Although you may be thinking, feeding a rabbit is pretty simple, you will probably be surprised to find out a few of the "staple rabbit treats" should actually be avoided! Before we dive into what should be avoided lets talk about a Rabbits Diet. Hay: Rabbits should have access to unlimited (or large amounts) of grass hay. Baby rabbits should have access to alfalfa hay as it is high in protein and contains calcium for growing. Adult rabbits can have Timothy hay which has balanced levels of protein, and fat for an adult. For adults, alfalfa can be fed as a treat, but its high levels of protein/fat can create weight issues if fed unlimited. Grass: Rabbits should have access to unlimited (or large amounts) of grass. Be sure that the grass they are grazing on, or that is put in their cage is free of all sprays and pesticides. Vegetables: Rabbits can be fed vegetables daily. It is important to note which vegetables can be fed in high quantity, and which should be moderated. There are vegetables that contain more sugar or nutrients than others. You want to be careful to moderate sugar and fat. Read below to find out what vegetables, flowers, garden treats, and woods rabbits can consume. Pellets: We generally free feed our pellets. Many owners choose to measure feed their pellets, in order to ensure the rabbit does not become overweight. We feed pellets unlimited for baby's and mothers, and 1/4 cup for bucks, unbred does and Juniors. We choose a 16-18% protein pellet for our Moms and babes, and a 15% Timothy hay pellet for our bucks. *All lists are for adult buns, babies should be on a strict pellet and hay diet until 4 months old. When introducing new foods, go "low and slow". Only give small amounts of the new food and only introduce one new food per day. If the stool is unusually soft, stop giving treats until poop returns to normal, and then introduce a small amount of that same food again. Rabbits have very sensitive stomachs and it is better to give less treats/introduce slowly than overdue it! Vegetables you can feed your bun oftenVegetables you can feed your bun Daily
Plants that are safe to feed
Fruits for a TreatOne to two times a week:
Vegetables to feed your bun sparingly
Foods to never feed your bunAnything with carbohydrates/sugars such as bread or crackers should be avoided. All sugary fruits should be fed as a treat and in moderation. All food from the garden must be free of sprays and pesticides.
Safe WoodsRemember: Before giving your rabbit a branch, check to make sure it is safe, free of pesticides, untreated, does not include roots, and free of paint. If you live in an area that has RHDV2 it is best to not give your bunny any trees/wood/grass from the outdoors. If you do live in an area where there has been an outbreak of RHDV2, read more about it to learn how to keep your bun safe. Safe woods
Unsafe Woods**Some of these woods are safe if dried for the appropriate amount of days
-Forever Bunny Obsessed, Frieda
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When debating the complex topic of spaying and neutering your bunny, its important to look clearly at both the pros and cons!
Spaying & Neutering your rabbit has many benefits, and we do typically recommend the procedure. Not only can it increase their quality of life, their ability to be paired with a bun of the opposite sex without creating babies, it also actually can prolong their life span as well. Fixing your rabbit can prevent reproductive health complications, such as pregnancy, or different types of cancer. Secondly, fixing your bun helps them have an easier time bonding with another bun. Even if you are bonding an already fixed male with an unaltered females, or two females, fixing will increase bonding success by improving the temperament of your bun, and decreasing any dominance urges or territorial aggression. Fixing your bun will also improve their temperament when bonding with you or your children. Territorial or cage aggression, inconsistent moodiness, and even nipping can all be generally curved by getting your bun spayed or neutered. Although it is easy to recognize the large "pros" for fixing your bun, there are some factors to consider. Fixing your bun, especially spaying a female, is a complicated procedure, and at times can result in the loss of your rabbit. Local vets that do not work often with rabbits, or are not specialized with rabbits may have an even higher rate of losing your bun. Spaying and neutering your bun can also be expensive. Although we hope that when you are researching and saving for your bun, you factor in the cost of spaying and neutering in your local area, we also know it sometimes isn't always realistic for every family! Different areas, and different countries have a wide variety of cost in spaying. We have been quoted as low as $90 to neuter a rabbit, and as high as $450. So for that reason, we also suggest you shop around and call local vets near your area for some quotes! Vets do not typically spay/neuter a bun until 6 months of age. This is important to keep in consideration if you have purchased a Male and female bunny that you plan to bond after fixing. You will need to house them in separate cages before they hit 4 months old, until they are spayed/neutered. After the spaying/neutering, buns have to be kept apart while they heal. Males can also be fertile for up to 6 weeks after being neutered! If you do purchase a male/female unaltered pair and plan to fix them and bond them, you can expect to house them separate for 3-4 months at least. We hope this was helpful for deciding on and preparing to spay/neuter your bun! As always, email us with questions! We love to hear from families preparing to take home buns! Let's talk rabbit teeth. Rabbits have 28 teeth! They have 4 front incisors, two on top and two on the bottom. Behind them are two peg teeth. They have 11 "cheek teeth" on each side, 5 on the bottom and 6 on the top. Rabbit's are herbivores which means they eat primarily grass, and greens, as well as some wood.
