Rabbit care...

Hi all. Been gone a while and was looking around at what I missed. Anyhow. I have two pet house rabbits, I am a member of the House Rabbit Society. Mine are litter trained. They get unlimited amounts of timothy hay, alfafa is good for immature or pregnant rabbits, they need the extra calcium. Timothy is better for rabbits that are no longer growing. They get 1/4 cup of Kaytee pellets per 5 lbs of body weight in the morning. Any more and they get fat. They get fresh greens or a half carrot in the evening. Not all greens are good, so check it out before you give it to them. Safe greens are any lettuces, chickory, escarole, parsley or cilantro. They get a couple raisins, a slice of apple or 1/4" section of banana for a treat every night as a treat. I start saying "Who wants tasty treats?' and they go nuts. Watch for "butt twitching" if you give them bananas. It is a weird reflex or something. My rabbits are kept in a cage when I am not able to watch them, but other wise go where they want. They will chew wires, so make sure you keep them out of the way if you let them run free, we hide them behind boards. They are great pets, contact me if you have any questions.
 
How about an update, Norm? Has the little critter been cooked and eaten, or is it being snuggled by a loving child somewhere?
 
It's almost impossible to be philosophically against the image of rabbits.

There was a movie on last night, Rabbit Proof Fence, about three aboriginal girls, taken from their mothers, following a fence to get home. The fence, no doubt, was Australia's attempt to keep the rabbit invasion in check. It did not work. Anyway, the little girls lived off the land and followed the fence across the Continent. Children were taken from hunter/gatherer families in Australia much like they were taken here in the US and Canada; for all the 'right' reasons of the Age, and for all the heartbreak and bigotry. We wanted to assimulate the people.


Anyway, you have to love a world where some people want to raise rabbits, and llamas, and snakes and what have you. I'm envisioning walking into Bobwhite's house, seeing the rabbits, and feeling peace.

munk
 
munk said:
Anyway, you have to love a world where some people want to raise rabbits, and llamas, and snakes and what have you. I'm envisioning walking into Bobwhite's house, seeing the rabbits, and feeling peace.

munk
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Goats and Jackasses! You left them out!;)
 
I used to raise pythons that ate rabbits. Not against it, but I will never go there again. The rabbit has won my heart to too great a degree.
 
Had a friend who raised a few rabbits for the pot on her hobby farm. My daughter asked "how can you bear to kill them?"

"They're cute when they're little ... but once they get a couple of months old, they just look like meat."
 
At the right time, place, and context, every living thing is meat and meal to some other needful creature.


munk
 
A salt/mineral lick is good for em. I go to the University of Victoria and we have a HUGE and I mean HUGE feral rabbit population Im estimating about 1000 rabbits on campus (aprox. 1 rabbit for ever 15 students). They seem to survive pretty well aside from the occasion hawk or cougar (yes we have urban cougars here), I would imagin that this guy would be best off if you set up somthing next to the house (or some other heat source) but open, feed him from time to time but not so much that he looses the ability to feed himself.
 
My g/f has a domestic rabbit, ostensibley her son's pet.
She is dictating to me as I type this.
Food: Lettuce, easy on carrots and apples, too much sugar.
Unlimited Timothy hay (for digestion) alfalfa hay is BAD!!
Rabbit pellets, not alfalfa based, makes em too fat.
Dandelions if pesticide free are a good treat.

Bedding: Sawdust bad, wood oils bad for rabbit.
Processed recycled newsprint, absorbs odors,
Rabbit less likely to eat, less likely to get colic/obstructed bowel.
Rabbit may eat clay litter, causing blockage.


Rabbits are chew fiends, electrical cords seem to attract them zzzzzzzt
They love any sort of chewable toys, good for wearing teeth.

Trim nails, take to a groomer if too skittish. They can bleed to death from over-trimming.


DaddyDett and the Lil Bit
 
Norm, good on you. It does a soul good when we take care of something less fortunate than ourselvse! I'm sure your daughter will love it too.

I only raised one rabbit, so I don't have any pearls of wisdom other than they do indeed chew everyfrigginthingthattheycangetintotheirmoutsh. That's a German word by the way.

What you say about cats getting them is true. I had a small declawed cat that averaged 2-3 rabbits a month. Usually young cottontails, but she also caught and killed full size jackrabbits that she would leave on the back porch (sometimes missing heads, etc). Right about cars too. Same cat got ran over by the neighbor:(
 
stevomiller said:
What you say about cats getting them is true.
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Yup, unfortunately it is.:( Where we live is kinda unique as there are houses all around us just like any other subdivision but we are fortunate to have about a 40 foot easement behind our place and then a pretty large open field on the other side of the fence from that and it has been allowed to grow naturally for the 25 years I've lived here except for being brush hogged a couple of times.
Makes it nice for the local flora and fauna.:thumbup: We've had wild turkey, deer, quail, rabbits, squirrels, and of course lots of birds including raptors living out there.:cool:

We also have a few feral cats, fortunately the traffic keeps them pretty much under control and I strongly suspect a few neighbors doing quiet methods to keep the population down.:thumbup:

There was a grey and white feral somewhat small tomcat for a few years hanging out in the back, sly bastard he was and he knew we hated his flippin guts!!!!
One day we were out in the backyard and a cottontail came running around the shed lickety split!
Just an instant later here came that damned cat chasing the rabbit.
Barb let out a yell, "You Sumbitch!!!!" and I swear that cat did a double take! It was funny as hell it was!!!!:thumbup: :D
The cat couldn't stop as quick as he would'a liked but he stopped pretty dayumed quick and almost turned hisself inside out trying to turn and get away from getting any closer to Barb and finally got turned and split like a bat outtahell the same direction he had come.
The rabbit got through the chain link fence somehow and escaped, at least for that day.

I've got some neat pix of a female rabbit gathering twigs and such for a nest, at least that's the only explanation I have for a rabbit to be carrying a mouthful of twigs around.
I'll see if I can find 'em and scan them to my hard drive and then post them.
I think you guys would get a big kick outta seeing them.;) :D
 
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