# Neutering rabbits



## MinskiKaii (25 May 2016)

Hi

I am thinking of getting some rabbits.  Do you have your rabbits neutered?

thanks


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## chillipup (25 May 2016)

No rabbits for me, unless I count the many wild ones that live outside! bless em. I do know the RSPCA like to neuter rabbits before rehoming. One clinic was given an old baby incubator and used to keep rabbits warm after neutering, (I think it's because small mammals tend to loose body heat very quickly)

I'll bet there are plenty of rabbits looking for new homes in any of the Animal rescue/rehoming centres, maybe worth a look. They may neuter them too.


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## tabithakat64 (25 May 2016)

Absolutely! Rabbits need to be neutered it calms unwanted hormonal behaviour and also prevents cancer in female rabbits. Rabbits should live in bonded pairs and for them to happily coexist they will need to be neutered.
There are around 64000 rabbits in rescue in the UK, please don't shop, adopt.
If you are a new rabbit owner, there's lots of interesting information on RWAF and a really great forum too (Rabbits United)


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## springtime1331 (25 May 2016)

I have two rabbits - a male and a female, both neutered. They love each other so much and are fab pets - they are worlds apart from the angry, hormonal, lonely rabbits I had as a child. I think rabbits need company, and IMO it's cruel to keep them alone.


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## MinskiKaii (25 May 2016)

Thanks for all your replies.  Yes I was definately going to get 2.  Do you know roughly how much it would cost per rabbit?


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## Alec Swan (25 May 2016)

MinskiKaii said:



			Thanks for all your replies.  Yes I was definately going to get 2.  Do you know roughly how much it would cost per rabbit?
		
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From a rescue about £3000 a pair.  From Swaffham market about £3.

Alec.


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## MinskiKaii (25 May 2016)

sorry I meant to get neutered


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## webble (26 May 2016)

Yes mine are neutered. It varies between vets but roughly 70 for a female and a bit less for a male


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## MinskiKaii (26 May 2016)

fab. thanks, that was very helpful.  We have had guinea pigs in the past and currently have some rats.  But rabbits would  be nice for a change  and that's not bad price wise. So we can still get some rabbits.


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## TheFizzPony (26 May 2016)

Agree with above! Definitely get them neutered and definitely in a pair! Rescue bunnies will have already been neutered and bonded in pairs which would make your life easier  
Just make sure you have enough space for them. Lots of people use sheds with attached runs for their bunnies which are good setups, the RWAF will have some information about what the minimum space guidelines are


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## webble (26 May 2016)

Rabbits will need a minimum of a 6 x 2 hutch with a 6 x 4 run attached,  ideally bigger. A shed would be a good option. You probably know but rabbits and guinea pigs can't live together


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## MinskiKaii (27 May 2016)

what I was thing of doing is getting a c and c cage for inside so I could make it big enough at night then putting them out in a run in the day time when the weather is ok.  I have found a 8ftx 4 ft on line for them to go in.   At  the moment we don't have a garden which is why we keep our guinea pigs indoors in c and c cage and I find it nice having them indoors  as you can interact with and watch them more. We are moving shortly so we will have a garden to put the run in do you think that would be a good set up?

thanks


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## webble (27 May 2016)

Yes that sounds fab although will they have space for when the weather isn't good? If they are going to have free range time in the house be prepared for hay everywhere, you will also need to rabbit proof the house


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## springtime1331 (27 May 2016)

Mine have a wooden Wendy house which I bought off ebay second hand for £40. Insulated and boarded out interior, wire meshed over the window and added a second level - a wide shelf really. We then created a pop hole and attached a run based on concrete with a corrugated plastic roof. Probably cost less than £80 in total and its perfect for them, they have loads of space and can run in and out as they please with no dangers of foxes or dogs attacking them. They spend 90% of their time in the run.


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## webble (27 May 2016)

springtime1331 said:



			Mine have a wooden Wendy house which I bought off ebay second hand for £40. Insulated and boarded out interior, wire meshed over the window and added a second level - a wide shelf really. We then created a pop hole and attached a run based on concrete with a corrugated plastic roof. Probably cost less than £80 in total and its perfect for them, they have loads of space and can run in and out as they please with no dangers of foxes or dogs attacking them. They spend 90% of their time in the run.
		
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Lucky buns that sounds fab


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## MinskiKaii (27 May 2016)

Thanks for all the ideas.  No we are not going to let the free range as we have 2 dogs.  That is why we got the run for the garden.   What about getting a couple of hides like this

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bunny-Busi...=1464381359&sr=1-23&keywords=rabbit+hutch#Ask


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## MotherOfChickens (28 May 2016)

MinskiKaii said:



			Thanks for all the ideas.  No we are not going to let the free range as we have 2 dogs.  That is why we got the run for the garden.   What about getting a couple of hides like this

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bunny-Busi...=1464381359&sr=1-23&keywords=rabbit+hutch#Ask

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these aren't very weatherproof -well, mine isn't/wasn't. 

Although I don't use them for rabbits (I use them as nesting/shelter for ducks) I have a couple of old, galvanised dustbins on their sides. I use something to stop them rolling (they are against a wall with a tree stake on the ground alongside it) and they have straw in one and sand in another-got them both free online locally.

A friend used sections of large drainage pipe for her buns.


