| POPPY'S PAGE |
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| Christine Elliott's Site Devoted to Rabbits Indoors & Outdoors |
| Things to Consider When Buying a Bunny |
| 5 + 3 Things To Think About When Considering Becoming A Bunny Parent:
1) Bunny kittens (babies) are incredibly cute and adorable but they do grow up very quickly. There are many young/adult bunnies already out there that need a home so why not give an unwanted bunny a second chance and adopt one of these. Out of the eleven bunnies I have lived with only three were bought as kittens (two more were bought by my friend), the other six were rescued. I feel a lot of pleasure and self satisfaction that I have given six adorable rabbits who were not wanted any more a good home and a happy life! I love my five other bunnies dearly but they would have easily found a home elsewhere. The R.S.P.C.A. is a great place to start when looking for a bunny. For more information see “5+1 Reasons to adopt a bunny from the R.S.P.C.A.”. 2) Please don't buy a bunny for a child unless they, or you, are incredibly to committed to looking after them. Rabbits can live for up to 10 years. Think about it - if you buy an 8 year old a bunny are they still going to be committed to it when they are 18? 3) Consider the needs that rabbits have. They do need at least 3 hours freedom everyday. Can you give a bunny this? I would dearly love to adopt more bunnies but realistically I could not care for them properly unless changes were made to our lifestyles and home circumstances. 4) Think about the kind of bunny you want. Again, if thinking about giving a child a rabbit make sure you choose a breed that won't grow to be huge. Some rabbits can grow to be bigger than a small dog. There are dwarf varieties but even the dwarf lop is not that small. Netherland Dwarves are an excellent size for children and have lovely temperaments, but again think carefully about the responsibility of giving a child a pet. 5) Think about your time - can you spend time with your bunny, handling it and playing with it. If not then it may become very aggressive and repel human contact. I would always advise having bunnies in pairs - remember how bunnies live in the wild - is it fair keeping a bunny on its own? 6) Again think about how a rabbit lives in the wild, it needs to chew constantly to wear down it's teeth, which grow at a fantastic rate. If you don't give your bunny things to chew on, then it will find it's own things, such as chair legs or wires! 7) Please don't ever buy a rabbit as an Easter present!!!! I really do think this is a very inappropriate reason to buy a bunny. That old slogan "A dog is for life, not just for Christmas!" could easily be changed to "A rabbit is for life, not just for Easter!" Rabbits are animals with feelings, not seasonal toys! 8) As with owning any pet there is a cost involved. Buying the correct bunny food rather than the cheapest is vital to their health. A McDonalds may be a cheap meal but would you want to eat one every day? Rabbits need two vaccinations - viral haemorrhagic disease and myxomatosis - every year. You may think that these are optional, especially if your rabbit does not come into contact with other rabbits or is a house rabbit. Please think again!! There are many ways these horrible diseases may be caught. For more information see "What's Up Doc?" |