Pet-Rabbit Information ? What Is Domesticated Rabbits? How To Care For Your Pet-Rabbit?

Home
>
Pet
>
Pet-Rabbit Information ? What Is Domesticated Rabbits? How To Care For Your Pet-Rabbit?

Pet-Rabbit Information ? What Is Domesticated Rabbits? How To Care For Your Pet-Rabbit?

Domesticated rabbits are one of the most popular pets, apart from dogs and cats. They look attractive, lovely, gentle, friendly and cute. They are easy to take care and undemanding in terms of care and housing. They will settle well either indoor or outdoor, at home.

There are 40 species of rabbits and hares worldwide. All domesticated rabbits are originated from European rabbits. The scientific name for domestic rabbit is Oryctolagus cuniculus.

Typically, domesticated rabbits weigh between 2.2-221lb (1-10kg). The domesticated rabbits can be fed on commercially produced rabbit food, pellets, hay, green food, root vegetables, tree bark, herbs and apple.

The gestation period of a rabbit is 31 days and the typical litter size ranges from 6-8 young. The lifespan varies with breed.

Keeping a rabbit as pet requires a good training system to prevent unnecessary destructions or hassle. For example, furniture and carpet chewing problems, pseudo pregnancy symptoms, litter problems, fights, behavioral problems, rabbit-house worries, sickness, fleas, predators and etc. Nevertheless, these challenges can be overcome when the owners have the knowledge and experience to deal with them. Thus, one of the recommended ways to acquire the important knowledge is to read widely and exchange practical information with experienced rabbit owners.

A good rabbit cage must be large enough for the average sized-rabbit. A rabbit's living area must be spacious enough for a litter box, toys, and perhaps a cardboard box, with enough room left over for him to be comfortable. The minimum size recommended is 4 times the rabbit's stretched out length as to ensure the cage is tall enough for the rabbit to stand up straight.

It is important to watch out for any abnormalities in your rabbits as rabbits are susceptible to various digestive ailments and other life-threatening diseases. For example, rabbits are vulnerable to myxomatosis and VHD viruses. These are the killer viruses!

There is no universal system of classification for rabbit breeds. Some popular breeds of rabbits include:

? Alaska
? American Fuzzy Lop
? American Sable
? Angora
? Belgian Hare
? Beveren
? Californian
? Champagne D'Argent
? Checkered Giant
? Chinchilla
? Dutch
? Dwarf Hotot
? English Lop
? Flemish Giant
? Florida White
? Harlequin
? Havana
? Himalayan
? Hotot
? Jersey Wooly
? Lilac
? Holland Lop
? Mini Lop
? Mini Rex
? Netherland Dwarf
? New Zealand
? Palomino
? Polish
? Rex
? Rhinelander
? Satin
? Silver
? Silver Fox
? Silver Marten
? Tan

Domesticated Rabbits As Pet

The most important criterion before deciding to adopt a domesticated rabbit as pet is that you MUST have interest, love and willingness to take great care of your rabbit. This little cute bunny will need care and attention for approximately 10 years. Never adopt a rabbit and leave it uncared for at the corner of your house and the worst case is to abandon it in shelters, parks or even woodland areas. Once the poor rabbit is left wild, it has very little chance to survive. I am a rabbit lover, so I cherish rabbits a lot and treat them with bundles of affection.

What Are The Daily Rabbit Care Rituals?

Balance Diet:

A rabbit's diet should be balance, made up of good quality pellets, fresh hay, fresh vegetables and water.

Water should be fresh. It is recommended to change it twice a day. If water is not available, the rabbit will stop eating. The water container should be washed daily.

Treats such as bananas or carrots should be given in small amounts and only on occasion. Rabbits have a sweet tooth and will consume sugary foods to the exclusion of healthy ones. Never give a rabbit chocolate, sweets or chocolates. These stuffs may lead to an overgrowth of "bad" bacteria in the gut that leads to fatal cases of enterotoxemia.

