Oryctolagus cuniculus, rabbit

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Pet rabbits

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Habits of rabbits

If you are keeping a rabbit you might observe the following normal behaviors (not exhaustive list):

• Air-boxing - fast forward flicking of forelimbs while rabbit sits upright on its haunches.
• Body rolling - rabbit throws itself onto ground in a sideway roll, may lie immobile on one side in outstretched position for several seconds after the roll.
• Chin marking - rabbit rubs the chin over an object releasing secretion from the chin gland.
• Coprophagy - rabbit eats mucus-covered coprophagy pellets (cecotropes) that contain necessary vitamins and nutrients directly from anus.
• Digging - prolonged paw-scraping usually associated with burrow excavating.
• Foot thumping - loud thumping of the ground with the hind feet, usually when alarmed.
• Grooming - usually preceded by air-boxing, starts with licking of forelimbs which then are passed over the head and ears, continues with full body grooming. Grooming takes up to 16% of rabbit's activities.
• Locomotory
  • hopping
  • jumping
  • play gamboling
  • running
  • playing with a toy

Rabbits crave social interaction. This is why a rabbit housed with a companion spends as much as 70% of its time resting while touching another rabbit or allogrooming. Mature unaltered rabbits, however, will most likely fight and breed. Rabbits housed singly without interactions with conspecifics or humans may perform stereotyped behaviors defined as "unusual motor acts which are repeated regularly and almost invariably, and which serve no apparent function". Stereotyped behaviors are considered a sign of boredom, anxiety, or frustration. Rabbits may exhibit the following stereotyped behaviors:

• Rhythmic biting of water bottles and pulling out stoppers.
• Biting, chewing or licking of bars, walls, and the grid floor.
• Excessive fur pulling.
• Rapid aimless circling sometimes accompanied with kicking the walls.
• Head swaying and vertical sliding of nose between bars.
• Pushing and shoving of objects with the head.

Bored neglected rabbits exhibit prolonged periods of inactivity lying down, sometimes in a hunched position with the head lowered in a corner.

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Resting positions of rabbits

According to one study, pet rabbits spend about 12% of their time resting. Look at the pictures below to determine positions of rabbits.

• Sitting at ease - in upright stationary position, with rear end and forelegs on ground and ears down.
• Sitting alert - as above, but with ears erect.
• Lying alert - resting with trunk on ground, hindlimbs tucked under the forelimbs lying under or forward stretched from body.
• Lying at ease - body trunk on ground, all four limbs outstretched and belly exposed.

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Rabbit personality

In one study rabbit owners were asked to describe their pet using any adjectives they find suitable. Based on the descriptive words provided by owners, authors were able to classify all studied rabbits (more than 100) into six different groups:

• Physically active (lively, playful, escape artist, mad, etc.)
• Antisocial (grumpy, aloof, nervous, aggressive, etc.)
• Enjoys human company (friendly, loving, affectionate, etc.)
• Mentally alert (inquisitive, cheeky, intelligent, alert, etc.)
• Self-assured (confident, assertive, strong character, etc.)
• Quiet and placid (calm, sweet, gentle, nice, laid back, etc.)

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Keeping rabbits (husbandry)

• Grouping

  Rabbits for group housing should be litter mates (ideally) or same age rabbits which have been kept together from weaning. Groups of mature females can be kept together; however, it is preferable for the animals to be siblings. Mature males tend to fight and may need to be kept individually. Castration reduces aggression. Castration is usually carried out within 3-4 weeks after weaning. A maximum group size of between 6-8 mature animals is recommended.

• Size of living quarters

  The minimum area for a floor pen or a cage should be sufficient for rabbit to carry out its natural range of locomotory behaviors. Ideally, rabbit should have an opportunity to hop some steps or to jump up and down onto a ledge. An area of 3ft x 6ft (2 sq.m) could accommodate a maximum of 3 rabbits.

• Ambient conditions

  It is very important for rabbits to be surrounded with a familiar smell. Strong smelling bedding, such as sawdust or wood shaving, should be avoided. Strong smelling perfumes or cleaning agents should not be used in presence of rabbits.
  Rabbits are able to detect sounds inaudible to humans (ultrasound). Regular house equipment (refrigerator, air conditioner, etc.) might emit ultrasound and be stressful for rabbits. It is not recommended to keep them near such objects. Background masking noise from radio, when nobody home, can be beneficial for rabbits.

• Bedding

  Bedding should be non-toxic, adsorbent and comfortable. Straw is superior to majority of materials that can be used for bedding (shredded paper, sawdust, hay, bark, peat, coconut fiber, cat litter, etc.). There is some evidence that rabbits prefer straw or shredded paper and avoid shavings and sawdust.

• Cleaning

  Rabbits tend to urinate and defecate at preferred sites, which facilitate cleaning. Partial cleaning of a pen or cage, and a continual turnover of bedding is preferable to a total cleanout so that not to disturb rabbits too often. Complete cleanout, however, should be carried out every 2 weeks.

• Watering

  A plentiful supply of clean water should be provided at all times for a pet rabbit. Automatic watering systems and water bottles are recommended. Care must be taken to prevent rabbits to play with them to avoid leakage. Wild rabbits derive most of their water requirements from fresh plant material.

• Feeding

  Rabbits should be fed ad libidum, which may result in obesity if minimal requirements for physical activity level are not met. Rabbits have specific dietary requirements that include 13% to 18% dry matter dietary crude protein, 12% to 16% dietary crude fiber, vitamins A, E, and K, and 0.5% to 1% dry matter calcium. Fiber is especially important for the production of shot-chain fatty acids and gastrointestinal motility. Diets containing less than 10% crude fiber often results in enteritis. Dry pelleted food should be given at the rate of around 60-80g/kg body weight. The pellets should be supplemented with vegetables such as cabbage, carrots, turnips, dandelion leaves, apples, etc.

• Handling

  Rabbits have very delicate bone structure - skeleton in rabbits represents only 7%-8% of the body weight (12%-13% in cats). Heavy muscles on the hindquarters and the delicate skeleton predispose rabbits to fractures of the back and hind limbs. A firm but reassuring attitude should be adopted while handling a rabbit. The animals are picked up by the scruff, supported under the hind legs and carried with the rabbit's head under the handler's arm. Support of the hindquarters is essential when transporting rabbits to avoid injury.

• Health

  Severe disease problems are usually minimal in pet rabbits. The most common problems necessitating treatment are: injuries from fighting or mishandling, abscesses, pneumonia, snuffles, malocclusion, and sore hocks (lesions on the bottoms of the feet). Other possible illnesses include middle ear disease, conjunctivitis, enteritis, diarrhea (stress, infection, and wrong diet), dermatitis, coccidiosis, ear mites, ulceration of tongue and stomach, dental problems. Obesity may lead to a variety health problems in rabbits due to inability to perform many natural body maintenance behaviors (see references).

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Pet rabbit breeds