Factual rabbit questions about jumping, digging, etc

[DianeS]

I'm new to owning rabbits, and I have some *really* basic questions to ask! I'm hoping some of you have answers to these...

How high can rabbits jump? (especially the larger breeds , like NZs and Californians)
And how far can they jump horizontally in a single bound?

How quickly do they dig? (For instance, could one tunnel out of an outdoor enclosure in an hour or would it take longer?)

When placed on grass, do they eat patches of it straight down to the ground, or mow across the tops of everything?

Is there a ratio of how much water a rabbit should drink when compared to how much the rabbit weighs? (I'm having trouble figuring out if my rabbits are drinking a LOT more than I think they should, or if they're just dumping the crocks. I haven't figured out how to mount them well yet.)

I'm sure I'll have more questions later. Thanks for trying to help me learn!

 

[tortoise]

How high can rabbits jump? (especially the larger breeds , like NZs and Californians)

Rabbits can jump about 2 feet up and over something, but they can climb even higher. I have 2 foot and 4 foot pens. My grass-is-greener-on-the-other-side rabbits go in the 4' pens.

And how far can they jump horizontally in a single bound?

They'll only do this if they are spooked or chasing each other, but they can jump horizontally up to 6 feet. I turn my cage rabbits out into t 2'x8' pen and yesterday one of my girls was NOT happy and went flying from one end to almost the other.

How quickly do they dig? (For instance, could one tunnel out of an outdoor enclosure in an hour or would it take longer?)

It would take longer. I've never had a rabbit dig more than a divot. You can keep them entertained by moving the pen to fresh grass or giving the boys a girl to chase.

When placed on grass, do they eat patches of it straight down to the ground, or mow across the tops of everything?

They will flatten a patch of grass, mow it down, stomp and poop on it. You'l have a nice little brown patch where the pen was. One rabbit will "mow" 6' area in 8-12 hours. Also keep in mind that I put food pellets down in the grass, so without those, the grass might go even faster.

Is there a ratio of how much water a rabbit should drink when compared to how much the rabbit weighs? (I'm having trouble figuring out if my rabbits are drinking a LOT more than I think they should, or if they're just dumping the crocks. I haven't figured out how to mount them well yet.)

Yes, if a rabbit doesn't drink enough, it will stop eating. It is important that they have free access to water to keep them healthy and growing. However, even in "Small Animal Clinical Nutrition" I can't find anything other than "clean fresh water should be available at all times."

Mine are going through about 16 oz/day and I don't think it is enough. It will take a gallon of water to fill their crocks in the morning. In evening I'll top them off, equal to the amount they drank during the day. They can chew on the ice if they are thirsty too. It was above freezing in the shed and they emptied their dishes yesterday. They seem to do most of their drinking at night, and I'm not gonna start refilling water in the middle of the night.

Now thinking about the consistency of rabbit stomach/cecum contents, it seems that a rabbit should have at least an equal amount of pelleted food and water. (Does that make sense to anybody else?) That's going to depend a lot on the stage of growth since a meat-type rabbit will need anywhere from 250 kcal to 864 kcal depending on stage of growth. That's a huge difference!!

If they are throwing around their dishes, you can bet they are thirsty. Most rabbits won't do that unless the dishes are empty.

 

[Bunnylady]

If they are throwing around their dishes, you can bet they are thirsty. Most rabbits won't do that unless the dishes are empty.

I beg to differ. I have a water system, so I don't often have to deal with crocks or bottles anymore, but sometimes when the system is frozen, I do have to go from cage to cage, filling small dishes from a gallon jug. I have often heard the splash of water hitting the floor from cages that I just visited! I find it very exasperating to have them dumping the water out as fast as I can fill the dishes up. Frequently, those rabbits that are determined to play with the dish rather than just drink the contents get ice cubes so at least I know they have water in some form available.

It's hard to know just how much water an individual rabbit needs, because each rabbit is different. I have some rabbits that are chowhounds; they would get hugely fat if I didn't limit their feed. I have others that seem to get by on next to nothing (but then, they do nothing, too!) Water consumption would most likely follow feed consumption, though you never want to limit water any more than you can help.

 

[tortoise]

If they are throwing around their dishes, you can bet they are thirsty. Most rabbits won't do that unless the dishes are empty.

I beg to differ. I have a water system, so I don't often have to deal with crocks or bottles anymore, but sometimes when the system is frozen, I do have to go from cage to cage, filling small dishes from a gallon jug. I have often heard the splash of water hitting the floor from cages that I just visited!

They'll do it out of frustration - I had a doe like that. If her food dish was empty she would go into a tizzy throw it around the cage. I'd fill it and she'd have another fit and dump it as soon as I filled it. She never did it if the dish was always full. I've had a couple like that, but she was the most memorable.

My heated water system was giving me problems and they were buttheads about dumping water dishes for a day or 2 after that.

 

[dbunni]

If they are throwing around their dishes, you can bet they are thirsty. Most rabbits won't do that unless the dishes are empty.

