Wondering about adopting a dwarf rabbit...

[Katey]

Hi. I've been wondering about adopting a dwarf rabbit. It doesn't matter which breed of dwarf rabbits as long as its a young female. I already have another cage (1st. cage I had for my guinea pig) clean and ready - next I'll have to purchase rabbit food and that's it. Before doing so, I'd like to know if a dwarf rabbit defecates as much as a 5 month old guinea pig. My guinea pig defecates constantly - it seems as if the cage is never clean though I change the bedding everyday. Thank you for your answer!

[Blue Dragonfly]

Well yes they do, except it is different from a guinea pigs because it is more little little balls of compressed hay. Except it the morn when they produce a sloppy poo which they have to eat in order to get all the vitamins and minerals they need.

Rabbits tend to do their business in one spot, so you can put a kitty little tray in the cage and train it to go in there. Then all you have to do is clean out the kitty litter box every day. I use recycled paper litter, and then i just throw it in the garden. Enviromentally friendly and easy. lol.

What sort of dwarf rabbit would you like. Dwarf lops are very friendly, and are perfect for first timers. Netherland dwarfs and similar breeds tend to be more of a handfull. They tend to be jumpier and more independent, not to mention they run like the wind. It will take a lot of dedication and patience if you want to train one of those. Lops tend to be more layed back and lazy. lol. But it all depends on what you want in a rabbit.

If you want to know anything else just send me a private message.

[Katey]

Rabbits tend to do their business in one spot, so you can put a kitty little tray in the cage and train it to go in there. Then all you have to do is clean out the kitty litter box every day. I use recycled paper litter, and then i just throw it in the garden. Enviromentally friendly and easy. lol.

Dwarf lops are very friendly, and are perfect for first timers. Lops tend to be more layed back and lazy. lol.

If you want to know anything else just send me a private message.

Guess I'll be adopting a Lop to sit on my Lap.

Thank you for all the information. I'll keep in touch if I have any other questions.

[Karen]

Whatever you do, make sure you do NOT use cat litter - it can kill a bunny. We use Carefresh, others use Yesterday's News - but rabbits will munch their litter, so it's important to use the right kind.

Please DO go to http://rabbit.org and look at the information there. Miss Hoppy is a house rabbit - meaning she is free to run around the house at all times, is litterbox trained, and the house is "rabbit-proofed" - meaning for example that all electrical cords are covered or inaccessible.

A rabbit can live for 10+ years, should be spayed/neutered for his/her safety and health ... and most do NOT like to be picked up or held, but prefer to be on the floor or couch next to you to be petted. Mind you, Miss Hoppy lets ME hold her perfectly fine, but no one else.

[Blue Dragonfly]

How come you want a female rabbit. I have found that if you are only getting one rabbit a male is the way to go because they tend to be more docile, and because the female is the one that will dig huge burrows in your backyard. You have to constantly keep an eye on them outside because they will dig under the fence and escape very quickly. Males tend to just dig tiny in a spot a tiny bit while spraying urine just to mark those spots for them. If you are considering getting more rabbits though, a female is the way to go. Although that is still no guarantee that they will get along. Take it from me. lol. Bunnikins and Thumper were both female rabbits. (See siggy for pics) and they were mortal enemies. One day thumper ripped bunnikins lip open through a seperation fence. We couldn't even let them go for a run at the same time. It was too dangerous.

[Katey]

Please DO go to http://rabbit.org and look at the information there. Miss Hoppy is a house rabbit - meaning she is free to run around the house at all times, is litterbox trained, and the house is "rabbit-proofed" - meaning for example that all electrical cords are covered or inaccessible.

I went to rabbit.org and it was very helpful. Thank you.

[Katey]

How come you want a female rabbit. I have found that if you are only getting one rabbit a male is the way to go because they tend to be more docile, and because the female is the one that will dig huge burrows in your backyard. Males tend to just dig tiny in a spot a tiny bit while spraying urine just to mark those spots for them.

It'll be a female 'house rabbit' and because male rabbits spray their urine - marking territories - is the reason I'd rather have a female. I read on another 'rabbit website' - the scent is strong and terrible.

[Suki Wingy]

I heard that males spray too but mine is intact and does not pee anywhere but his box. I guess I got lucky. Since you already got advice, I'll say good luck! Rabbits are great little pets.

[angelbow20]

I have a Netherland dwarf and I would have to say she is ten times more work than any rabbit I have ever owned. I myself would have chosen a different kind if I knew she would be the way she is, its very hard to hold her, and hard to pet her even, she is more agressive then all the other rabbits I have ever had, she seems to want to be independent all the time and left alone, and I always tried to tame her its it pretty hard, I would LOVE to have a lop, every Lop I have ever saw were the nicest and sweetest but I guess it depends on the rabbit itself.