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## webble (28 May 2016)

Rabbits don't cope well with changes in temperature so won't be able to go out from Oct to about April. Have you planned space for them for then?


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## MinskiKaii (29 May 2016)

Thanks  for your replies.  OK I will make a sure I don't let them out then.  I don't know how much space we are going to have unfortunately as we are moving house once we sell this one, so there is no point in getting any until we move.  Then new house will have a garden.    If there is not much space in the new living room we could always have a 2 storey C and c cage like we had for the guinea pigs.


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## SpringArising (29 May 2016)

Alec Swan said:



			From a rescue about £3000 a pair.  From Swaffham market about £3.

Alec.
		
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Hahaha. Very accurate!


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## tabithakat64 (31 May 2016)

Alec Swan said:



			From a rescue about £3000 a pair.  From Swaffham market about £3.

Alec.
		
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Yes, rabbits are more expensive from a rescue.

The rescue I volunteer for charges £100 for a pair of rabbits, they have been health checked, vaccinated and neutered as well as having their behaviour assessed.  This comes to way more than the adoption fee, so is a good deal, if your circumstances change many rescues will take the rabbit back and rehome them for you. 

A rescue will also make sure that you have suitable accommodation for your rabbits, which is likely to cost more than a far too small hutch or cage. But this means your rabbits should be happy as they will be able to exhibit natural behaviour.

I would urge anyone wanting to keep rabbits to first read the information on RWAF and then contact their local specialist rabbit rescue, rather than taking the risk of purchasing an un-neutered, un-vaccinated from your local breeder or pet store.

Attitudes such as yours is why rabbits are Britain's most neglected pet and why there are over 64000 rabbits in rescue.


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## 11bluewolf (31 May 2016)

Mine who is a rescue is neutered! He lives in a massive 6 foot by 12 foot shed with shelves as layers, and a bale of hay which he loves to sit on top of and other toys etc!  I rescued his in the hope to bond him with my female rabbit after the other had sadly died however after months and months of trying to introduce them and trying absolutely everything we decided to give up as they really did not get on. So instead we split their shed and they lived happily side by side but separated.   but anyway back to the neutering! he's a lot calmer than my previous female rabbits who had not been done, although I'm sure gender also has something to do with that. He was £30/£60 i think? really cannot remember as it was about 4 years ago. He is so friendly and healthy too as he is now around 9 years old but doesn't show his age! I would really recommend getting a rescue!also it is generally cheaper than buying one after you add up the costs of vaccines neutering etc!


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## Alec Swan (31 May 2016)

tabithakat64 said:



			Yes, rabbits are more expensive from a rescue.

&#8230;&#8230;..

Attitudes such as yours is why rabbits are Britain's most neglected pet and why there are over 64000 rabbits in rescue.
		
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64,000 rabbits in rescues,  and there are those in this world who die of starvation?  We're doing something wrong!

Alec.


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## poiuytrewq (4 June 2016)

I got one from a rescue. She was £30 I think but already neutered for that cost so I thought it very cheap tbh. We already had a buck who I got neutered. They are so much more content together.


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## TwyfordM (10 June 2016)

I never neutered my (male) bun. He lived indoors all his life, big roomy cage and and indoor run in the living room so he could come out and socialise and he loved it. Free range of a few rooms that were rabbit proofed. He was litter trained, would come and sit on your lap through his own choice to be groomed and would groom you back. Lots of toys that he used to fetch and play with, would bang the mirror that made loads of noise if you weren't paying him enough attention. I used to pick him grass etc so he didn't miss out on that. He made friends with the cat in the end. Luckily she was more likely to be eaten by him than the other way round. 

He was a happy little soul, but I was home alot at that point so had the time to commit to doing all that. Its doable to have happy solo/indoor buns but its a big commitment, like a dog, so they are mentally happy.


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## Murphy88 (11 June 2016)

TwyfordM said:



			Its doable to have happy solo/indoor buns but its a big commitment, like a dog, so they are mentally happy.
		
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I would disagree with this. While it sounds like you did an excellent job with your bunny, it is now widely accepted that while rabbits kept alone might cope with the situation, and even be happy some of the time when given appropriate human interaction, they are designed to be in a social group and will likely spend most of their time lonely and depressed if kept alone. 

To the OP - the recommendation is always to have a male/female pair, both neutered. Females have a very high risk of developing uterine cancer if left unspayed, and males tend to cause havoc with their companions if left entire. Rescuing is an excellent idea. One thing I would say is to avoid Pets at Home - I worked as a locum vet briefly at a practice next to a PAH; literally every day the staff would bring over 3 or 5 rabbits with various health problems that needed sorting out before rehoming!


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## Slightlyconfused (25 June 2016)

tabithakat64 said:



			Absolutely! Rabbits need to be neutered it calms unwanted hormonal behaviour and also prevents cancer in female rabbits. Rabbits should live in bonded pairs and for them to happily coexist they will need to be neutered.
There are around 64000 rabbits in rescue in the UK, please don't shop, adopt.
If you are a new rabbit owner, there's lots of interesting information on RWAF and a really great forum too (Rabbits United)
		
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We have always neutered rabbits.....up until our three year old rabbit was spayed then we lost her at three to cancer in the bit where her womb would have been so it's 50/50 now for us. 

The boys yes the girls we have a eight year old unspayed female who is still going strong.


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