay or grassy orchard hay a lot in
the beginning too. It’s great for them and helps with stress.
Do not let your rabbit roam or be put down outside the cage for
the first 2 weeks. For 2 reasons
1: too much freedom can make your rabbit more independent , which
would make them not as great as a pet, you also want to bond with your bunny at
this time so if they are out of there cage they should be with you or being
handled. Not running free.
2: during the switching of homes the bunnies immune s system is
lower due to stress and can pick up any illness a lot easier the first 2 weeks,
This is the time for your bunny to settle into their new home.
Our bunnies all drink out of a crock ( a bowl attached to the
cage), not a water bottle . so if you want to use a water bottle that is fine,
but you need to keep a bowl of water in the cage until you know they know how to
drink out of the water bottle.
abruptly change their food it can cause an upset stomach, or diarrhea. I will
send starter food for you to mix with your new food to make the switch of food
much easier on their tummies.
We would suggest mixing plain oatmeal in their food while they
are switching foods it helps upset stomachs, and helps with stress of switching
homes.
We also suggest giving timothy hay or grassy orchard hay a lot in
the beginning too. It’s great for them and helps with stress.
Do not let your rabbit roam or be put down outside the cage for
the first 2 weeks. For 2 reasons
1: too much freedom can make your rabbit more independent , which
would make them not as great as a pet, you also want to bond with your bunny at
this time so if they are out of there cage they should be with you or being
handled. Not running free.
2: during the switching of homes the bunnies immune s system is
lower due to stress and can pick up any illness a lot easier the first 2 weeks,
This is the time for your bunny to settle into their new home.
Our bunnies all drink out of a crock ( a bowl attached to the
cage), not a water bottle . so if you want to use a water bottle that is fine,
but you need to keep a bowl of water in the cage until you know they know how to
drink out of the water bottle.
Feeding/water
Adults:1oz per lb of body weight
Netherland dwarfs or 2 lbs- 1/4 a cup daily
Holland Lops/ Dwarf lionhaeds or 2.5- 4 lbs- 1/2 cup daily
Babies: Double there feed for the first 3 months, If the babies are satisfied with the adult amount,
that is also fine.
During the winter: food can increase by half that amount
the importance of measuring is so you can tell if your bunny is eating. If there feeder is always full it is hard to see that your bunny is not eating and something is wrong. Then by the time you do notice, it could be to late
Oatmeal: I sprinkle a small amount of oatmeal over my rabbits food at night as a treat, and its very good for there skin , coat, nursing mothers, and developing babies.
Hay: I use either Timothy hay, or Grassy orachard hay , beacause its very good in fiber for them, and they can have as much as they want ,I suggest to give them a handfull at least 3 times a week or more if wanted. I dont suggest Alfalfa as too much is hot on there system and can become fatal
They should have fresh water every day. A rabbit will not drink warm water, so make sure it is cool or cold.
We use water crocks that attach to the cage . The reason for this is its easier to throw ice in there water on hot days to keep the water cool all day, but you can use a water bottle , just make sure you keep a bowl i there until you know they know how to drink out of it
Netherland dwarfs or 2 lbs- 1/4 a cup daily
Holland Lops/ Dwarf lionhaeds or 2.5- 4 lbs- 1/2 cup daily
Babies: Double there feed for the first 3 months, If the babies are satisfied with the adult amount,
that is also fine.
During the winter: food can increase by half that amount
the importance of measuring is so you can tell if your bunny is eating. If there feeder is always full it is hard to see that your bunny is not eating and something is wrong. Then by the time you do notice, it could be to late
Oatmeal: I sprinkle a small amount of oatmeal over my rabbits food at night as a treat, and its very good for there skin , coat, nursing mothers, and developing babies.
Hay: I use either Timothy hay, or Grassy orachard hay , beacause its very good in fiber for them, and they can have as much as they want ,I suggest to give them a handfull at least 3 times a week or more if wanted. I dont suggest Alfalfa as too much is hot on there system and can become fatal
They should have fresh water every day. A rabbit will not drink warm water, so make sure it is cool or cold.
We use water crocks that attach to the cage . The reason for this is its easier to throw ice in there water on hot days to keep the water cool all day, but you can use a water bottle , just make sure you keep a bowl i there until you know they know how to drink out of it
Treats: should never be a meal suplement:
when it comes to treats, I dont give my rabbits too much of a variety as I dont want to mess with thier sensative systems.I only feed the following , So I will only suggest the follwoing. I have looked this up on line on many sites, and all sites are so different so I only go by personally used advice of other rabbitrys I know well or my own expirience. I will not risk my rabbits health.
