Survey of the husbandry, health and welfare of 102 pet rabbits

One hundred and two pet rabbits were examined and their husbandry, health and welfare were reviewed. The most common breed was the dwarf lop (n=38). The most common problem was dental disease, which affected 30 rabbits although only six of their owners were aware of the problem, which was significan...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Veterinary record 2006-07, Vol.159 (4), p.103-109
Main Authors: Mullan, S.M, Main, D.C.J
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Age
animal health
animal husbandry
Animal Husbandry - methods
Animal Husbandry - standards
Animal Welfare
Animals
Animals, Domestic
Behavior, Animal
Chi-Square Distribution
Diet - veterinary
Female
Health Status
Housing
Housing, Animal - standards
Interviews as Topic
Logistic Models
Male
pet care
Pets
Physical Examination - veterinary
Questionnaires
Rabbits
Rabbits - physiology
Surveys and Questionnaires
Tooth Diseases - epidemiology
Tooth Diseases - prevention & control
Tooth Diseases - veterinary
United Kingdom - epidemiology
Veterinary medicine
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Summary:One hundred and two pet rabbits were examined and their husbandry, health and welfare were reviewed. The most common breed was the dwarf lop (n=38). The most common problem was dental disease, which affected 30 rabbits although only six of their owners were aware of the problem, which was significantly associated with feeding a rabbit mix. All the rabbits were housed in ‘hutches’ at some stage, but 89 had access to the outside and 47 came inside the home at times. Hutches bought at pet shops were significantly smaller than home‐made hutches. Forty‐five of the rabbits were housed alone; the relationships between rabbits with rabbit companions were described by their owners as ‘very friendly’ for 84 per cent of them and ‘quite friendly’ for the rest.
ISSN:0042-4900
2042-7670
DOI:10.1136/vr.159.4.103