To adopt a rabbit when short of money?

[chocolateroses]

So we are a stable household, married with two steady incomes. 2 young DC who don't go without and a nice house. We are always careful with money but make sure we have enough to cover all costs each month. After the mortgage and food shops can't afford many luxuries - no holidays for us etc.

My eldest DC (who is 5) is desperate to get a rabbit.

I am looking at re homing two rabbits from the RSPCA, but I'm worried about the cost. I assume I would need to pay for:

• hutch and run (these look expensive!)
• some kind of indoor cage?

-hay and food

• some kind of monthly vet insurance

• costs to buy the rabbit?

Do the RSPCA charge you? I would love to donate, but after buying the essentials above we'd be skint luxury wise for a couple of months.

I can't imagine rabbits are that expensive to keep? Unless I'm missing something?

I can't help but feel that us adopting a rabbit (who would be deeply loved and cared for) but being a bit skint to start and unable to make a reasonable donation would still be a bette option than a rabbit staying in the RSPCA?

[pangolina]

I have a fabulous, affectionate and non-destructive house bunny BUT would never ever recommend them as a child's pet.

It is also worth mentioning that the RSPCA will not rehome them to you without coming to do a house visit and checking on where you propose to keep them. They will also want to meet the whole family and make sure everyone is on board.

My bunny cost me around £300 in vets bills last year, just for basic nail clips and injections. I'd say the cost of caring for him over a year with food, toys, bedding etc must be over £1k.

[frenchonion]

My very non-animal-loving parents ended up with a rabbit after my DBro and his gf and her rabbit moved in with them. They moved out (to the other side of the world!) and left the bunny.


Omg the effort and money my parents put into keeping the rabbit happy...huge hutches, putting massive fences around expensive plants, feeding it the best food, vets bills. I'd never have believed it unless I'd seen it but they loved that rabbit (they'd interrupt a conversation to wave to it from the conservatory 😂). But my god he was ungrateful! Terrible pet!!!! Tore the verrrr naice garden to shreds, he'd be super happy to be petted on his terms, but could change his mind mid pet and kick and attack. He'd run a merry dance around them at night to get it in the hutch. It would run in the house and destroy things, steal food, chew cables, and attack them if they tried to get him out...but the second they'd manage to get him outside he'd be nudging them affectionately. It was like their lives were taken over by an unruly toddler with a split personality. They got another one after he died who was pretty similar but EVEN MORE of an evil genius.


Based on those experiences there's no way in hell I'd even contemplate one as a child's pet. I had Guinea pigs as a child and they were fab. Clever, funny, full of personality, loved being handled...definitely go for a piggie!!!

[FurrySlipperBoots]

If you look at hutches for rabbits , remember that they will need enough space to do 3 hops and stand upright without their ears touching the roof.

I know you're just quoting from the official advice so I'm not having a go at you, but personally I wouldn't want to be kept confined to a room that's just big enough for me to take 3 strides in and touch the ceiling with my fingers. The bar is kept disgusting low for rabbits. If someone on here posted about a neighbors dog that was kept kenneled in a space just big enough to take 3 steps in there would be uproar and shouts of 'Report to the RSPCA!'

OP if you do decide to go ahead please convert your shed. You can make them pretty cosy if you can install an electrical outlet, with a wall mounted heater for the winter, and a light so you can see to skip out on dark evenings. The rabbits can free range so they can have room to binky.

forums.rabbitrehome.org.uk/showthread.php?327753-Outdoor-Housing&p=5207978&viewfull=1#post5207978

[Abacab]

Rats are lovely but because they're so intelligent they need a lot of time out of their cage each day running free and interacting with you to be happy.

They're also a tad destructive IMO and delight in chewing up soft furnishings, clothes, books etc.

Gerbils are a pretty easy pet to keep and are very friendly towards people provided you put some time into taming them when you first get them.

