Find out here what rabbits love & what they hate & why. As a bunny parent, stick to the loves, stay away from the hates, and you will have one very happy healthy bunny.
**Rabbits love:** Company
**Rabbits hate:** Being lonely
* Ideally rabbits should be kept in pairs – but if you only have one rabbit, then make sure the company comes from you and that they live indoors with you and not outside alone. A lonely rabbit can suffer from depression.
**Rabbits love:** Space to run
**Rabbits hate:** Being confined to small spaces
* Make sure your rabbit’s home not only has plenty of space for them to run around in, but that it is tall enough, so they can stand up on their back legs too.
**Rabbits love:** Playing with toys
**Rabbits hate:** Being bored
* Make sure you provide your rabbits with lots of toys and places to jump around on and run through. A rabbit’s mind needs to be kept active. A bored rabbit is an unhappy bunny!
**Rabbits love:** Investigating
**Rabbits hate:** Having nothing to do
* Make sure your rabbits have an area they can go and investigate each day, to help keep their minds stimulated. Move things around in this area to fool your rabbits that they have new items to investigate
**Rabbits love:** The correct diet to keep them healthy
**Rabbits hate:** A poor diet that upsets their stomach
* Follow these guidelines for a healthy daily diet for rabbits – 80% hay, 10% pellets, 10% vegetables.
Introduce new foods slowly & sparingly to avoid upsetting their stomachs.
**Rabbits love:** Lots of good quality hay
**Rabbits hate:** Damp, stale dusty hay
* Always make sure you give your rabbit good quality hay. It needs to smell good and be dust free. Light greenish coloured hay is better than very brown hay. Be careful of some bagged hay from pet shops. Many have not had the dust extracted. If possible, try to find a local hay merchant and buy a bale of soft meadow hay. Also provide additional hay types like Timothy & grass hays.
**Rabbits love:** Fresh clean water
**Rabbits hate:** Water bottles that have turned green
* If you wouldn’t drink out of your rabbits water bowl or bottle, then don’t expect your rabbit to. Keep the bowls and bottles nice and clean and free of that horrible green algae & provide fresh water every day.
**Rabbits love:** A clean home with fresh bedding
**Rabbits hate:** A dirty home full of droppings & urine
* If you wouldn’t lie down in your rabbit’s home, then don’t expect your rabbit to. Rabbits are very clean animals & really appreciate a nice clean home too. Dirty smelly homes will not only depress your rabbit, but they will attract flies too.
**Rabbits love:** A little sunshine to top up their vitamin D
**Rabbits hate:** Being stuck in hot sunshine for long periods
* Rabbits do need sunshine to get their vitamin D, which keeps their bones healthy, but always make sure your rabbit can move away to shade when they need to cool off. If your rabbit is stuck in sunshine for long periods, their homes will heat up and they will overheat and suffer from heatstroke which can be life threatening.
**Rabbits love:** Hideouts
**Rabbits hate:** Having nowhere to hide
* It is so important for rabbits to have a safe place such as a hideout, to retreat to when they feel threatened or get spooked. Having nowhere to take cover, will make your rabbit extremely nervous and scared. Hideouts will help to build your bunnies confidence & also provide your bunny with somewhere to take a nap.
**Rabbits love:** Playtime
**Rabbits hate:** When playtime finishes
* Playtime is very important to rabbits, they love it and to see them happy and having fun is lovely to see. But be prepared for a bit of a runaround when playtime is over. Most rabbits will tell you when it is time for them to go in, not the other way around. Rabbits can learn the word ‘bedtime’ and some will go in with no trouble at all. If you feed them after their playtime, then they go in even easier.
##Just by spending time with your bunnies & observing them every day, you will learn so much about what they love & hate.##