Rabbit's teeth are hypsodontic, which means they grow continually for their whole life. Rabbit's front incisors grow up to 12 This can come with some problems, but if bred properly, and taken care of properly, is not an issue at all. The biggest problem that shows in rabbit teeth is malocclusion. This is a genetic issue that we do not have in our Rabbitry. Therefore, non of our buns should have any malocclusion issues. However, malocclusion can hide in rabbits for generations. So if you ever notice malocclusion in your bun, the first thing to do is notify your breeder. In all my 10 years we only had one baby with malocclusion in our first year of breeding (and those parents were immediately taken out of our breeding program). We haven't had issues with malocclusion for the past 9 years of breeding. Taking care of rabbits teeth is pretty hands-off. You should not have to trim your rabbit's teeth, or brush them. It is important to provide your bun with lots of different types of chew toys and materials. Straw, grass, hay, cardboard, wood bricks and branches are all great options to help your bun. Lets start with a story.
Timmy, so we will call him has decided, he is excited and responsible enough to get a rabbit. He does some research, builds himself a cage and gets ready for his new bunny. He's excited, and ready, but he has forgotten a crucial step; to research a good breeder. Instead, the idea of a $25 rabbit that he can afford from someone he found off of kijiji sounds ideal, and they go and pickup a bun. As the bun starts to grow, bigger and bigger and even bigger still, he realizes he didn't get the bun that was originally advertised as a lop. Instead, he got a lop mix, and the large size is starting to show. Now this isn't the end of the world, big rabbits can be awesome too, although they do need a bit more cage space. As the bun matures, he realizes he isn't very nice. He wasn't held enough as a baby, or tamed properly. As a little baby, it wasn't a big deal, because he was small. Now that he has gotten bigger, its no fun to be with him. He soon looses interest, and the money, although only $25 is wasted, but so is the cage, the food, the time and work, the gas to get the bunny, the treats, the toys and more. So many of the families that come to us have experienced similar things to the story above. I can't emphasize enough how important it is to find a good breeder. Finding a good breeder is more than just finding someone who loves their bunnies, or knows a lot about Holland Lops. Its about finding someone who is committed to supporting you in your journey with your Holland Lop. A good breeder should be ready to answer questions, before you get your bun, to help you know if their breed and their business is the right match for you. Okay; Let's say you've picked a good breed, that's going to suit your needs, and you've found someone that you think is a great breeder. How do you know? Heres some of the things that we do, that we hope will help you know that you are supporting and working with a great breeder. -Open about all of our Adults health history, and babies health history if there were any issues. -Knowledgeable about all things bonding, neutering, litter training, handling etc. -Continual Email Support even after the bun has gone home Here are things that aren't absolutely necessary, but we think they have importance & we do them too! -Recommends spaying/neutering for bun health and temperament -Has a long history of breeding behind them -Isn't breeding random litters from "pet buns", or "just for fun" but breeds specifically chosen adults, carefully considering temperament and health. -Emphasizes the importance of well handled and tamed buns -Has an application form, chats with new owners, screens new owners -Reserves the right of breeding/sells buns with a sale policy -Breeds Pedigreed adults We hope that this information is helpful and eye opening. If you have any questions, we'd love to hear from you! There are a few factors that effect your success with bunny bonding. We will dive into all the details in the post, but before we began lets remember: Personality. Bunny personality can make a big difference. Just because you were able to bond 2 males before, doesn't mean you will be able to bond any two males. As well, just because you couldn't bond a bunny couple, doesn't mean that will happen again. Rabbit personalities are very unique. Some are more aggressive, dominant, assertive; while some are more laid back, chill, etc. Spayed or Neutered. Rabbits that are spayed or neutered have a much higher chance of being successful with bonding. One rabbit spayed/neutered is better than none, but both rabbits spayed/neutered is the best of all. Space. The space your buns have to run around will affect bonding. Although it is awesome to have a huge space for buns to excercise. Having a small space for them to bond first, has shown to be helpful. Spaying/NeuteringWe will write another blog post about Spaying and Neutering, but this section will be in regards to bonding. Wait atleast 2-4 weeks after altering your rabbit to start on the bonding process. Waiting gives time for hormones to balance and incisions to heal. Also, a male can still be fertile for weeks after their spay, so be sure to keep this in mind, if you are bonding to an unaltered female. Bonding SpaceWhen choosing the space that you will bond the bunnies, choose a neutral spot. Whether that is a pen in your room, a brand new cage, or something else, make sure there are no small spots for a rabbit to get stuck. Actually MeetingWe would recommend working with the buns for atleast 15 mins a day. If things are going well, time can be lengthened, but should always be supervised in the first days. Sometimes, once rabbits are introduced, they do not need to be separated again. However, if a rabbit has health issues, or there was an initial negative reaction, 15 mins a day is a better approach to avoid stressing out the rabbits, and fighting. Begin with housing the buns close together, but separate. Maybe you are waiting for one to recover from a surgery, or maybe you are waiting till one is the right age. Either way, keeping them close enough to be used to each other can be helpful. When you finally introduce them, do so in a Neutral Space. Rabbits are very territorial, so putting them in a new space helps both of them be more reluctant towards a friend. Bunny BehavioursThere are bunny behaviours that are okay, and ones that are not okay when it comes to bunny bonding.
