Harking back to the “old days” it was believed that a rabbit just needed a hutch and that was enough. But we now know that this isn’t the end of the story, and even providing an adequate hutch of a minimum of 6ft isn’t enough for our pet rabbits, and they absolutely shouldn’t be left in that space all day every day.
The RSPCA & RWAF recommend an additional exercise area of at least 8ft x 4ft (that’s 2.44m x 1.22m), which is designed to give the rabbits a better opportunity to stretch and exercise properly. It is also recommended that your rabbits get an absolute minimum of 2 hours access per day to their exercise area. We encourage you to give them as much access as possible, and the ideal solution is to have an environment that allows the rabbit to choose, by providing a connected exercise run to their hutch or living area.
It’s also important to encourage your rabbits to exercise properly. Some of our domesticated rabbits have become “couch potatoes” and need to be reminded to exercise (just the same as we humans do). The best way to do this is through Stimulation (a topic for another day), but a simple example in the meantime would be to scatter food and treats throughout their exercise area. This will encourage your rabbit to forage for their food, and ensures they keep on the move to do so.
If you would like any further advice on exercise runs or how to encourage your rabbit to keep moving, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
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So you’ve sorted your rabbit’s accommodation but a hutch (even a big one) is not enough! Rabbits are naturally active and playful so need lots of space to exercise. The minimum size run as recommended by the rabbit welfare association is 8ft by 4ft by 2ft. This should allow them to do 4 consecutive hops …
Some rabbits need more encouragement to exercise than others. There can be a number of reasons for this. If you have rescued your bunny it’s possible that their previous lifestyle didn’t allow for much exercise so it may take time to coax them into a new routine. There may be a few factors affecting your …
Just because you provide your rabbit with a big run to play in doesn’t necessarily mean that bunny will automatically take advantage of it. “My rabbits just lazy, he doesn’t like to exercise” However it is important not to give up on getting your rabbit to move around as they can end up with very …
