Do You Have Enough Time For A Bunny?
A reader asked this very good question about whether or not she had time to take care of a pet rabbit. I'm going to answer it in hub form, because I think she raised a point that will be useful for many rabbit owners.
The reader asked:
Should I still get a bunny if I have other animals? Can I leave it home alone for 8 hours daily? See I already have a cat, a bird, and a hamster. And my sister and I have school plus she works after school and my parents work too AND I am a competitive dancer so I dance on Saturdays & Thursdays. Is this too much running around for a bunny, will this overwhelm it?
Short answer, yes. You will probably be fine with a bunny. I assume that you will not be taking your bunny to dance competitively or go to school, so your running around should not affect your rabbit in the slightest.
The only caveat I would place on this advice is, well, actually two caveats. 1) Please make sure that your rabbit has a large enclosure to run around in if they are to be caged up all day. If you intend to keep your rabbit outside, then they need a large run, not one of the little cages you see in pet stores that barely give them room to hop two steps one way and two steps back again. A bunny run should be between 5 -6 feet long, 3-4 feet wide and at least a foot and a half high, to allow your rabbit to jump.
If you keep your rabbit indoors, some people make rabbit homes out of wire tiles clipped together, and those make very large, very good cages for happy rabbits. I highly recommend them. You can see some of them at these hubs:
How To Build The Perfect Outdoor Hutch
The only other warning I would give if you are low on time is to choose a short haired rabbit. Long haired bunnies may look cute, but they really do need grooming every single day of their lives and they can get into an absolutely terrible state if they don't get the grooming they need.
So, as long as you can provide enough space for a bunny to run and play when you are away, and you are able to keep up with the grooming requirements, there is no reason why a busy person shouldn't own a rabbit. They won't get bored and destructive like dogs do, though if you want your rabbit to be friendly with you, you should at least spend a little time with it every day, so it gets used to you and sees you as a friend.
If you are worried about your rabbit being lonely, get two girl bunnies at the same time, or two male bunnies (both will need to be fixed), getting a second bunny as a 'friend' later on often results in aggression and fighting, and you don't need that.