"Okay" bunny behaviours include - Mounting Mounting is often a sign of dominance. In this way, it is okay for the bunnies to mount each other (so long as they are altered and can't reproduce.) because it will help them decide who has the dominance in the relationship. -Chinning Chinning is a sign of dominance, or marking of ones possession or territory. -Chasing Chasing is okay, although a smaller space will help reduce this and not frighten the rabbit being chased. -Spraying/Urinating Although this may be frustrating for you, this is also a natural "dominance/territorial" behaviour from rabbits. "Not Okay" Bunny behaviours include: -Biting Obviously a biting rabbit is showing aggression that is dangerous to your other rabbit. At this point, it is better to separate your buns, and try again the next day. Avoiding an outbreak or a fight is important for the health and future bonding for your buns. -Fighting Fighting is obviously dangerous for both bunnies. Separate the buns immediately and work slower with your interactions. -Lunging Lunging can lead to biting and fighting. If it is lunging, and nothing else, it may just be the bunny testing the waters. Keep a very close eye on your bun when they are lunging and separate if anything else happens. Lunging is an aggressive act but can fizzle out if they work out dominance. We hope this information is helpful. If you need help troubleshooting or have questions. Shoot us an email at [email protected] Meet Pepper! She's a doe that came to us from A&T Rabbitry in Idaho. We are thrilled to have her sweet personality in her barn. We are excited to see what colours she produces as she carries the VM gene giving her marbled eyes! She was born at the beginning of 2021 so we will be excited to breed her at the end of this year!
We had a busy month in June with babies being born, a litter ready for reservation, and a few new additions to our Rabbitry. July is especially exciting because we are bringing in 3 new does from Sinclair Rabbitry in Hamilton, Ontario. We are excited to introduce new lines into our herd and work with these girls. They are purebred and pedigreed, and carry the BEW/VM genes. We will be expecting babies from all of them in the spring of 2022. If you haven't already put your name in to be on our interest list for babies, do so now! All of these girls are chunky and have great ears already. We are thrilled with their temperaments and kind natures and can't wait to be picking them up soon.
Bunnies & Cats, an unlikely friendship indeed. Many cat's and bunnies can get along if introduced properly, and live in wonderful coexistence. We actually have cats that will go and lay inside our bunny hutches with certain buns! Amazing indeed.
It is important, of course, to remember cats are predatory creatures, and rabbits are prey creatures. If your cat is showing any aggressive or hunting behaviour, it is important to separate your pets to protect both animals. A cat's predatory instict can be triggered by a racing or bounding rabbit. On the other hand, a rabbit can be far more territorial than a cat, and is capable of defending themselves and causing serious injury to your cat. If planning to have your bun and cat coexist in the home together; take the time to properly introduce them, and set them up for success. Giving them each (especially your bunny) a safe space that is just their own is important. Watching them closely in the first few months, and even longer after is also important. We are back and ready to roll and boy are things rolling already. After a long year away, we have begun breeding once again. Here is a recap of what was hopping in May, and a sneak peak at the exciting things coming in June.