Litter Training:

Train your rabbits to use litter boxes. Replace litter boxes with fresh litter everyday.

PRECAUTION: Do not use any litter containing pine or cedar shavings as these contain oils, which can cause respiratory and liver disease in rabbits. Litter made of plant material (hay) or paper (cellulose) is the safest litter to use with rabbits.

Droppings should be inspected daily without fail. Normal droppings look like regular round dry marbles, called pills. There may also be some clusters. An abnormality in droppings can be the first sign of illness in rabbits. For example, if you find your rabbit's droppings that are getting smaller, infrequent or misshapen, it signifies less is coming through. Thus, you ought to check out the reasons. It could be intestinal problems or any other kinds of illnesses.

Grooming & Health Care:

Rabbits enjoy human touch and love. By brushing and combing your rabbits for a few minutes daily will help them to feel your care and presence. Typically, rabbits shed every 3 months. Hence, it is absolutely for you to free your rabbits of this excess fur. It is perfectly common for rabbit to shed. So, spend enough time to help your rabbits to remove loose hair or fur.

Nevertheless, rabbits are self-cleaning and healthy small animals. They can groom themselves too. How do they do that? They can swallow excess fur! Once swallowed, these rabbits cannot vomit a fur ball, as what a cat can do. This excess fur can cause an obstruction. Technically speaking, we say that the rabbit has developed GI Stasis, a common slowing down of the GI tract. The symptoms of GI Stasis are smaller size droppings, lesser droppings frequency, loss of appetite, hunched up situation and teeth grinding due to pain. Bring your rabbit to your vet at once when you see these symptoms.

Exercise And Play Time:

Human must get daily exercise, so must your rabbits! The benefits of exercise for rabbits include smoother flow of blood circulation, stronger muscles and prevention from fragile bones. A rabbit's bone weight is only 7% of his total body weight compared with 15% in a cat.

Rabbits are crepuscular. Crepuscular refers to animals that are most active at dawn and dusk. The perfect time for your rabbit to get exercise is in the morning, when you are getting ready for work and in the evening when you arrive home. By the time you get home, your rabbit will have been napping all day! Bet you will be happy and entertained to watch him running and hopping around and doing bunny dances in mid-air, better known as "binkies".

Similar to kids, rabbits love toys! Rabbits like new toys daily! So, what are the toys that your rabbits love dearly? Some ideas of toys include toilet paper roll, cardboard box with a rabbit side doors, newspapers, towels, untreated wicker baskets and paper bags. Tunnels of any kind are always welcomed too!

Spay/Neuter:

This procedure is necessary if you want your rabbit to lead a healthy life, free from cancer. The risk of ovarian cancer in an older female is approximately 85% if she is not spayed during puberty (4-6 months). The reason for a male rabbit to be neutered is mainly behavioral reason. It is crucial as well as to eliminate random spraying, reduce hormone-related aggression and for easier housetrain.

The process of spaying or neutering your rabbit with minimum risk can be performed professionally by your vet. A bonded pair should each be spayed and neutered to avoid pseudo-pregnancies.

Rabbit Proofing:

Rabbits like to gnaw as it is a expected action for them. Boredom is common reason for their chewing activity and other times, items such as electrical cords get in their way. Thus, they are smart to use their mouth and teeth to shift it. Rabbit is a must! It not only protects your belongings or furniture, it keeps your rabbit safe and sound.

All electrical cords should be concealed in vinyl tubing. Hide the cords before your rabbit move it.

By providing your rabbit with acceptable things like toys and card box boxes to chew will not hurt you rabbit. If you see your rabbit swallowing it whole, remove it.

All the best!

