Rabbits, their species and lifestyle

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Domestic rabbits are perhaps the most popular pets. Therefore, their future owners need to know how to understand them, how to feed them and where it is better to keep them. The animals are not particularly demanding on living conditions and diet, but there are certain rules, the observance of which will guarantee the longevity of the eared ears.

Rabbits

The life expectancy of rabbits with proper care is 12-15 years. The wild rabbit lives less in nature and rarely reaches 2-3 years of age. Maturity occurs simultaneously with the first molt, at about 3-5 months. The smaller the breed, the faster it matures.

Does a pet need friends?

A person who keeps rabbits for a long time will tell you that these animals are sociable, playful and inquisitive. Having recognized their master, they happily flap their eyelashes and wiggle their tails. In their natural habitat, rabbits stray into groups, the exception is an earthen rodent, he alone prefers solitude. The rest, both the rabbit and the hare, being left alone can become very bored and even depressed.

If you do not plan to breed, then it is better to keep in the cage, either one pet, or a couple of individuals with the same sex. Sterilization and castration - will help solve the problem with living space.

These animals are characterized by a struggle for territory, so carefully add newcomers to the cage and at first watch the behavior of the pets as often as possible. This will help you minimize your stress.

Little rabbits need to be lifted into your arms carefully and slowly, try not to scare them. It is undesirable to take pussies by only the ears or only by the scruff of the neck. The correct way to do this is to press the ears to the body with one hand, take the animal by the scruff through them, and slightly lifting it, support the body from below with the other hand.

How much space do you need

A rabbit will not be able to live in cramped conditions, he will become bored there, from which he can get sick and even die. Always keep this in mind when choosing a cage. If you plan to build a house for two medium-sized individuals, keep in mind that each should have at least 0.5 square meters. In order to save space, you can build a two-level cage. The main thing is that it is warm and light, but does not let in drafts and direct sunlight.

If animals live outdoors, they must be reliably protected from rain and wind. Do not forget, when cold weather sets in, move their house to a warm shelter, which is perfect for a shed or other outbuilding in the country. Some people even breed rabbits in the garage, installing special pallets inside it.

Can domestic rabbits live in an aviary? Of course, it is not only possible, but also necessary, if the climate allows it and the area of the site. Fuzzies require constant physical activity, and for the rabbit to want to frolic, he needs a lot of free space. Will they live in an aviary or a spacious cage does not matter.

If the rabbit is one of the pets, be sure to let it out of the cage to run around the rooms at least once every two days for several hours. First, remove from the floor all wires and other objects that your fluffy can gnaw through if they come across his eyes. To prevent the animal's claws from scratching the parquet and the walls of the apartment, they can be trimmed with special scissors. The rabbit plays with flowers very interestingly.

Always keep an eye on where your pet is climbing. Do not let him jump from a height onto a hard surface, remember that this is life, not an overgrowth computer game, so even a small flight can cause injury. If this does happen and your pet is limping a little or is trying not to step on one of the paws, the tip of which is slightly swollen, most likely, he has damaged it. It is imperative to treat fractures after a preliminary examination at the clinic, and exactly as the doctor wrote.

Keeping animals indoors and outdoors

Adults of some breeds can live in an aviary all year round, provided that the frost is not severe. But the wintering of young animals, in which a thick undercoat is still growing and maturing, should take place in a warm, specially equipped room, where wind and snow cannot penetrate.

Regardless of whether the rabbit is hibernating with friends in the open air or walking in the barn, they should always have free access to water and food. In winter, you should change your drink more often.

Many people are interested in the question, is it possible for domestic rabbits to lay old newspapers in a cage as filler? Of course. This material can be an excellent substitute for purchased wood shavings or cellulose. In addition, straw and plain white paper make excellent bedding.

Rabbits living in slatted cages often develop corns due to the mesh, use traps to prevent them. You can buy a mini-ladder at any pet store. Recently, the pit keeping of rabbits has become popular, it is a low-cost and very profitable business.

What to feed?

The wild rabbit grows up and spends 80 percent of its life looking for food and eats delicious succulent plants, foliage and hay with pleasure. In addition to the fact that this food contains a lot of fiber contributing to harmonious development, rodents grind their teeth about it.

A well-balanced diet is a guarantee of health and longevity. Your pet's main food should be hay or freshly cut grass. Enter the last element in the menu carefully, in small portions. Do not forget to add vitamin and mineral complexes to the feed.

The daily rabbit diet should be supplemented with herbs and vegetables, most willingly rabbits will eat white cabbage, green spinach and similar garden plants. But with fruits, you should be careful. Sugar, which is high in foods such as tangerines or quince, is harmful to animals. Although in small quantities, the pet will gladly eat a pear, apple or some berries. Rabbits are very fond of raspberries, but they are not very fond of viburnum.

Ambrosia is a herb that you should be careful with. In small doses, it is useful, but if the rabbit eats a lot of it, it is poisonous.

For complementary feeding, you can choose either muesli, or granulated compound feed, for example, pro plan, or all at once. Try not to overfeed the animal with dry mixtures. Remember that his main food that any rabbit eats is still hay and greens, and this is a fact. The grass must always be cut finely beforehand.Eating only compound feed, rabbits will experience a number of health problems. