Rabbit checklist

Before you go

• Rabbits may not leave their mother before 8 weeks.
• Plan for a pair. A lone rabbit is a welfare problem; they are a social species and the Animal Welfare Act's duty of care covers company.
• Work out the space first. The recommended minimum is a shelter of at least 3m x 2m x 1m that they can access at all times, not a hutch you let them out of occasionally.
• Budget for vaccination against myxomatosis and both strains of RHD, annually.

On the day

• Clear eyes and nose, clean ears, no crust.
• Check the bottom. A dirty rear means diarrhoea or an inability to groom, and in summer it means flystrike risk.
• Teeth: the front incisors should meet cleanly. Malocclusion is common and it is a lifetime of dental work.
• Watch them move. A rabbit that will not stand or hop properly needs a vet, not a new home.
• Ask what they are eating. It should be mostly hay, and hay should be visible in the enclosure.

Questions worth asking

• Are these two already bonded, and are they the same litter?
• Have they been sexed by a vet? Mis-sexing is extremely common and produces an unplanned litter within weeks.
• Have they been handled daily?
• Have the parents been checked for dental problems?

Walk away if

• They are being sold as a child's pet that "looks after itself".
• They are kept in a small hutch with no run.
• There is no hay.
• You are offered a single rabbit with no discussion of company.