You'll need a same sex pair (I always had females) as they're sociable critters and unhappy on their own.

So long as they've got a decent size cage/tank with a little house to nest in, a wheel, and some tunnels to run through they'll be content to spend most of their time in their quarters, though they'll still benefit from being allowed out to run around in a room for a while each day.

I've never had hamsters but I've heard they can get a bit bitey.

[Zwischenwasser]

Totally agree with the others, rabbits are an ace pet. For an eccentric older person with time and money on their hands.

[chocolateroses]

Thanks everyone - I have been 100% put off a rabbit!

Speaking to hubby tonight, apparently 'Dave at work' suggested guinea pigs today so it's suddenly a great idea 😂

I don't know if we will get one, I need to do a bit more research and see if my DC would like them too. I like the idea of cuddles with a little squeaking pig 😍

[CatinMyLap]

How on earth does a guinea pig differ hugely from a rabbit?

Guinea pigs are nervous creatures, I’d advise against them even more so than a rabbit. Guinea pigs shouldn’t be bought at a whim for a small child.

[Seniorcitizen1]

If you get short of money you can always eat the rabbits

[SandunesAndRainclouds]

I had a rabbit (as much work as mucking out horses if you ask me!) and guinea-pig sat for a friend in the summer.

They poo and wee ten times more than the rabbit! Just as much work, if not more. At least the rabbit used a litter tray...

[Decormad38]

Out two rabbits live in a 2nd world war air raid shelter with a big attached run. The only rabbits that probably have bomb proof accommodation!

[Propertywoes]

Rabbits make rubbish pets. I had a guinea pig that lived for 10 years so you might be in it for the long haul if you go for pigs. If YOU don't want a pet, don't get one.

[highheelsandbobblehats]

I loved my guinea pigs when I was a kid. We had a rabbit too. He was fucking evil and we named him Elmer Fudd as he was so grumpy. I'd have guinea pigs again in a heartbeat. Absolute sweethearts.

[Smidge001]

I'm surprised by all the negative comments about rabbits as pets. I've had rabbits twice in my lifetime - once when a child (I was 7 or 8, through to about 17 I think) and then again when I had my own home in my twenties. In both situations they were great at being handled, could be let to run free in the garden all day (unfenced but never ran away - found out by chance when she escaped!) as well as in the house (supervised). My recent bunny was a house rabbit, and would come when he was called! I'm desperate to get another but want to be sure it's a dwarf so doesn't get too big. The local place I see them in just says they're mongrels and can't guarantee how big they'll grow! I've loved rabbits since I was 5 and never thought any other pet comes close.
But you need to handle them a lot so they get used to you.

[CatinMyLap]

To be fair on the basis that the 5 year old loves everything bunnies, and there’s a very small budget, I don’t think it’s fair on any pet.

[Minglemangle]

You cannot get one guinea pig it will be very unhappy, they must be kept at least in pairs. I’ve had several over the years and have never bitten. They are extremely cute and don’t need vaccinations like rabbits.

[TheDHand]

I know others have said this but please don’t get a rabbit as a pet for a 5 year old. They don’t like being held and they are a totally inappropriate pet for a small child, which will went to pet them.

We have 3 completely free range houserabbits. They are wonderful pets provided you give them as much space and attention as you would a dog.

If you wouldn’t keep a dog in a crate all day then don’t keep a rabbit in a hutch. If you wouldn’t leave a dog outside on its own for 23 hours a day then don’t do it with a rabbit. They are one of the most mistreated pets in the UK. They are more expensive to keep than a cat and live for 10-12 years. They have fragile skeletons and are frequently very severely hurt by being mishandled by small children who don’t know any better and want to cuddle them.

[BreakfastAtSquiffanys]

Get a cat and call it Bunny. She's 5, she'll be delighted!
You are a genius!

[MessEnoughClean]

Your daughter sounds like me when I was a child. I've always been OBSESSED with cats and wanted one for as long as I can remember. Asked for one constantly as soon as I could form sentences.