Timothy hay or Orchard grassy hay:
As much they want. I keep a pile of it on top of there cage and they pull it down as they want it
Oatmeal: I sprinkle it on there food every night small amount
Watermelon rines: only when my kids eat watermelon. not very often
Lime slice: once a week. the rine and all
friut tree , or willow tree limbs- i always keep small tree brances of this kind in there cages. they love them
Timothy hay or Orchard grassy hay:
As much they want. I keep a pile of it on top of there cage and they pull it down as they want it
Oatmeal: I sprinkle it on there food every night small amount
Watermelon rines: only when my kids eat watermelon. not very often
Lime slice: once a week. the rine and all
friut tree , or willow tree limbs- i always keep small tree brances of this kind in there cages. they love them
Diarrhea:
This happens sometimes from stress of switching homes, leaving
mama or litter mates, and too many treats or just the wrong treats. And it can
be very fatal for babies. However
if caught on time, it’s usually pretty easy to fix. Pull regular food for 24
hours, and feed only timothy hay, or orchard grassy hay, and plain quacker Oats
for 24 hours. Also make your bunny some green tea instead of water and it
should clear up pretty quickly. However If u follow the instructions
I gave for when you first bring
your bunny home this most likely won’t happen as those instructions are meant as
a preventative to this
mama or litter mates, and too many treats or just the wrong treats. And it can
be very fatal for babies. However
if caught on time, it’s usually pretty easy to fix. Pull regular food for 24
hours, and feed only timothy hay, or orchard grassy hay, and plain quacker Oats
for 24 hours. Also make your bunny some green tea instead of water and it
should clear up pretty quickly. However If u follow the instructions
I gave for when you first bring
your bunny home this most likely won’t happen as those instructions are meant as
a preventative to this
Social Bunnies
Rabbits are very sociable animals, so it is always best to keep two together if you can. The best combination is two females if they are from the same litter, or close in age. but if u decide to nueter or spay then you have more options. I wuold also suggest getting a bunny harness so u can travel with ur bunny more so it can have more social expieriences, and maybe even a carrier too.
Cages
if outdoors I suggest a hutch, as most hutces protect from both the hot and cold weather, and usually have a built in nest box area witch is ideal. about a 24x24, is big enough for 1 or even 2 in the same cage.
indoors you oobviously dont need a hutch to protect from weather, But one thing is a must ,wether its indoors or out, and thats a wire bottom cage. do not get a solid floor, as a rabbit sitting in its bedding all day can make a very dirty bunny, and thats a wire bottom cage, it will keep your bunny clean. If you worry about there feet, keep a nest box in there so your bunny can get off the wire , and I suggest a wooden one so the rabbits can chew on it too.
indoors you oobviously dont need a hutch to protect from weather, But one thing is a must ,wether its indoors or out, and thats a wire bottom cage. do not get a solid floor, as a rabbit sitting in its bedding all day can make a very dirty bunny, and thats a wire bottom cage, it will keep your bunny clean. If you worry about there feet, keep a nest box in there so your bunny can get off the wire , and I suggest a wooden one so the rabbits can chew on it too.
Litter box training:
Rabbits are easy to litter train, but should be
spayed or neutered for best results. Place a litter pan in an area where your
rabbit is already urinating and then gradually move the box to the desired
location.
spayed or neutered for best results. Place a litter pan in an area where your
rabbit is already urinating and then gradually move the box to the desired
location.
Outdoor bunny
Summer time:If your bunny is going to be outdoors, you have to have them in a well ventilated area. They cannot get too hot. You must make sure that they are not ever in any direct sun light at any time,They can overheat easily on a hot day. So the hutch must be shaded from the sun. Also you can hook up a misting sytem to your hose to cool down the cage area for the bunny. My misters are hoked up so the front of the cage gets wet , but not the back, and they bunnies like to lick the water or lay against the wire to cool down and get a little wet. I also make sure if I have a nest box in the cage it does not get wet. this time of the year is why I also like water crocks, and not water bottles, because I like to put ice in the water to cool the water down. If it hits 100 dgrees then I would bring the bunny in for the day and put it back out at night when it cools down.
Winter time: again a nice shaded area. The bunny needs to be protected from the wind, rain, and sun. I also keep a next box in there cage so they have that extra protection. and I keep it full of dry hay. Its important that you keep the nesr box clean and dry durring the winter as that will be there warm place to go. Rabbits seem to do better in the cold then in the heat, but they must stay dry or they will freeze when it gets too cold
Do not let your bunny run free all the time in the yard as they can get sick, get in a neghbors yard, and more times then I like to hear is a neghbors dog gets your bunny. Also the more freedom your bunny gets the more indipendent they become and stop being pets and start being more wild.
Winter time: again a nice shaded area. The bunny needs to be protected from the wind, rain, and sun. I also keep a next box in there cage so they have that extra protection. and I keep it full of dry hay. Its important that you keep the nesr box clean and dry durring the winter as that will be there warm place to go. Rabbits seem to do better in the cold then in the heat, but they must stay dry or they will freeze when it gets too cold
Do not let your bunny run free all the time in the yard as they can get sick, get in a neghbors yard, and more times then I like to hear is a neghbors dog gets your bunny. Also the more freedom your bunny gets the more indipendent they become and stop being pets and start being more wild.
Indoor bunny
obviously you dont have weather issues indoors, but keep the temapture below 85, and keep the cage away from vents and any cooling sysems or heaters. Also again. dont give the bunny too much freedom, and remember they are rabbits, and they do chew on things so you might not really want to give them too much opritunity to do that. clean the cage at least 3 times a week if its indoors.
Keep your bunny sweet
tips to keep your bunny well socialized and sweet:
*pet your bunny on its head every day when you feed it
*and agin at night when u give it oatmeal or hay
*hold it while watching a movie and just hanging out
*buy a rabbit harness so u can take it out and keep it close
*buy a pet carrier like a doggy purse so it can go more places with you
*socialize it with other animals and with children
* love your bunny
*pet your bunny on its head every day when you feed it
*and agin at night when u give it oatmeal or hay
*hold it while watching a movie and just hanging out
*buy a rabbit harness so u can take it out and keep it close
*buy a pet carrier like a doggy purse so it can go more places with you
*socialize it with other animals and with children
* love your bunny
great first time pet
easy to take care of
small
quiet
light grooming
sweet
one of the easiest first time pets , but also a rsposability
average lifespan 8-10 years
small
quiet
light grooming
sweet
one of the easiest first time pets , but also a rsposability
average lifespan 8-10 years