Raising a rabbit and chicks together?

[sekeyslaks]

Hello I am curious whether if I got an adult rabbit and put it with baby chicks in a brooder house like situation.Would they get along?the chicks would be day old to 22 weeks old.

 

[Bunnylady]

That's really too hard to say. It would partly depend on the rabbit, and partly on the chickens. A lot of people have tried some variation on this. Sometimes the rabbit picks on the chickens, sometimes the chickens pick on the rabbit, sometimes they pretty much ignore each other. Some rabbits dig a lot, others hardly at all, so that may or may not be an issue. One thing that probably will be an issue is food. Rabbit food probably won't do a chicken any harm, but rabbits should not be allowed to eat chicken food. If all of your chickens were bigger birds, you could probably figure out a place to put the chicken feed where the chickens can get it but the rabbit can't, but with day old chicks that could be a problem.

 

[sekeyslaks]

That's really too hard to say. It would partly depend on the rabbit, and partly on the chickens. A lot of people have tried some variation on this. Sometimes the rabbit picks on the chickens, sometimes the chickens pick on the rabbit, sometimes they pretty much ignore each other. Some rabbits dig a lot, others hardly at all, so that may or may not be an issue. One thing that probably will be an issue is food. Rabbit food probably won't do a chicken any harm, but rabbits should not be allowed to eat chicken food. If all of your chickens were bigger birds, you could probably figure out a place to put the chicken feed where the chickens can get it but the rabbit can't, but with day old chicks that could be a problem.

Oh okay then my idea wouldn't work,I was thinking of using the rabbit as a kind of "nanny",providing warmth to the chicks when they want to scoot under it.And to provide companionship.But I think I would have to have it separated now.Thanks for the help!

 

[Ezs Choukies]

Bunnylady is so on track. Chicks also tend to peck at shiny things..like bunny eyes. I have a rehomed bunny who wasn't getting enough attention at his former home so we gratefully took him and decided to try what others have said regarding a bunny with the chickens. He now lives with chickens and after a long getting used to period (bunny cage in the run for a couple weeks and bunny in the coop while the chickens were out so they could get used to each other's scents) and they all get along very well. Our bunny is so kind and loving it is amazing. The unexpected up side has been having company for any one in the ICCU ward (Intensive Care Critter Unit) including a special needs silkie who was susceptible to wry neck and then also had a buddy on ground level when the other birds would roost. Currently a hen trying to recover from a bobcat attack is in the house and has the bunny as a roomie. Cadbury Bunny decided looking through the holes cut in the box side wasn't enough and went over the wall. He spends time laying near her or giving her gentle kisses even though his side of the crate is cooler. The rest of the flock would most likely harm the injured bird right now. The big thing to remember with this is keeping the rest of the flock used to the missing ones or they may be rejected if it is an extended period of time and reintroduce them in a controlled manner. Good luck with your new crew.