My parents told me at age 4/5ish that I was too young to be responsible for an animal but if I still loved cats and wanted one when I was 8, they would let me. This stopped all of the begging and pleading because I knew I would get one eventually. Every time I asked I was told: when you're 8. Then no more conversation about it.

When I was 8 I was given a wrapped cat care book, and I was told when I had read it cover to cover 3 times, we would go and look at cats. It didn't take me long! As a result I knew loads about caring for cats and I felt like I had proved myself. And my parents had a few years of relief from the pleading because I was busy counting down until my 8th birthday!

[roboticmom]

Look up 'Guinea Pig Olympics' on Youtube.

My DD is like yours- obsessed with rabbits. Every birthday when she blows out her candles she wishes for a rabbit. But I had never had rabbits and they seemed too complicated and bitey. So we got a male guinea pig (I think the boy ones are a little more boisterous).

She ignores him like she ignores our dogs. But I have a feeling it would have been the same with a rabbit. But my DS loves him. (And I love him too.) So no regrets!

We clean his cage once a week and feed him once a day. Not much work really and he eats our vegetable scraps. My DS holds him while reading or playing video games. We put the top of his cage outside in the Summer so he can nibble on grass (supervised). They are just the sweetest most docile creatures.

[Snuffalo]

Keeping a single rabbit is cruel. They need to be in pairs. That need a hutch that allows them to do at least three full hops (10 feet for a big bunny). They need to have their tray cleaned daily and they need expensive hay and fresh food (pellets destroy their teeth). They need their claws trimmed and regular vet care. Does all of that sound feasible for a pet you can’t cuddle or play with?

[Doggydoggydoggy]

Single rabbits actually, provided they live indoors and have near constant attention/company can and usually do live very happy lives..
It is necessarily a requirement to have two in my opinion.

[Doggydoggydoggy]

Not necessarily

[Rabbitmad89]

As you can see from my name I absolutely adore rabbits. I’ve got a little guy who’s a house rabbit and he’s got the best personality. They’re quite expensive to keep, we easily spend about £20 a week on fresh hay/vegetables as well as a big bag of nuggets every couple of months. They need their regular vaccinations, especially if they’re going to be kept outside. If they are outside then they need to be in a VERY secure hutch so that the foxes don’t get them! They also need a large area to run and interaction. Some rabbits are cuddly, some aren’t - most don’t actually enjoy being picked up!

Really take the time to consider it as they are a big commitment, but so rewarding!

[iamyourequal]

We have two female rabbits and love them to bits. Yes it was a bit of a surprise to discover they really don’t like being picked up/held, although as prey animals this makes complete sense. Ours live in a large two tier hutch in the garden, which is connected to a run via a tunnel (Runaround). The outlay was expensive but worth it as the bunnies can go out/in as they please- it’s surprising how little they actually go out! They are beautiful animals and it’s lovely watching them binky about. We feed them hay, pellets and about £1 worth of fresh veg a day between them - mainly kale/greens and they love carrot peelings and chopped apple as a treat. Cleaning and disinfecting the hutch thoroughly takes 30-40mins, done fortnightly- Small clear out daily. I think they are good pets, but not for very young children if they wish to pick them up etc as they are timid. Having said that, they love the company of being talked to and their faces stroked. We pay for annual check up and vaccinations - about £25 each I think. Getting then neutered was £80 each. We don’t pay pet insurance. Thankfully they have both kept good health the three years we have had them.

[PenguinPandas]

Rabbitmad89 Glad to hear your username is as you love rabbits rather than you have 89 angry rabbits running round . Also love rabbits here.


OP, one thing also to check is are either of you have hayfever for any animal that uses hay. I am though its fine as DH and DD are doing looking after, well it would be fine if a trail of hay wasn't through the house with bouncing bunny but once that's gone its fine.