Everyone should try this

[whistlin dixie]

I put my pet rabbit out with the chickens. They are so natural together, they all lay together and seem perfectly happy, and my poor bunny doesnt have to live in a little wire cage for the rest of her life. If you have a pet rabbit or even some meat rabbits Im sure they would love some freedom.

 

[Corey NC]

I am considering getting a rabbit and would love to be able to put them together. Would a rabbit be ok in mud when it rains? Would it be able to get up a ramp? Would the bunny be ok with out grass, because my pen does not have grass but I free-range regularly when I am home. Would a bunny be ok with free ranging?

 

[fowlweatherfriends]

Hi, I tried-and failed to have them cohabitate peacefully. My roo decided after watching the bunnies for hours, to attack them. First time ever to hear a bunny scream! The bunnies weren't seriously injured (missing fur from ears), but mine can't be together. We just went ahead and made an outdoor pen for them (on the ground) where the bunnies can run and hop freely. It is about 4 feet wide by 8 feet long, made of hardware cloth (1/2 inch square welded wire), and has a wood shelter at the end.
I would advise lots of supervised visits between chickens and rabbits before leaving them alone even for a short time. Even hens can get in a snit and start attacking as a group for unknown reasons.

Best wishes!

 

[silkiechicken]

I dont know if letting bunnies free range is a good idea... I don't think they would come back like the chickens do... maybe they will.

 

[fowlweatherfriends]

PS: My bunnies run away if they escape the pen. We have ahd to chase them several times-they just run willy-nilly.

 

[ChickaChickaBoomBoom]

We have two rabbits that started in a hutch outside but quickly inherited a large area on the side of our house to run free in - about 450sf or so. As long as they have plenty of timothy hay and their pellets, along with occasional treats, they are fine there. There are times (like tonight) where they had the run of the yard for several hours, but they are fenced in and we can see them.

One thing I will say is this: Of our two rabbits, the dominant (confidant) one will wander back and forth between the yard and their area if given the chance. The other, once out, does NOT want to go back in (probably because the first one picks on him a lot), and would rather stay under the bushes and foage around the yard than ever go back to their food and water. It was a real challenge just getting him back in the gate tonight.

I hope to introduce some hens to the rabbit area soon, though the hens would be the ones in a run while the rabbits live semi-free. Eventually i'd like them to be able to intermingle, but not for more than an afternoon. My concern is more with the chickens making an even bigger poopy mess of the area than the rabbits have.

I've read what little I could find on the topic, and other than the occasional bad experience where the hens peck the rabbits, most seem to be ok. The way mine run, I can't imagine a hen keeping up as they run through tiny openings and between things.

-Dave

 

[Judymae]

We have had rabbits living with the chickens and ducks for a long time now. No problems at all. We currently have 2 baby bunnnies in the house just waiting to get big enough to go outside and live with the chickens and ducks. The only thing I would point out is that bunnies and rabbits dig ALOT. We had two dig outta the coop and they didn't survive. Our dogs got them in a matter of minutes. I really can't scold the dogs for getting them since I want the dogs to get the rabbits that come into my garden. It would be too confusing on them.

 

[ChickaChickaBoomBoom]

Quote:
Very true. It's almost like "Prison Break" or something with them. And it's not just digging. Once they figure out a weak spot in your defenses, they'll go right back there everytime. Recently we had a couple of days where we'd be eating dinner and one of our rabbits would just prance right by our door. Put him back, and shortly thereafter he'd be out again. It took me several tries to figure out where he was getting out.

But they will try to get out, so you have to really plug up any areas. Treat them the same on the inside of the run/coop as you would a predator on the outside, because the end desire is the same - not letting them through.

-Dave