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Enrichment happens when the rabbit’s brain is entertained and the rabbit feels comfortable with its surroundings.
Toys and housing can be arranged to provide the maximum amount of enrichment for the rabbit.
Amongst others, these toys include willow balls, tunnels, foraging mats, biting posts or wooden pieces for them to gnaw and move around, stacking cups, etc.
Some of the toys can even be home-made, and there are many great tutorials online on how to do some enrichment objects with bottles, cardboard tubes and boxes, branches, wood, and more!
Enrichment is also about allowing the rabbit to perform natural behaviours in a controlled environment.
These can be digging, foraging, looking around (or what we call “periscooping”) and feeding their curiosity by checking around!
But make sure your house is bunny-proofed (safe for the rabbit to be in).
To learn more about enrichment and behaviour, you can see:
Rabbit Welfare Association and Fund’s information about enrichment.
The Educated Rabbit’s guide to toys.
Grooming is considered the act of taking care of your rabbits health by brushing their hair and cutting their nails alongside other things.
We could consider bathing and pampering grooming too, but these are normally not recommended and not accepted amongst rabbit owners as they cause stress.
See our entry on bathing to understand why bathing is necessary sometimes.
Brushing must be done almost continuously as rabbits moult their entire fur every 4 to 5 months with intermediate growth steps in the meantime.
Fur can get easily matted if not properly combed, and it can be ingested by the rabbit causing impaction.
Fur is also considered a nuisance for aesthetics and cleanliness, thus reducing the amount that gets around the house is definitively positive.
Cutting a rabbit’s nails is a difficult task that sometimes requires more than one person. Really skilled carers have many techniques to immobilise the rabbit to make it easier, like the rabbit burrito technique.
Just like with other animals, overgrown nails make it harder to walk, causing posture changes and discomfort.
These can also break or hurt the feet.
They can also be a nuisance for owners, as these can be used to dig carpets or other surfaces, leaving marks and/or breaking them.
Nails have to be cut in a specific way to not hurt the rabbit or hinder the natural growth, so it’s recommended to get the help of a vet to learn how to do it properly.
If you want to know more about grooming rabbits, you can access:
The Educated Rabbit’s guide on grooming.
The Educated Rabbit’s information about trimming nails.
The Educated Rabbit’s information sheet grooming long haired rabbits.
The Educated Rabbit’s guide on senior rabbit care.
The Rabbit Welfare Association and Fund’s information sheet about moulting.
The Rabbit Welfare Association and Fund’s guide regarding nails.
Handling refers to everything regarding having contact with the rabbit, although it is most commonly used when referring to picking them up and moving them around.
There are many different ways to pick up a rabbit, but the main takeaway of all the techniques is to keep the back supported, and the rabbit still.
The rabbit must trust you before trying to handle them, but sometimes, even a rabbit that adores you will avoid being picked up.
This is because they are floor dwelling animals, and they feel in danger when lifted.
Once you have to put them back in the ground, you must ensure they can safely touch it without jumping and falling.
It is thus recommended to kneel and get as close to the floor as possible before releasing the bunny.
It is universally understood that this is the right and only way, and that any other option is negative, but, what are these other options? and, why are they negative?
Scruffing: Just like people do with cats and sometimes dog, scruffing is, just like the name indicates, picking up a rabbit by their scruff.
The main issue with scruffing is that, although rabbits have a scruff, this is not naturally used for scruffing by their mothers, and causes discomfort and pain.
This is because the skin separates from the flesh.
Ear-Lifting: Generally rarely seen, but still common in certain communities, picking rabbits by their ears is a horrible idea, and it should be self-explanatory.
Lifting anything by any limb or body part is extremely painful and uncomfortable, especially when that body part cannot hold the entire weight of your body.
Trancing: Or simply put, getting the rabbit on his back.
Rabbits in a trance may look relaxed, but the truth is that they are extremely scared.
This paralysis is playing dead, but for them this is the equivalent of sleep paralysis, where they know what’s going on but can’t move or respond to stimuli.
The three of these options have something in common: They hurt the rabbit, and they cause them great amounts of stress.
If by any reason you must see your rabbit’s belly, it is recommended to sitting them down.
If you want to learn more about handling rabbits, you can see:
The Rabbit Welfare Association and Fund’s guide on handling rabbits.
The Educated Rabbit’s extensive guide on handling rabbits, how they may behave, and how to act accordingly.
As you can see, the spine is straight, the butt and back legs are supported, and the rabbit is safe.
The scruff is being pulled very hard, and the bottom and spine aren’t supported.
The rabbit is in danger of breaking their spine.
Not that the owners care.
THIS IS NOT THE RIGHT WAY OF PICKING UP A RABBIT!
