Found a rabbit under my porch this morning!

[TwoShepherds]

I would recommend putting a cover on the top of an exercise pen if you use one. Our Dutch rabbit used to jump out of his exercise pen (around 30" tall, I believe), before we got a cover for it!

I like that idea.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

So pretty! What a find!

 

[EverythingDucks]

Thanks for the awesome response! That is really helpful. I like those ex-pens. I have one in our chicken run now that I use to integrate baby chicks into the main flock. Do you cover the top? Do you put something on the floor to protect it? We hung flyers on our road tonight and I posted on FB pages and craigslist, so if the owners are looking for their bunny, hopefully they will find him.

Its depends on how high he can jump and how tall the pen is. Most people don't have a problem with tgen jumping out, but rabbits can jump quite high and obviously @orloffer 's bunny could jump right out.

I recommend getting some bunny safe mats for the bottom. Here's a good video on flooring for them

Thank you so much! That is a super helpful answer. He's such a nice, calm rabbit, if no one claims him, we will seriously consider keeping him as a pet. I had some rabbits when i was a kid that if I recall did some damage (just minor) to the house because we let them run loose. Not too keen on the idea of rabbit-proofing the house or having my woodwork, electrical cords, and area rugs chewed up.... so for that reason keeping them outside appeals. Also don't have a ton of room for a large enclosure in the house. On the other hand, I prefer to keep my dogs inside with us as part of the family, so I can also see the reasons and benefits to keeping him inside. Perhaps, he could have an indoor home and a larger outdoor enclosure? I want what's best for him. A rabbit-owning acquaintance gave me the name of a good rescue organization if we decide re-homing him is best. Another acquaintance of mine who raises rabbits for meat and shows them said he kind of looked like a harlequin. I will try to post some more pictures later or tomorrow.

The only space you would need for your rabbit inside is the playpen if you let him free roam some. It's good to let your rabbit tree roam a room for 4 hours a day, 2 hours in the morning, and 2 at night (since rabbits arr crepuscular they are most active at these times).
This will not only allow for him to get physical exercise, but mental exercise as well. He'll be able to explore new places and learn about all sorts of things. Rabbits are smart animals, so this is important for them.

All you have to do is some bunny proofing. And it may seem like a lot of work at first, but it's quite easy and definitely worth it for the sake of your furniture and rabbits safety.
Here's a good video on bunny proofing

An outdoor enclosure can work well as long as they have all their needs and are safe. Not just safe from predators attacking or taunting them (which could lead to a heart attack) but from the weather as well. Rabbits do well in the cold with their thick fur, but this can make them over heat in the summer.

I'm going to build a 10x20 foot house including a ln outdoor run for my bunnies. I'm getting an AC unit to keep them cool in the summer.
They'll stay out there all year but I'll probably spend more time in there than anywhere else.

 

[TwoShepherds]

I think perhaps he seems a little happier and more comfortable with us today.

 

[Skye'sDucks]

He sure is adorable!

I honestly feel the same about having to rabbit-proof a house, lol. It seems like a lot of work when in comparison it's so easy to keep them outdoors. But to each his own! Almost wish I was willing to put in the work like so many people haha, but I digress.

I don't see why it wouldn't work to kind of have a nighttime or holding place indoors but give him a bigger space outside. A lot of people are against cages but I see nothing wrong with them so long as it isn't super tiny and your rabbit is getting adequate exercise outside of one. Plus, it's much easier to totally secure and predator-proof a smaller space and then have a less fortified exercise pen they can run around in during the day. That's what I do: my run is enough to keep them in and hawks out, but they stay in their secure hutch at night.

I see pens needing covers more from hawks and other predators than necessarily keeping the rabbits in, but I suppose some rabbits may be jumpers, I don't know. I've had three as pets over the last 9 years and with my old set up they'd be in an open-top pen that's not quite waist-high compared to me (I'm barely 5'5) and not one of them ever jumped out or even tried to.

After seeing more pictures, I really do believe he's a Harlequin. (potentially a mix, you never really know with finds) He has the shape and build as well as the markings for it!
I feel like Harlequins are a lesser known breed, but even after owning only one myself I am totally sold on them, haha. I did some research on the breed and a lot of the common traits completely match my harlie, too. They're known to be a gentle and sweet breed that is largely bred for its color, although they've been used for all kinds of things: showing, pets, and meat. They do get bigger, anywhere from 6-9 pounds.

Harlequins actually come in two different colors, blue and Japanese. Yours is a blue: they come in gray and black markings, whereas Japanese ones are orange/red or cream with gray and or black--they'll sometimes get white markings too.

Here's a picture of my girl Pumpkin if you'd care to see

 

[Everose]

He's quite beautiful! Lucky for you rabbits are one of the most economical pets to own, they don't need very much to make them happy and if kept properly they won't need wormers and flea meds and rabies vaccines like dogs or cats would!

A good sturdy and predator proof outdoor hutch is fine and I would recommend it because he won't be stinking up your house, if he's kept indoors in the spring then it would be cruel to transition him out of doors in the summer. Having a rabbit indoors can be so much fun in the beginning but once they start peeing and making noise and chewing they become a bit of a nuisance. I love my bunnies but it's hard to keep up with the amount of manure they produce (I'm talking about an ND too, nowhere near as big as a harlequin) and while they can be litterbox trained there is a long period in training when they will probably leave poo everywhere. I keep mine outside in a well shaded area with good ventilation, in the summer months they get a ceramic tile to lay on and we will offer them a frozen gallon of water to cool of with as well. In the winter they get their whole cages filled with hay to keep them warm. We always keep alfalfa cubes in their cages to give them something to chew on and if their feeders run out they just eat the cubes, hay is a good thing for them and they should never be without, I would recommend using a suet feeder (for birds) because If you just throw it in his cage he'll pee and poo on it (boys are especially bad about that) and it'll be a disgusting mess. Just make sure he always has water (I recommend using a bottle and a bowl because sometimes bowls tip and sometimes bottles leak), food, hay, and shade.

