Can you afford to keep rabbits?
Can you truly afford to keep rabbits? Something we at the rescue are seeing more and more is rabbit owners reaching out to hand over rabbits because they cannot afford their ongoing care.
Rabbits are unfortunately seen as low-maintenance, cheap or “starter” pets by the general public, but this could not be further from the truth.
Vet Care
Vets bills are one of the main reasons for rabbits to come into our care for financial reasons. Rabbits are classed as “exotics” so their vet care can easily reach triple figures if they require care that may include medications, scans or operations. These expenses often come out of the blue and can be a worrying surprise for those who don’t have savings to fall back on.
Vets bills are our biggest outgoing cost at the rescue.
When you adopt rescue rabbits we will offer four weeks insurance with Pet Plan and we strongly recommend all owners continue with pet insurance. Insurance should be seen as an essential part of rabbit ownership, not optional. This provides an excellent safety net if you are faced with emergencies including surgeries. If you can’t afford the insurance, please reassess whether you are in the right financial space to afford rabbits. Always remember to read the small print when you insure your rabbits and it’s still worth having some money saved back as there are some issues, such as dental problems and pre-existing conditions, which insurance may not cover.
Vaccinations are an essential part of keeping rabbits. Unvaccinated rabbits are at risk of sudden and awful deaths. Vaccinations are annual but can be costly, your rabbits need vaccination yearly with Nobivac Plus and also Yurvac and vaccinations range from £50 to £90.
Many vets may also offer health plans which can be helpful to cover vaccinations and regular health checks including nail clipping. We can also help with nail clipping and grooming at the rescue.
Housing and Nutrition
In addition to medical expenses, many owners underestimate the cost of providing appropriate housing and nutrition.
A spacious, predator-proof enclosure for a pair of rabbits can cost several hundred pounds, the fancier kennel type housing can cost a thousand or more. What you get in investing in good quality housing means that this, with good maintenance, will last the lifetime of your rabbits.
Offering your rabbits good nutrition can also mount up. High quality dust-free hay can be expensive, as well as offering fresh green herbs and vegetables, dried forage and good quality pellets, these costs can mount up. It’s a good idea to research into the correct and up to date dietary requirements for pet rabbits, there’s a lot of outdated information out there and we’ve seen rabbits come into us with awful (and expensive to fix) health issues due to poor diet. This can include obesity, joint issues and horrendous dental problems.
There are some fabulous suppliers out there who can offer high quality hay, good pellets and dried forage, even on subscription, you can read more on our page about suppliers here.
We understand that situations in a household can change, such as job losses, but please do make sure you plan ahead for your pets and ensure you can cover their needs for their lifetime.
The Rabbit Residence Rescue 