# dwarf rabbits



## cracker:) (Jul 21, 2010)

hi  i would like to get a dwarf rabbit to keep as a house rabbit 
are dwarf rabbits suitable for this? and what would he/she need?
etc what type of cage would they need?
should i get 1 or 2? 
what toys do i need? 
what can they be trained to do? 
what should they eat?
i have had a normal lion head rabbit before which i breed (not on purpose:frown: )
i am really excited but i need to make a shoping list by monday 26 july :thumbup:
please help me :confused1:


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## Kammie (Apr 4, 2009)

Read through this it should answer all your questions and more.

http://www.petforums.co.uk/rabbits/53839-important-information-new-rabbit-owners.html


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## cracker:) (Jul 21, 2010)

thank you very much  that has helped alot  but i still need a clear list of things to buy and some pictures if anybody has got some of there indoor rabbit set ups or stuff like that :confused1: it would really help :thumbup: ?


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## Kammie (Apr 4, 2009)

Mine don't have a set up they just get shut in the kitchen at night and when we're out, rest of the time they have full run of the house. 

As for a list:
-Hay (lots and lots of hay)
-Pellet food (excel or science selctive are both good brands, meusli type foods encourage them to be picky and cause teeth problems)
-Willow toys
- veg (kale, carrots, parsley, basil, brocolli all go down well)
-Food bowl
-water bowl/bottle (bottle may be hard to hang up indoors without cage bars)
-bed (dog blankets, vet beds, cat igloo beds all go down well, some prefer one over another so goo to have a selection)
-More hay
-Litter trays (one for each room the raabbit will be allowed in works best)
-Litter to go in the trays ( I use carefresh as it stops the smell and is safe if they eat some of it)
-Carry box (for vet trips)
-Carpet cleaner or pet cleaning sprays for accidents
-More hay
-A quiet place for bunny to hide if they want alone time
-Safe place to shut bunny away when you can't supervise, either a large cage or bunny room

Make sure any room that you let bunny in has no exposed wires to be chewed through, they are masters at finding even well hidden ones so use furniture to completely hide them.

Two bunnies are better than one, they love their own company and its so much fun to watch them play. Not forgetting the cute cuddly moments where they clean each other.


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## cracker:) (Jul 21, 2010)

do you mean this food becouse i was thinking of feeding them this  :confused1: http://www.petsathome.com/shop/burgess-excel-tasty-nuggets-adult-rabbit-food-2kg-4kg-and-10kg-15703and that is an awful lot of hay fo rsuch small animals per a week is it per a week?


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## Kammie (Apr 4, 2009)

Yep Excel thats the stuff!

As for hay, they should be fed hay unlimited so the more you have the better. Its good for their teeth to keep them worn down and the fibre is good for the guts. A lot of people say hay should make up about 80-90% of their diet with pellets just being a suppliment like you taking a vitamin tablet so to speak.

Have you thought about where you'd get the bunny(ies)? Personally I would go to a rescue, you know exactly what you'll be getting and they'll already be vaccinated and neutered for you. A lot of pet shops and even bad breeders don't know what they're talking about half the time and you may buy a tiny bunny being told its a dwarf when in fact its just very young (should still be with mum) and will grow into a giant. Rescues will have spent time with each bunny and can tell you what sort of personality they have, whether they like lots of cuddles or prefer to be left to their own devices.


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## cracker:) (Jul 21, 2010)

oh :frown: i was going to get them from pets at home we got are gerbils and hamster from there and they seemed ok? :confused1:


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## Kammie (Apr 4, 2009)

cracker:) said:


> oh :frown: i was going to get them from pets at home we got are gerbils and hamster from there and they seemed ok? :confused1:


Avoid [email protected] like the plague!

Read this to see why
PETS AT HOME/ DONT - Greenwich Rabbit Rescue

Please go to a rescue or at least a breeder! [email protected] get their animals from rodent farms and sell pregnant animals because they sex them wrong. They're inbred so have god knows what in the way of health problems.


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## cracker:) (Jul 21, 2010)

oh no  i thought they looked fine when i visted them last saturday but the normal standard bred rabbits looked prety lazy,angry,sad and lonely but all the other animals looked fine but have to say the giants didnt look very big the dwarfs didnt look very small and the giants where kept in a rather small cage with no hutch or anything to hide in and they where situated under the chinchilla cages :eek6::frown: i will have to ask some rather deep questions when i go there again on monday i have to say that makes me pretty angry 
thankyou for giving me that information


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## Kammie (Apr 4, 2009)

A lot of the animals from them die within months because they are sold ill but with rabbits especially they hide any illnesses until its too late to do anything a lot of the time.

I'm all for getting rescue bunnies over a pet shop any day. At least with a rescue they come ready bonded, been vaccinated and neutered, so for a small donation to the rescue you save a huge ammount of money compared to having to do all this yourself.

I had a pet shop rabbit once, I got him from a small family run pet shop thinking it was ok since they all looked healthy. I bought him originally as a female, the girl in the pet shop who sold him to me checked him and confrmed him as female. I got him home and after letting him settle for a few days took him to the vet for a health check before bonding him with the rabbit I already had. Turns out she was a he. I didn't mind too much I was already attached to him. After a few months he went off his food so took him to the vet to be told he has teeth problems caused by inbreeding. He had to have all his front teeth removed as they didn;t line up properly (malocclusion) and would only cause him lots of pain if left so veg now had to be cut up into small pieces for him.