There are many different housing options for rabbits. Before we talk about hutch styles, make sure to consider a few key points that will play into your decision. Choosing the right cage setup for your lifestyle will help set you and your new rabbit companion up for success! Size It is important that your bun has enough room to move and run, jump and binky at different points throughout the day or week. Generally, for cage size, we say that a cage should be no shorter than the bunny's length when all stretched out X 2. Another way to look at it, is 1 square foot per lb of rabbit. Holland Lops are generally about 4lbs, so they would need about 4 sq feet. However, having a smaller cage for your rabbit is perfectly maneagable if you have set up a run or a playpen, and give them daily exercise. Bunnies are very creative, fun and personable creatures and thrive in an environment that has lots of space for them to exercise and explore. All of our buns have a minimum of 4 sq feet, but most of our buns have even larger cages. We also have pens/runs so that our buns can get daily and weekly excercise on the ground! Environment - Playtime and Toys Like mentioned above, bunnies are incredibly curious, creative and playful. When I first got bunnies to start breeding I actually bought an English spot rabbit mix. I knew nothing about breeds and was excited to just get some rabbits. His name was Peter and he was one of the most intelligent rabbits I have ever had. He knew me and would get excited every time I would come by. He would race up and down his cage, following me as I fed the other rabbits. He enjoyed learning tricks, yes I said that correctly, real tricks. He knew how to go up on his hind legs when prompted, spin in a circle, and even lay down/flop. He was so personable and would butt your hand for a pet when he wanted one. Now as much as I would like to claim that he is the only rabbit on the planet like this, that just isn't the truth. Although he was special to me, and unique in personality, he is not the only bunny able to learn tricks, and full of playful quirks. So many rabbits desire to bond with their owners. They can be taught to be litter trained, do tricks and be your companion. All it takes is the right environment, a bit of time, and a bit of work and you and your bun will be the best companions. This is all to say, having toys, and playful structures for your rabbit to get creative and roam in is super important. Create an area where they can hop onto, into or under something. Buy or make some toys and rotate them in their cage, 1-2 at a time. Spend some time on the floor with them, and let them explore all around you. There are lots of toys that are basic and simple in design and can even be made yourself! Interested in some DIY Rabbit Toys? Blog post coming soon. Your time, commitment, and space It is important to be mindful and honest about this factor before deciding on your buns housing. For example, if you know you do not have a lot of time, and want to ensure all the time you do have is devoted to holding and playing with your bunny, you may choose a more low maintenance cage. In contrast, if you spend a lot of time at home, you may want to put the work into a free run rabbit in your home. If you plan to have multiple buns, but don't have a lot of space, you may want to choose a more space saving option, and create one big run outdoors that your buns can take turns in. Weather It is important to remember where you live, and how weather will play a role in choosing an appropriate cage. Obviously, if you live in an area that gets extremely cold, or hot, you may choose to house your buns part time indoors. You may choose a more sheltered cage setup, or you may choose to have your bun indoors all year. Disease/Illness Many rabbitrys that are faced with risk of disease choose to house their buns indoors, as keeping the Rabbitry biosecure from things such as RHD@V is easier this way. Don't know what biosecurity or RHDV2 is? Read our bog post on it! Now that we have thought about some contributing factors, lets get into cages! CagesHutches: Hutches are a wonderful way to house your rabbit and is our chosen preferred method. Here are the reasons some people choose to use hutches. PROS:
Hutch Styles: There are many different types of Hutch style. Raised hutches are cages off the ground with wire/wood bottoms so the poop falls through. Triangle/Run hutches are cages on the ground. These cages are great for providing your bun time to roam safely with grass to chew or dirt to play in, somewhat unsupervised. It is important to note if buns are directly on the ground, there should still be wire under the cage or a few inches under the dirt as rabbits are diggers and escape artists by nature. For mowing runs, remember not to leave your rabbit in one area to long as he/she could hurt the grass. These runs are cages and can be treated so, making them different from outdoor play pens. Bunny Condo Bunny Condo's are indoor housing options for your bun that are more space efficient by stacking the levels that your bun has in order to save space in your home and give your bun the most room to move. They can be built with wire, or wood. There are many different styles of bunny condos. Here are a few to give you some ideas. Wire stacked cages Wire stacked cages can sometimes be a controversial topic. Many breeders use this type of housing because it is extremely space efficient and makes cleaning quicker. This style of housing makes it possible to own 20+ buns and is very popular among breeders. Personally, I think it is important to take the time to get to know the breeder. The main thing when using these cages is that there is a safe and large place for the buns to run, play and excercise on a daily basis. A breeder may use these cages, and give their buns lots of exercise and play time outside of their cages. Always feel comfortable asking the breeder where they let their buns play and exercise! Pros:
Traditional These types of cages can often be very small. As well, they are hard work to keep clean as they are a solid tub bottom. We often recommend these cages if you want to have a free roam bunny. In that instance, the cage acts as a safe place, to poop, get food and even sleep. Play time is conducted out of the cage and the bun has plenty of room. We also suggest pairing these cages with an indoor play pen to complete your indoor rabbit setup. Pros:
PlaypensIndoor Indoor play pens are a great way to give your bun controlled play time and play space. Many buns do great roaming the house on play time, but if you have a rabbit who loves to chew, very young kids, or a dog, you may want to give them play time in a pen. Here are some great play pen looks. Pros:
Outdoor
You can use these same pens outdoors, but rabbits must be supervised at all times. Rabbits have many predators and these cages are not as safe with no roof or wire bottom. Not only can predators get in, rabbits can easily get out. Rabbits can both dig deep, and jump high so supervising this playtime is key. |
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