I raise californians, havanas, and netherlands dwarfs, and have had lots of experience with rex but not harlequins (though I have really been interested in them) from what I've read they are quite clownish and can be one of the best breeds as a pet. Rabbits are very enjoyable especially when you get a clicker and train them or when ya put em on the couch and they cuddle with you, seriously one of the best kind of pets I've ever had!

 

[Everose]

Oh! Also I wouldn't recommend letting him run around anywhere that a wild rabbit may have had access to and don't let him around other rabbits right now. In fact taking him to a rescue is the last thing I would do right now, If you decide to re-home him I would recommend finding him a home yourself because he needs to come into as little contact with other rabbits as possible. RHD is all over right now and I know of a lot of people who have lost whole barns full of rabbits, that's why I'm not showing right now. It's a horrible disease and it would be a tragic way to die, you might consider looking up whether or not you are in an area where it is spreading.

 

[TwoShepherds]

Oh! Also I wouldn't recommend letting him run around anywhere that a wild rabbit may have had access to and don't let him around other rabbits right now. In fact taking him to a rescue is the last thing I would do right now, If you decide to re-home him I would recommend finding him a home yourself because he needs to come into as little contact with other rabbits as possible. RHD is all over right now and I know of a lot of people who have lost whole barns full of rabbits, that's why I'm not showing right now. It's a horrible disease and it would be a tragic way to die, you might consider looking up whether or not you are in an area where it is spreading.

ugghh, thanks. That is good to know. Yikes. RHD sounds scary, just did a brief google search. We have wild rabbits. I've never seen them in the fenced-in part of our yard where a pet bunny would be (our dogs might be a deterrent), but I have seen them in the bushes and tall grasses in our back and side fields. Just because I haven't seen them in the backyard, doesn't mean they don't come there, of course. I think the rabbits and other small critters tend to keep a low profile. We have hawks, which is why I keep our chickens in a large run. If rabbit.org is up to date and can be trusted there aren't any known cases in TN right now, but if it's in other states, it's only a matter of time I suppose. It would be a nighmare to lose a whole barn of rabbits, or any animal you had bonded to.

 

[Everose]

ugghh, thanks. That is good to know. Yikes. RHD sounds scary, just did a brief google search. We have wild rabbits. I've never seen them in the fenced-in part of our yard where a pet bunny would be (our dogs might be a deterrent), but I have seen them in the bushes and tall grasses in our back and side fields. Just because I haven't seen them in the backyard, doesn't mean they don't come there, of course. I think the rabbits and other small critters tend to keep a low profile. We have hawks, which is why I keep our chickens in a large run. If rabbit.org is up to date and can be trusted there aren't any known cases in TN right now, but if it's in other states, it's only a matter of time I suppose. It would be a nighmare to lose a whole barn of rabbits, or any animal you had bonded to.

Wild rabbits are less likely to have RHD but it's good to keep him separate from other bunnies right now just to be safe. I think he'll like getting to go outside and graze but maybe only letting him run around inside would be better. If you do get a hutch just make sure it's tall, we had a neighbor's pitbull kill one of our rabbits who was in quarantine because of mites.

 

[TwoShepherds]

He sure is adorable!

I honestly feel the same about having to rabbit-proof a house, lol. It seems like a lot of work when in comparison it's so easy to keep them outdoors. But to each his own! Almost wish I was willing to put in the work like so many people haha, but I digress.

I don't see why it wouldn't work to kind of have a nighttime or holding place indoors but give him a bigger space outside. A lot of people are against cages but I see nothing wrong with them so long as it isn't super tiny and your rabbit is getting adequate exercise outside of one. Plus, it's much easier to totally secure and predator-proof a smaller space and then have a less fortified exercise pen they can run around in during the day. That's what I do: my run is enough to keep them in and hawks out, but they stay in their secure hutch at night.

I see pens needing covers more from hawks and other predators than necessarily keeping the rabbits in, but I suppose some rabbits may be jumpers, I don't know. I've had three as pets over the last 9 years and with my old set up they'd be in an open-top pen that's not quite waist-high compared to me (I'm barely 5'5) and not one of them ever jumped out or even tried to.

After seeing more pictures, I really do believe he's a Harlequin. (potentially a mix, you never really know with finds) He has the shape and build as well as the markings for it!
I feel like Harlequins are a lesser known breed, but even after owning only one myself I am totally sold on them, haha. I did some research on the breed and a lot of the common traits completely match my harlie, too. They're known to be a gentle and sweet breed that is largely bred for its color, although they've been used for all kinds of things: showing, pets, and meat. They do get bigger, anywhere from 6-9 pounds.

Harlequins actually come in two different colors, blue and Japanese. Yours is a blue: they come in gray and black markings, whereas Japanese ones are orange/red or cream with gray and or black--they'll sometimes get white markings too.

Here's a picture of my girl Pumpkin if you'd care to see

Thank you! Pumpkin is beautiful! I love her markings. No responses to my Found Rabbit posts online or my signs. If someone is searching for him, they should be able to find him. If we can figure out a way to house him that keeps both him (and us) happy, I think we are leaning towards keep him (if he remains unclaimed).