Rabbits can they llive with chickens?(bantams)

[Nicola]

Can Rabbits live in with chickens and eat chicken feed or can chickens eat rabbit feed??
because wee building a coop cause our chickens will be out there soon and my mum has always wanted a rabbit and asked me if they would be ok to live with chickens

Any ideas?

 

[Mikhail]

I have 2 ducks living with 1 rabbit and they get along fine and I'm hoping my future chickens will too. (they aren't with my rabbit 24/7 though, they both have outdoor playtime in the day etc) But every bird has different personalities and such so it could be dangerous. You got to know your birds and rabbits and have a temp cage to put the rabbits in (until you can get a permanent cage) in case their are any problems and you have to separate

 

[Nicola]

so if i have them with a rabbit when they are young they should be friends??
and what about food can they eat eachothers food eg layer pellets and rabbit pellets, scratch, rabbit food(grains and stuff)??

 

[Mikhail]

No they definitely can't eat each other's food. especially if the chicken food you have has animal protein in it. Rabbits shouldn't eat scratch, I don't they can digest seeds very well.

What I do with mine is (this is in my bedroom keep in mind. the ducks are in my bedroom at night for about 12 hours and my rabbit is in my bedroom for about 20-22 hours a day) put the rabbit's food and water on a shelf (I have tall metal shelves) and the ducks can't reach that. The rabbit sleeps mostly at night, so he doesn't really bother my duck's food and I put it in a corner where my ducks usually sleep so he doesn't try to get past them and eat their food.

 

[Nicola]

Quote:
if the chicken food doesnt have animal protein in it can the rabbits eat it then?

 

[Mikhail]

no, I doub its healthy for them and it would probably make them fat. They shouldn't even have much of pellets that are made FOR rabbits (they eat mostly hay and veggies, maybe an 1/4 a cup of pellets a day)

 

[Nicola]

would they stay away from the chook food if its in a hanging feeder cause im going to hang the feeder up off the ground so water Doesnt get to it and so the chooks can eat the veggies though

 

[Mikhail]

Yeah, as long as the rabbits can't reach it.

 

[Nicola]

this is the food im probaly going to feed the chooks
http://www.coprice.com.au/speciality/poultry/chookpellets.asp

 

[chinbunny1]

Rabbits eat pellets and hay. Not veggies, as they are not good for them. And they should only be fed strictly as treats. And no rabbit can survive on 1/4rth of a cup of pellets at a time. Unless its a dwarf, you end up with a skinny, out of condition, unhealthy rabbit. Most rabbits will eat up to a cup of pellets per day. they will be just fine on it.

Now to answer the OPs question. The answer is no. They can be caged separately, in the same building. But rabbit cannot eat chicken feed. Its not good for them. chances are it will make them sick. Plus they can get coccidiousis from the chickens. Which is something that can also make them sick, and they can easily die from.

Rabbits also have a tendancy to be territorial. They will kick, and bite, and can easily hurt the chickens.They are an animal that tends not like other animals in their space. which is why most are solitary. And a lot of them can get protective and even cage agressive of their territory. They are better off when given their own space. If you want to keep rabbits, I suggest purchasing some rabbit hutches, and keeping them in those. you'll want to fix it sd the chickens don't have access to them.

Ducks and chickens will eat rabbit pellets. They are OK as long as they aren't medicated. When I was in 4h we fed our market ducks and geese the extra rabbit pellets to help fatten them up, and condition them out a little bit. But they can only have a small amount at a time. Works kind of like a conditioner.