Having a House Rabbit

A couple of months ago, Adam and I gained a new addition to our little household - a very cute bunny rabbit called Sky. This has come with a very steep learning curve for me, as the only pets I have had previously were hamsters, gerbils and fish. All of which are very different to a house rabbit!

Sky is very cute when she's sleepy!

We got Sky from the adoption center at Pets at Home, we were told she was about 14 weeks, and unfortunately her owners had to give her up as they had developed allergies. To be completely honest, I don't think that was the problem, as they would have had her for at least a month before giving her up - I think the problem they had was because she is so hyper. I don't know if all rabbits are like Sky, but with her it's like having a toddler around! She is into absolutely everything, and if she's quite, she's probably doing something wrong!
However, she is also the sweetest, most loving little girl when she's not running around at a million miles an hour. Because we wanted Sky to be a house bunny, we knew it was important to train Sky straight away, we have done this with a combination on treats when she is well behaved, and a water spray for when she is naughty. This has been quite effective, and after a couple of days, we got her to stop chewing a carpet. Also one of the first priorities was litter box training. This has been quite successful - she still poos sometimes, but all her wee's are in the tray - which makes keeping her cage clean so much easier.

She has quite a large cage, but also if we go out for longer than a few hours for work then we also attach a big run, where we put a load of toys and hide treats for her. This area means that she has enough space to bounce about if she wants to, which is important if she is alone for a longer period of time.

To put this into perspective, her cage is 120cm wide! She has a nice big area!

When she is running around the living room (which is pretty much all the time we're in the flat) we always ensure all cables are out of reach, and block off areas like the back of the television etc so she can't hurt herself on anything.
Another thing which is worth mentioning about keeping a rabbit, is that you have to make sure they have a vets trip when you first get your bunny, they need a Myxomatosis and Rabbit (Viral) Haemorrhagic Disease (R(V)HD) vaccination if they are going to be outside. Also while they are getting their vaccinations, the vet will give your bunny a check up, and advise if they need any preventative treatments. One thing which your rabbit will need whether they are going to live inside or outside, is a fly strike preventative deodorant. My vet advised using Rearguard, and after reading a few rabbit forums (yes, I do that now) that seems like the most popular. Overall, having Sky in our lives is brilliant, I spend all my evenings in the living room with her, and although sometimes when she is going mental running around the room at a million miles an hour I may despair, its all forgotten when she comes and jumps on my knee, or decides to snuggle up next to my foot. However, I have to say that I definitely think the best route to having a happy bunny and happy bunny parents is training. Also we provide lots of mentally stimulating toys to keep her entertained, and ensure that she chews the things she is allowed to as opposed to my carpet and/or furniture!

Hi everyone!

I hope you all enjoyed this post, if you would like to see some more of Sky in the future, let me know!
Lots of love