I beg to differ. I have a water system, so I don't often have to deal with crocks or bottles anymore, but sometimes when the system is frozen, I do have to go from cage to cage, filling small dishes from a gallon jug. I have often heard the splash of water hitting the floor from cages that I just visited!

They'll do it out of frustration - I had a doe like that. If her food dish was empty she would go into a tizzy throw it around the cage. I'd fill it and she'd have another fit and dump it as soon as I filled it. She never did it if the dish was always full. I've had a couple like that, but she was the most memorable.

.

I have to beg to differ with you ... I have had, over the 30+ years in rabbits ... animals that just like to play in their water bowls. Some play in it ... some play with it ... and it has nothing to do with being empty and thirsty. I have one doe that can remove a bowl from the wire wall before you can fill her companions! Then throws it around the cage ... I have taken to giving her a spare to play with! When we use bowls (as a supplement as litters are growing and winter months .. having english angoras bowls are not the best way to keep a top show coat) i am out there 3-4 times a day filling wather and checking the health of animals. No bowl goes empty ... some are removed from the walls and emptied by their residents, but none are empty for drinking purposes. i believe clean fresh water is the MOST important element in the animals life and they should never be without.

Also ... water systems ... have a wonderful friend who runs over 300 MLs, has had "top lop" national honors more years then many ... they run a water system. There are two rabbits in their barn right now that just love to play in water. They keep a bucket under their drip ... and empty couple times a week. These animals were raised with the system, are not lacking in anything (the recent BIS on one proves that), yet they just love that toy! And yes, they have toys to play with ... apparently not as interesting as the one that sprays them though! it is a passed on trait ... in humans and animals we learn from our mothers. If mommy does it, chances are one of the kits will too.

 

[tortoise]

I beg to differ. I have a water system, so I don't often have to deal with crocks or bottles anymore, but sometimes when the system is frozen, I do have to go from cage to cage, filling small dishes from a gallon jug. I have often heard the splash of water hitting the floor from cages that I just visited!

They'll do it out of frustration - I had a doe like that. If her food dish was empty she would go into a tizzy throw it around the cage. I'd fill it and she'd have another fit and dump it as soon as I filled it. She never did it if the dish was always full. I've had a couple like that, but she was the most memorable.

.

I have to beg to differ with you ... I have had, over the 30+ years in rabbits ... animals that just like to play in their water bowls. Some play in it ... some play with it ... and it has nothing to do with being empty and thirsty. I have one doe that can remove a bowl from the wire wall before you can fill her companions! Then throws it around the cage ... I have taken to giving her a spare to play with! When we use bowls (as a supplement as litters are growing and winter months .. having english angoras bowls are not the best way to keep a top show coat) i am out there 3-4 times a day filling wather and checking the health of animals. No bowl goes empty ... some are removed from the walls and emptied by their residents, but none are empty for drinking purposes. i believe clean fresh water is the MOST important element in the animals life and they should never be without.

Just occurred to me that all of my rabbits have toy(s) in their cages and I switch then around so they don't get bored. They also get exercise time every few days. That might make a difference? None of mine have gone after the water system as a toy (yet). I'll have to watch out for that!

 

[iajewel]

Go to youtube.com and search for "rabbit hopping" you will find its a sport and they can clear over 5 feet high and about 6' or better long.

as for the rest if you are new to rabbits, just put them in a cage untill you start to understand genral rabbit ownership, then go here for pages of info on the rest

Go to my site link ( see website under my ID name) find the "housing" and "natural raising" pages.. those will go into detail about your questions.

 

[terri9630]

Go to youtube.com and search for "rabbit hopping" you will find its a sport and they can clear over 5 feet high and about 6' or better long.

as for the rest if you are new to rabbits, just put them in a cage untill you start to understand genral rabbit ownership, then go here for pages of info on the rest

Go to my site link ( see website under my ID name) find the "housing" and "natural raising" pages.. those will go into detail about your questions.

How do you keep your rabbits from digging out? Here in the desert most homes have a rock/block wall for a fence. A friend of mine had a pair of rabbits that they let run loose and one day they decided to stick the water hose in the rabbits hole to see how far it went and the 75ft hose went all the way in. They found their rabbits in the yard across the street from them one day. They had dug under the wall and road.

 

[iajewel]

My rabbits live year round in pens. Some 20x20, some half acer or 1/4 acer. All large pens. Here in Iowa its soft ground and they can easily dig. In hot weather they WILL dig. I don't colony raise however and that means does are bred to bucks with planned breedings and have their kits in hutches where records are kept and health is monitored. bucks and does don't run together nor do does have kits in burrows. This also changes digging behavior as bucks don't dig burrows, only does do. during hot times I do have to re-fill holes and I do rock some areas. There is a trick to it, just like everything else you have to know how to do it. However once you do understand it, it's quite simple.

 

[Captain Carrot]

I use a gravity fed waterer for my rabbits, I can't find a link at the moment.

It's basicly a small dish into which a normal mineral water bottle is inverted and secured to the wire of the hutch. I bought mine, but they're simple to make yourself.