This could work as a sleeping place, but not as a living space.
Rabbit housing can be prepared outside or inside a house.
The only requirement is that their physical and behavioural needs are met.
Some of these needs are nourishment and hydration, running, digging, laying down, safety, temperature, etc…
You will also need to provide them with enrichment options.
Regardless of the environment, it is necessary that there is a minimum of space available for a rabbit.
You can use a hutch as a sleeping place, but it is required for it to be at least 1.8×0.6 meters (6×2 feet), as this will allow the rabbit to fully stretch and hop.
The size for an enclosure for a rabbit mustn’t be smaller than 3x2x2 meters (10×6.6×6.5 feet), this is because smaller enclosures can be detrimental to the rabbits’ health, both physically and mentally.
You must provide them the freedom to move around and run, especially at the times they are active.
If the rabbits are outside, you must ensure the run, shed, or whatever they have as a house is well protected from predators and weather.
Sun should be available, but you must provide a covered area, so they can’t get wet.
If the floor of the area can be dug on, there must be careful fixing or protection so rabbits can’t escape by digging under the fence.
If the rabbits are inside, you must ensure all the house is rabbit-proofed. This means covering and hiding cables, reducing the amount of places where they can get trapped, and reducing the damage a rabbit can do to the house.
They must be provided a litter box and trained to use it correctly.
It is very much recommended to reduce the amount of slippery floors by buying carpet or similar. it is important that the fabric of this carpet does not pluck hair out of the rabbit’s feet and mouth, so choose the right material.
I say that out of experience!
And of course, you must ensure your rabbit is safe when things that aren’t common in the house are introduced.
RWAF mentions candles and irons as “uncommon” dangers.
The Rabbit Welfare Association and Fund provides many guides regarding housing, and are the creators of the “a hutch is not enough” campaign:
See their indoors housing guide here.
See their outdoors housing guide here.
They have more content regarding housing and proper spaces. Please do check them out whilst visiting their site.
Rabbits can be litter trained, just like dogs, cats, and many other animals. Although at first it may feel challenging, there are some tricks to assure that they learn faster.
Rabbits use their litter boxes differently than other animals, and where they poop and pee marks the end of their territory.
Some rabbits like spending a lot of time inside the box, whilst others go in to do their business, and out.
Regardless of how they use it, you must always ensure there is clean feeding hay for them, as they enjoy eating in the bathroom!
If you litter train your rabbit, you must understand that chaos can ensue in the process and after it!
You must remind yourself that: messes will occur, cleaning must be made, and attention must be paid.
Training can be done in many ways, as there are a lot of tricks. What worked for me was putting the litter box where Soap decided to go, and slowly move it somewhere where he felt comfortable. This is also a recommended way by The Educated Rabbit.
Some people use vinegar to make the rabbit interested in the litter box. Vinegar can also be used to clean the box, and it is greatly recommended to use it instead of chemicals.
How often you clean the box depends on various factors like the size, the rabbit habits, the time that’s passed, and more.
Some people clean it once a week, others once every two days. This is completely up to you as long you ensure it doesn’t stink.
A stinky litter box means no hay is eaten!
The litter box must be appropriately sized, a reason why corner litter boxes must be avoided, thus you must ensure the rabbit can easily access the litter box and that they fit inside so they don’t dirty outside or are uncomfortable.
Many people use the bottom part of the cage when they buy the rabbit, some others get them big plastic boxes, and others give them cat litter boxes, but regardless, you should aim for a size of double the rabbit’s.
Bedding is part of the litter box and other areas of the rabbit habitat. It includes the litter, hay, fur (for babies), and similar. There is a type of hay that is commonly sold in big bags that its goal is to solely be used for bedding. Litter can be found in many shapes and forms:
Wooden products are commonly found for not only rabbits but for rodents. But most of them are not recommended. Sawdust and Wood shavings are discouraged as these can be inhaled by the rabbit causing irritation and damage in the lungs. There are though wood-based litter pellets that, due to the means of production, could be used safely, just make sure they are not wood stove pellets, as these can have chemicals.
Paper products have different formats with different absorption and texture. From paper-pellets to shredded paper or full pages of newspaper, all of them are mostly considered safe. A thing to take care of with the pellets is if there are any absorbent material other than paper, as some of these can hurt the rabbit causing impaction. This also includes shredded paper.
Other products like straw or horse bedding (hemp, flax or elephant grass) can also be used, but clay-based litter, like cat litter must be avoided, especially because it can be eaten, causing issues.
You can find more information:
In the Educated Rabbit’s Rabbit Litter Boxes page.
In the Educated Rabbit’s information sheet regarding rabbit-safe litter.
