What do I need to know about keeping rabbits? We give you a practical overview of the most important points that should be considered when keeping rabbits.
What do I need to know about keeping rabbits?
number of rabbits
Rabbits are not loners. They suffer terribly when they are alone. In Germany, keeping them alone is even forbidden. Rabbits are always kept in pairs – preferably opposite sexes. A small group would be even nicer for the animals, e.g. B. two females and two males.
space required by the rabbit
Rabbits are very active and have a lot of energy. They want to run, jump and hop around. That’s why they need a lot of space. 2-3 m2 should be planned for one rabbit, and 4-6 m2 for two rabbits. That sounds like a lot and it is a lot when you consider that a small room in an apartment is maybe 8-10 m2.
Even if salespeople in the pet store assure you that the animals are happy in a cage from their shop, they say that because they want to sell something. Hardly any cage that you can buy is big enough. If you want to see your animals happy, you should build a barn yourself – and that’s actually a lot of fun!
Rabbits in the apartment
In an apartment with many rooms, an entire room can be converted into a rabbit room. That would be perfect, but is often not possible. So what to do if you don’t have a garden? You separate or fence off a correspondingly large area in a room, in which the stable or cage is then located. However, it would be best to keep them outside rather than indoors (see the section on keeping outdoors below) as an apartment is simply not their natural habitat.
Rabbits: husbandry, cage, stall and enclosurecage, size and location
Materials made of wood, without harmful substances Aviary wire made of stainless steel Grid with powder coating Correct grid spacing (from 1.2 cm) No drafts Not on the heater Not on the window Not in the bedroom No perfume, alcohol and smoke in the room No TV in the room No poisonous plants None Secure all cables from open sockets
Interior of enclosure and cage
That’s right!
- for each rabbit a house with two exits
- rabbit toilet
- food and water bowls
- Cardboard boxes with holes to pass through
- haystack
- Floors and ramps for climbing
- willow tunnel
- wicker balls
- Tubes cork, wood or clay
- branches, roots, stones
Not like that!
- no houses, tunnels and boxes with holes that are too small (danger of getting trapped)
- no plastic toys
- no plastic houses
- no cage with floor grid
- no cage in the children’s room/bedroom
- no grilles in shiny chrome (dazzle)
- no grids with plastic coating
Free range enclosure for rabbits
Rabbits should always have access to their run, because they are e.g. B. also active at night and want to move. The cage or stable should therefore be connected to the enclosure. Outside, an outdoor enclosure should offer protection from the weather (sun, rain, wind) and shaded areas and be set up with rabbit-friendly toys.
Rabbit attitude in the garden
Rabbits are best kept outdoors. Only a few breeds are not suitable for year-round outdoor keeping, e.g. B. long-haired or very small rabbits such as Mini-Rex, Angoras, Jersey Wooly, Lionhead, Painted Dwarf and Dwarf Hotot. Most can be kept outside very well all year round, provided you keep a few things in mind: The animals still need fresh food and water at all times. The animals must be able to decide at any time whether they want to retreat to their barn or romp around outside. The barn must be specially built for the winter and have protection against the cold.
By the way: Keeping them on the balcony is also possible – as long as it is big enough and made rabbit-proof.
If you would like to have rabbits, you should get a detailed guide before you buy them. This article can in no way replace one, but only provide the most important information to get an impression of the requirements.
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