Warm regards,

Amanda Gates
A Rabbit Lover
Email: amanda@careforpet-rabbit.com
Website: http://www.careforpet-rabbit.com
Website: http://www.rabbitinfo.careforpet-rabbit.com

In The News:

New Zealand Herald
Pet sitting gets boost from the web
Fall River Herald News
Instead of putting pets in kennels, Dog Vacay brings together dog lovers with casual and professional dog sitters to provide an affordable experience for pets. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes) By Sue Manning The Associated Press When you travel and have to ...
Doggy couch surfing? Website has lodging for dogsKVAL
Website has lodging for dogsWorcester Telegram

all 38 news articles »

Neato XV-21 Pet & Allergy Automatic Vacuum Cleaner
PC Magazine
Picks up an astonishing amount of dust and pet hair. Simple to use. Easy to clean. Programmable. Doesn't work well on tight corners. Very loud. Dated design. The Neato XV-21 does an excellent job of picking up pet hair—but it's no replacement for a ...

PetProductNews.com
How to provide for pets in case of owner's death or an emergency
Fort Worth Star Telegram
And for many local pet owners, that can mean leaving their furry loved ones behind as they head out of town for a week or maybe even a month. Try as pet owners might to plan accordingly for impending time away from their pets, they might not always ...
Pet Expo Efforts Raise $12000 for Pet Care TrustPetProductNews.com

all 2 news articles »

New York Times (blog)
Thinking of Feeding Your Pet a Homemade or Raw Diet?
Patch.com
Pet food recalls can spur people to make pets' meals themselves, but doing it right is important. By Kim Campbell Thornton Henry is one of many pets available for adoption at Orange County Animal Care. Orange County Animal Care With all the recent ...
Raw Pet Food DebateAll Pet News (blog)
The Raw Food Diet for PetsNew York Times (blog)

all 3 news articles »

Five Pet Place Unveils Luxury Brand; Extensive Collection of Designer Products
Albany Times Union
Five Pet Place, a company specializing in producing attractive and functional products for cats, today revealed its extensive collection of Pet Accessories for the Home™ at fivepetplace.com -- an advanced e-commerce website where consumers can build ...

and more »

KDRV
Marlins Pitcher Mark Buehrle and Wife Jamie to Kick Off Dual Pet-Adoption ...
Sacramento Bee
By Adopt-a-Pet.com MIAMI, May 25, 2012 -- /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Miami Marlins pitcher Mark Buehrle and his wife, the noted companion-animal activist Jamie Buehrle, will launch two initiatives to help homeless pets--one local, one national--at ...
Pet of the Week: HoneyKDRV
Shelter Renovations Cause Shortage of Space for PetsBeach Bulletin
Domino and Snow Bird Need New HomesPatch.com
Aiken Standard
all 20 news articles »

Don't forget about your pets
Houma Courier
By Thad Angelloz What happens when a hurricane evacuation is ordered and you have pets? With many residents counting their pets as integral members of their family, officials say they should also be just as important in overall hurricane planning as ...
Be prepared: 10 ways to help you survive the next hurricaneDaily Comet

all 10 news articles »

Newmarket ZBA grants variance for pet crematory
Seacoastonline.com
By Melanie Gray NEWMARKET — For many, the death of a pet is like the loss of a family member. "It's emotionally hard for all people," said William Morgan, owner of Angel View Pet Cemetery and Crematory in Middleboro, Mass. "Sometimes it just pulls ...

and more »

OregonLive.com
Happening this weekend: Pet-related events you can attend
OregonLive.com
Pets Uncorked: Visit participating Oregon wineries and contribute to a new animal shelter in Newberg. At Duck Pond Cellars, Terra Vina Tasting Room, Terra Vina Willsonville Vineyard and other participating vineyards, 10 percent of the tasting fee will ...

OregonLive.com
When it comes to courage and spirit, tripod pets have a leg up
OregonLive.com
A generation ago, three-legged pets might not have, er, stood a chance in the veterinarian's office. An animal that was hit by a car, born with a birth defect or suffered from cancer might have been more likely to receive a humane euthanasia rather ...

Google News