Ok, great!
I'll start with catching them.
As I'm sure you've found out, rabbits are typically quite tricky to catch. The easiest way is to setup ome of these (which is what I'm guessing you've used)
View attachment 2798794
But you just have to be careful that while they're in here something doesnt come along and try to eat them or scare them to death. Or that they don't get overheated or dehydrated or anything. Which is whole you'll have to check the trap regularly.
Here's a good video on catching rabbits
As for keeping them, you'll need to at least know the basics for now.
Starting with diet. A rabbits diet is made up of 80%, so it is critical that they have access to unlimited fresh Timothy hay 24/7 to keep their digestive tract working well and to keep their every growing teeth down. I recommend Oxbow Timothy hay, but if you end up keeping them it will be cheaper to buy hay in bulk from a local farm, or have it delivered.
Besides hay, they'll also need ¼ a cup of pellets a day (which you can split between breakfast and dinner or feed all at once). They also need about a handful of fresh spring mix veggies for breakfast and dinner.
As for their enclosure, a lot of people keep them in a small cage indoors or in a little hutch outside. Neither of these are truly suitable for a rabbit for many reasons. I'll start with the problem sof hutches.
For one, they are quite small and do not provide a rabbit with enough space to exercise and play as they should. This often causes pent up energy which can lead them to chew on things and even become aggressive. Rabbits are very playful and smart, so they require plenty of space to run and play.
Rabbits also like companionship. They often form a very strong bond with their owners, and when they are outside in a hutch they are away from their family which can make them depressed and unhealthy.
Not to mention all the dangers of being kept outside. Rabbits are prey animals, which means there will be omebty of animals out there wanting to eat them. Anianls like raccoons are very smart and can break into a hutch and eat the rabbit, and rabbits and easily die from a heart attack just from being scared. I know of plenty of people who devied to keep their rabbits outside in a hutch. So far, every single one of them has died one way of another. Most of them from predators eating them, and some just from a dog wanting to play d the rabbits instantly dying from a heart attack. Its really sad how fragile they are and how easily they can be killed.
Hutches often have wire bottoms too, which are nor very common for a rabbits un padded feet and thing skin. It can even cut into their skin, which can then be easily infected and cause bumble foot.
Another issue is the weather. Though rabbits can tolerate the cold, they often die of heat stroke. They don't do well in hot weather, and when they're trapped in a little hutch outside all their lives they have no way of escaping it, so they often die.
Lastly, rabbits can contract parasites and disease when exposed to the outdoors. There is a deadly rabbit virus called RHDV2, which spreads rapidly and kills in a matter of days. It kills both wild and domestic rabbits and there is no known treatment so far.
Cages have many of the same issues (being small especially) and are just not suitable living spaces for a rabbit. And both cages and hutches are extremely over prices and cheaply made.
Instead of getting a hutch or cage, you fan get a wire dog playpen off of Amazon for around $30. These provide enough space for all their needs whole still leaving room for exercise and play.
Play pens are also easy to fold and and travel with, and you could move it outside to give your rabbit some sunshine time.
Now, I know a lot of people would still rather keep their rabbit outside despite all the issues with this because many people think they smell bad. And yes, rabbit pee can stink. But it is not as bad as cat pee in my opinion, and when you keep their litter box clean theres pretty much no scent. Yep, you can litter train rabbits. Its pretty easy when you have the right setup. I'll include all the things you need in the supplies list, but basically you just need a large litter box, some litter, and plenty of hay in there (rabbits naturally eat whole pooping so lots of hay will entice them to use it).
Here's all the supplies you'll need:
- Fresh Timothy hay
- Rabbit pellets (Oxbow is a good brand)
- Fresh veggies
- A water bowl (avoid bottles since they are very unnatural, don't provide enough water, and are hard to clean)
- A large cat sized litter box (under-the-bed storage tubs work well and are inexpensive)
- Paper based litter (avoid cat litter since it contains clay which can be fatal if ingested, you can use paper bedding instead)
- Hidey houses (you can even use cardboard boxes. Keep in mind rabbits like two entrances)
- Toys (you can make DIY toys out of cardboard tubes and paper bags)
- A comb (though rabbits groom themselves like a cat, during shed they need some help to be sure they don't ingest too much, which causes GI stasis, since rabbits can throw up)
- Nail trimmers (small dog nail trimmer work. You could also have the vet do this)
I think that's about it. You can check out Lennin the Bunny and 101Rabbits on YouTube for more information, and I'd be happy to help with any questions you may have.