[buttercup132]

It'll be a female 'house rabbit' and because male rabbits spray their urine - marking territories - is the reason I'd rather have a female. I read on another 'rabbit website' - the scent is strong and terrible.

Actually most males don't and if you get them fixed at 4-6 months they stop. And females do it too sometimes worse then males. Not to mention they usually have a horrible attitude and need alot of patience. I know I'm making girls sound terrible but I would recomend a neutered lop male for a first time owner. Preferably a adopted one.
I agree with everything BlueDragonFly has said (It's nice to have someone like me on this board )

I have a Netherland dwarf and I would have to say she is ten times more work than any rabbit I have ever owned. I myself would have chosen a different kind if I knew she would be the way she is, its very hard to hold her, and hard to pet her even, she is more agressive then all the other rabbits I have ever had, she seems to want to be independent all the time and left alone, and I always tried to tame her its it pretty hard, I would LOVE to have a lop, every Lop I have ever saw were the nicest and sweetest but I guess it depends on the rabbit itself.

Exactly, most people think oh I want a Netherland dwarf they are so small and stay small. But really they turn out to be pretty nasty especially for inexperienced rabbit owners and thats why most of them end up dying from lack of care or in a shelter.

[Karen]

How come you want a female rabbit. I have found that if you are only getting one rabbit a male is the way to go because they tend to be more docile, and because the female is the one that will dig huge burrows in your backyard. You have to constantly keep an eye on them outside because they will dig under the fence and escape very quickly. Males tend to just dig tiny in a spot a tiny bit while spraying urine just to mark those spots for them. If you are considering getting more rabbits though, a female is the way to go. Although that is still no guarantee that they will get along. Take it from me. lol. Bunnikins and Thumper were both female rabbits. (See siggy for pics) and they were mortal enemies. One day thumper ripped bunnikins lip open through a seperation fence. We couldn't even let them go for a run at the same time. It was too dangerous.

That is not necessarily true. Miss Hoppy is a female, she is a house bunny (litterbox trained), and never, ever digs. We have had her outside many many many times over the years, presented her with nice soft dirt, normal dirt, snow - she is just not interested in digging whatsoever. And she is perfectly happy as a lone bunny. She is spayed, maybe that make a difference, but all rabbits who are not going to be bred should be spayed because of the high incidence of ovarian cancer in unspayed female rabbits.

[buttercup132]

That is not necessarily true. Miss Hoppy is a female, she is a house bunny (litterbox trained), and never, ever digs. We have had her outside many many many times over the years, presented her with nice soft dirt, normal dirt, snow - she is just not interested in digging whatsoever. And she is perfectly happy as a lone bunny. She is spayed, maybe that make a difference, but all rabbits who are not going to be bred should be spayed because of the high incidence of ovarian cancer in unspayed female rabbits.

That's mostly why especially if she was done at a young age. It also has to do with her personality.

[SunsetRose]

Hey male rabbits dig too.

I have a dwarf lop rabbit AKA Holland lop female and she is wonderful. I got her when she was a baby and she became really tame and bonded. I've never had any problems with her digging (it's mostly my other rabbit, Wendy), she never sprays, and she was very easy to potty train. I had her potty trained in about a week after I got her. Emmy is about 5 years old now and has cataracts in both eyes, but I still love her and she's still a happy bunny.

Really it doesn't matter what gender Katey gets. If she wants a female, then she should get a female. There are pros and cons for each and it depends on the individual rabbit too. Some female rabbits have a false pregnancy every few weeks, others rarely, others never. Some will get moody when they start nesting during a false pregnancy, others don't. None of mine did. All my male rabbits (fixed and unfixed) sprayed, none of my females do and I've had males and females dig.

[Blue Dragonfly]

I can only go by own experience. Females do have false pregnancies. i forgot to mention that. They pull out all the fur from there neck and belly and it is nice to provide them with a nesting box, they just want to be mothers. Also females have something called a nap which is a fold of skin under the neck where they store fat when they are pregnant. If you overfeed them with grain this can get very big and sometimes be mistaken for cancer by people who don't know better.

I have never had a problem with the boys spraying urine. They only do it when you first let them out of there cage or the house for a run. Because it is outside, you don't smell it anyway. As long as you keep a rabbits living area clean, they don't smell at all.

[SunsetRose]

Yeah, I should have explained better what a false pregnancy is lol. Basically the rabbit acts exactly as she would if she were pregnant and roughly within a week or 2 of delivering. They will pull hair off their neck and belly to make a nest, although I've never had a rabbit get any bald patches from this except when my rabbit really WAS pregnant. They can sometimes get moody and territorial and may rush at you and grunt trying to defend their nest. Some don't though, my girls were never like this. And the false pregnancy can be a regular thing or it can be a once in a blue moon kind of thing.