Chickens & Rabbits

[packinaglock]

Can I keep them in the same area of my yard? Someone told me no , they will transfer disease to each other. Is this true?

 

[PineBurrowPeeps]

Yes, they can transfer worms, mites, and cocci.
Plus some rabbits are mean to chickens.

 

[amyc]

I've done searches and found people who will say yes and no on this subject. I keep my rabbits in the coop - but they're in separate hutches in the storage area, so the rabbits and chickens never actually have contact with each other.

 

[Pandora]

You will get both answers. If you are going to do it, just keep in mind good animal husbandry and have clean conditions. You can worm rabbits and treat for cocci just like you do chickens. So if done regularly, I don't see a problem. Just be careful on dosages as too much is toxic to rabbits and can cause liver failure. I think keeping a grassy/clean pen that is a healthy environment for the rabbit would be the biggest concern.

Certain rabbit breeds are more aggressive than others. Larger breeds can be - or its just that they have bigger teeth/claws and more muscle to do damage with. Lop eared breeds in general tend to be more layed back... but its really the individual rabbit.

 

[mekasmom]

I have done it both ways. The main problem I have seen is that laying mash will kill rabbits if they eat too much of it. So if you are feeding laying mash to your hens, you will want to prevent the rabbits from eating it, and prevent the hens from stealing all your rabbit's food. It's just easier to keep them separate, but either way works.

 

[packinaglock]

They would be seperated by a couple of feet, no direct contact.