Although we sorted his front teeth he still had problems with his back teeth, which couldn't be removed or he'd be left with no teeth at all and have to live on a liquid diet. He had his teeth filed once every month costing me £60 a time to keep his back teeth under control. Last July he went off his food again so took him to the vets thinking his teeth needed to be filed. At this time I didn't have a very good vet and lots of problems followed, he had an infection in his gum which the first vet didn't see and after a second opinion still denied it. The infection took over his mouth and within a week it had spread to his jaw bone making it crumble to dust and was in his lungs so he struggled to breath.

This video pretty much explains his last week. This story also tells you how important it is to get a vet thats good with rabbits, specialising in small animals.
YouTube - Charlie

Charlie was only three years old when I lost him and it was all down to bad breeding from the pet shop.


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## hazyreality (Jan 11, 2009)

cracker:) said:


> oh no  i thought they looked fine when i visted them last saturday but the normal standard bred rabbits looked prety lazy,angry,sad and lonely but all the other animals looked fine but have to say the giants didnt look very big the dwarfs didnt look very small and the giants where kept in a rather small cage with no hutch or anything to hide in and they where situated under the chinchilla cages :eek6::frown: i will have to ask some rather deep questions when i go there again on monday i have to say that makes me pretty angry
> thankyou for giving me that information


The last time I spoke to a member of staff about the rabbits, I asked her what breed one of them was and a rough adult size? She said she could only guess she would be a medium size because they dont get told what breed they are or anything about them at all. She said she thought it was wrong but what could she do? There were some in the "smaller rabbit" section which by the size of their feet looked like they were going to be rather large!
I would go to a rescue or breeder if you can  Or if thats a problem an independant pet shop, at least they usually know the breed. From rescue or breeders they are usually a much nicer temperment aswell  I have had 1 from [email protected] and I wouldnt have another.

*Heidi*


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## cracker:) (Jul 21, 2010)

omg that is really horrid :frown: it makes me angry when pet shops and breeders dont even other to train to be able to tell you the correct information etc  btu i am really confused to be honest with some people saying they had one and they where perfectly ok and then somthing like that happening


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## cracker:) (Jul 21, 2010)

Faldo | RSPCA Radcliffe Animal Shelter Dog and Can adoption


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## Kammie (Apr 4, 2009)

cracker:) said:


> Faldo | RSPCA Radcliffe Animal Shelter Dog and Can adoption


She's gorgeous!

Have a look on here as well, theres a lot of smaller private rescues, you may find a nice bonded pair right next door to you. 

http://www.rabbitrehome.org.uk/index.asp


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## Rini (Jun 23, 2010)

Kammie said:


> Avoid [email protected]home like the plague!
> 
> Read this to see why
> PETS AT HOME/ DONT - Greenwich Rabbit Rescue
> ...


Obviously I do not know the behind the stage workings of every branch but I know that my local pets at home gets their bunnies from private home breeders as I have dealt with a breeder who was selling his last bunny as pets at home only needed a certain amount and left one behind.

I havent, however, bought any rabbits from this pet shop, but I got my gerbils from there and they have been fine, anything wrong with them (over weight = my fault for not putting them on a diet and an injury caused by a scratch) has been done at home and is in no way the fault of the pet shop :/ But as I say I'm not saying every branch is the same. But I like my pets at home, though I find it quite over priced, especially for it's large tems!


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## emzybabe (Jun 30, 2009)

to put a little perspective on the state of pet rabbits and breeding rabbits. 

I volenteer my sundays (meaning I often work 14 and 21 days straight) helping out at my local rescue centre. they have 20 or so rabbits outside ready for new homes with lovely runs and plenty of space, they have the same if not more inside in hutches because they havent got any more space. 

Each and every one of these rabbits are all directly linked to the miss sell of rabbtis from either pet shops / garden centres and poo breeders. Rabbits require just as much timeas a dog if not more in oder for them to become very tame. They shouldnt be so easy to buy.

Please have a look at your nearest rescue centre this weekend. They will have loads of lovely rabbits and staff. You will be able spend plenty of time with them and ask lots of questions get to know exactly what their temperments are like, how big they will get, what to feed them, who would make a good house rabbit.


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## Rini (Jun 23, 2010)

If I get another rabbit for a friend for Rini I would totally go to a shelter, I totally support all they do.


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## cracker:) (Jul 21, 2010)

i am going to think into all the posabilities of adoption rescuing buying and any other places 
i just want to get a nice healthy happy rabbit  and i wont mind if i get a rescue one wich needs lots of attention becouse i have alot of spare time :lol:


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## Rini (Jun 23, 2010)

As long as the rabbit from a pet shop are actually healthy then I think its good for them as they get used to people walking by and a lot of noise, which would've been good for my rabbit in the beginning as now she is quite jumpy :/
And I think dedicated breeders are really good especially if they make sure not to breed "bad" rabbits either with health or personality problems, but alot of "breeders" out there are actually just people who have bred they two pet bunnies and dont know the long line behind them :/
Its a hard decision for sure lol ^.^
I would like to get a shelter bunny as they are so in need and the people there work with them and figure out their personalities well. And they can also help pick one and bond them with yours if you already have one.

Hope you find a good bun tho


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