How to Keep Your Rabbit Happy & Entertained
Rabbits are fantastic pets for both adults and children. They are fun to play with and can be cuddly. However, rabbits are very sensitive creatures as well.
If not cared for properly, they can become stressed, unhappy and develop behavioural problems or pass time by engaging in destructive activities. For instance, aggression, fear towards humans, over grooming, chewing of the cage bars (or wallpaper and electrical wires for a house rabbit), as well as purposeless repetitive digging are some of the signs of an unhappy or bored bunny.
On the bright side, it is possible to create an environment that enriches the mental and physical well-being of rabbits. Whether you have already adopted one of these pets or are just researching about their care and welfare needs, read on to learn how to keep your rabbit happy & entertained.
Provide Spacious Housing for Your Rabbit
Rabbits need room to move and exhibit natural behaviours in order to remain healthy and happy
Rabbits like to run around, dig and play. As such, they may feel frustrated when confined to a small space and even start to chew on materials that make their enclosure just to break free.
To keep your rabbit happy, make sure it has enough space to roam around freely. This means letting it out of the hutch for at least a few hours every day. Rabbits are most active during early morning hours and in the evenings.
If you are worried about predators, consider investing in a folding animal playpen and set it out on the grass where your bunny can run around safely inside. You can also attach an extension run to your rabbit hutch to extend its play area. If you are afraid of letting the rabbit out of its cage indoors, consider bunny proofing one room where it can have free reign and not cause damage to your home.
Remember, rabbits are active animals. So, increasing the space your rabbit has access to will make him/her happier.
Make Use of Rabbit Toys
Rabbits are inquisitive animals that love to play and explore their surroundings. If left with nothing to do, they can become bored and restless. So, in addition to increasing space, it is important to give these pets something to keep them preoccupied.
Rabbit toys offer plenty of entertainment by keeping rabbits busy, providing a way to exercise and creating a stimulating environment that mimics their natural habitat.
Here Are a Few Suggestions You May Want To Try.
1 Chew toys:
Since rabbits have teeth that grow continuously, they are always looking for something to gnaw. This helps to file down their teeth and prevents overgrowth. You can pick up commercially made wicker balls or even carrot shaped nibble sticks online for this purpose. Just make sure the product you choose is made of untreated wood or get other pet safe toys that are designed for chewing.
Alternatively, bunnies love to nibble holes in cardboard boxes and empty toilet paper rolls. Remove all the tape and staples on cardboard before serving it up as a pet toy. Inverted boxes with cut-out holes for doors will offer shade as your rabbit gnaws away on a hot sunny day inside the run.
2 Something To Scratch And Dig:
Rabbits are diggers. In the wild, they dig to build hiding tunnels and burrows. If you don’t want your house rabbit to dig into the carpet or the litter box when it’s inside the hutch, provide toys that serve as an outlet for this natural instinct. Your bunny would love scratching and tearing an old telephone directory to bits.
Alternatively, get a flower pot or plastic container and fill it with soil, hay or shredded paper. This will provide lots of digging fun for your rabbit. Whatever method works for you, choose a sturdy dig box that won’t topple over when your rabbit hops inside to dig.
3 Items To Pick Up And Throw:
Rabbits like to throw anything they can pick up with their teeth. Consider making throw toys for your bunny with items found around the house. You can also opt for store-bought throw toys, which are usually made of plastic, sisal or cane and come in many shapes and colours.
4 Hiding Place Toys:
Hiding is an instinct that comes naturally to these prey species. Providing places to hide can help your rabbit to feel less stressed when spooked as it plays around in the house, garden, or run.
You can buy wooden pet hideaway houses as well as plastic or willow tunnels online or make one using an old drain pipe. These would make good hiding spots and reduce your rabbit’s urge to dig.
5 Exercise Oriented Toys:
A healthy rabbit is a happy rabbit. Besides good nutrition, rabbits need lots of physical activity to remain healthy.
With that in mind, consider providing toys that encourage exercise. Exercise is important to keep young bunnies fit and prevent them from gaining too much weight and becoming obese. Your rabbit will enjoy hopping onto footstools or small chairs just for fun. What’s more, these raised platforms act as good look-out spots when he/she wants to assess the surroundings.
You can also place multi-story bunny castles and obstacles like rabbit dumbbells and jumps to challenge your bunny as it runs and hops around inside the play area.
6 Incorporate Food Into Toys:
Mix food into hay, hide it inside scrunched up boxes and paper or hang vegetables next to a dangling toy so your rabbit has to stretch and forage for treats. Incorporating food into toys can encourage your rabbits to be more active when it knows that playtime comes with rewards.
Keep in mind that rabbits can get bored of toys if they are given the same thing to play with all the time. Rotate toys and activities to keep things interesting so that your pet can always look forward to playtime.
7 Create Socializing Time
While toys alleviate boredom, rabbits still need interaction and attention. These creatures are naturally timid, so they can feel frightened at first when new to captivity. Some rabbits express aggression by biting when you try to pick them up. Spending more time with your bunny can help it feel more secure and at ease when you are around.
During playtime, pet your rabbit while offering positive feedback through treats and verbal cues but don’t push any playful activity or toy if he/she is uninterested. This will not only help your bunny adapt at its own pace, but also to associate your presence or touch with safety and happiness.
8 Offer Companionship
Rabbits are very social, but before getting two you might want to read this…
You may also want to consider getting your rabbit a companion. In the wild, rabbits live in big groups. Therefore, having another bunny friend around to play with will certainly be uplifting. However, this only works with bonded rabbits. Rabbits that grow up together often get along just fine. A neutered male and spayed female of the same species are more likely to co-exist happily but make sure to introduce them gradually if they are adult rabbits.
Mastering how to keep your rabbit happy & entertained requires some effort and patience. The tips shared above offer a good starting point if you want to make your bunny feel like a well loved and happy member of the family.