There’s lots of reasons why a rabbit makes a wonderful pet. Rabbits don’t eat a lot, aren’t expensive to buy, can be housetrained and are loved by children and adults alike. But before you get your rabbit there are some decisions to make, and one of the first decisions is whether he will be an indoors rabbit or whether he will live outdoors in a rabbit hutch.
It’s correct that you can keep rabbits indoors or outdoors, though you need to think about different things in either case. A rabbit is generally kept in a rabbit hutch, or rabbit cage, and you can keep your rabbit like this either indoors or outdoors.
Before you buy your rabbit you must have decided about what housing you will use to keep him in. There are rabbit hutches sold freely on the Internet and in pet shops but the vast majority are way too small for a rabbit. A rabbit should have sufficient space to take 3 consecutive hops and to stand up in his hutch, therefore it should be a minimum of 18 inches high and 6 feet long. It saddens me to see beautiful rabbits cooped up in tiny rabbit cages.
If you have decided to keep your rabbit outdoors his rabbit cage must give him complete protection from creditors like dogs and foxes who are very clever and will get at your rabbit anyway they can. His hutch should have a sleeping area that is thoroughly weatherproof as well as an outdoor exercise area so he can play in the sun during the day.
And if you do have your rabbit in a small rabbit hutch now you can overcome this problem by building him a dedicated rabbit run around the hutch so you can allow them out during the day to run around in the run provided this is also protected from predators.
And if you are keeping your rabbit indoors there are some different considerations. Hopefully there will be no rabbit predators indoors so you do not need a roof on the rabbit hutch. However he will still need a private sleeping area where he can get away from prying eyes and sleep.
Don’t place is a rabbit cage near glass areas which can become extremely hot during the summer in the sun, and cold during winter. Also avoid putting his cage anywhere near a gas appliance as these can leak toxic fumes.
Some people dedicate an entire room of the house to their furry friend. This is fine provided you do a thorough check for any hazards in the room including holes into which he can disappear.
There is no doubt that rabbits make a fine pet, but makes decisions well before you buy your rabbit, and in particular organise his housing beforehand.