In the Educated Rabbit’s explanation on litter box training rabbits.
in the Rabbit Welfare Association and Fund’s Bedding and Litter page.
We were trying to figure out if these could’ve caused him GI stasis.
Although we were not sure, we decided to swap to newspaper for safety.
Rabbit pain is rarely clear as due to their nature of pray animals, they hide it.
It is something they cannot control, as it’s completely biological for them, thus we must be very attentive to recognise the signs they show when they’re in pain and why.
These symptoms are what I call “general sickness symptoms” in other entries, and include:
Loss of appetite: If your rabbit is not eating at all, that means something’s wrong, especially because rabbits have to eat all the time.
If they refuse treats, pellets, veggies, absolutely everything, you must start to worry.
Poop and Urine: Rabbit poop speaks for itself, and understanding why poop is a certain way or just observing that there is no poop can allow you to understand what is going on with your rabbit.
Bigger pellets, diarrhoea, mucus in the poop, tied up, amongst others.
Urine also speaks, different colours, consistencies, it may include blood or sludge. Even lack of urine can show an issue.
Always check for sludge and blood as it can mean liver issues like urolithiasis or RVHD.
Unusual behaviour: Rabbits that are feeling pain or are uncomfortable may behave differently, which is rare due to rabbits having strict routines.
Things like being awake or asleep when they are normally not, skipping lunch, being lethargic, allowing you to touch them, or being avoidant.
For example I know Soap may be having an issue if he sleeps in the litter box, he lets me pet him, and, strangely, he gets his front paws and chest inside the water bowl.
Strange body positions: When Soap is sick he tends to sleep in a sphinx position with the butt lifted and the legs spread to the sides, he also usually lies on his side in a manner different to flopping.
Sick rabbits may stretch, be stiff, move their ears back, grind their teeth. Normally these positions make you think “I don’t think the rabbit is comfortable”.
Temperature: Taking a rabbit’s temperature may be difficult, especially because it is annoying for them, but temperature can very easily determine if your rabbit is sick or in pain.
Normal temperatures range from 38ºC to 39ºC (100ºF to 102ºF).
Slight hyperthermia (39.2ºC-39.7ºC) may occur due to stress, but values higher than 40ºC determine a fever.
Hypothermia is usual in certain situations, like under anaesthesia, but some rabbits in pain may have reduced temperature depending on the affliction and where it’s hurting.
For example, blood loss and anaemia can cause hypoxia and consequently hypothermia.
Most of these tricks and tips can only be really utilised by you if you know your rabbit well.
This means understanding their behaviour, their routines and the rabbit.
Another alternative to pain identification is the grimace scale developed by the NC3Rs alongside Newcastle University.
It is a free PDF explaining certain bodily actions and facial expressions that demonstrate pain. Its main issues are:
1. It is less effective for certain breeds: Breeds like lopped eared rabbits or rabbits with shorter heads have not been used in the investigation, thus some facial expressions are not comparable due to the physical differences.
2. Action units don’t coincide and are independent: Action units can occur independently, meaning that whilst one is obviously showing, another may not be present. These also not necessarily show the right level of pain demonstrated within the action units pictures or two different action units may have conflictive levels of pain.
Regardless, it is a very useful tool that should be used.
If you want to learn more about pain identification you can always read:
The Educated Rabbit’s page on Identifying Rabbit Pain.
The Educated Rabbit’s page should include a link to the grimace scale, but if you want quick access:
Here is the main page of the NC3Rs’s with PDFs in English, Chinese, French, Japanese and Portuguese.
Here you can find the PDF in English.
Vet check-ups are done to understand the rabbit’s current physical health.
Vaccines in rabbits protect them from diseases that are fatal as well as painful.
Rabbits can be vaccinated since they’re 5 weeks old, and must be applied yearly as boosters.
A single vaccine against RVHD2 must be given at 10 weeks old.
The main culprits that the rabbits need to be protected against are Myxomatosis and RVHD 1 and 2.
These vaccines are normally given all at the same time, but this may not be possible if the rabbit was already vaccinated for Myxomatosis but not for RVHD2.
Another thing the vet may provide to you are anti-parasite drops.
These can be cutaneous as sprays or drops, and are usually applied in the back of the neck, so the rabbit can’t clean it.
The usual checks include nails, teeth, weight, mobility, heart and lung rhythm, and ears.
Other things may be checked, like scent glands and the rabbits’ bottom, their blood, and their poop, depending on the age and the needs.
For more information on rabbit vet check-ups, you can visit:
The Rabbit Welfare Association and Fund’s page “Bunny MOT”.
The Rabbit Welfare Association and Fund’s information sheet on Vaccines.
The RSPCA’s advice and information about Vaccinations.
The Bunny Lady’s guide on vet visits.
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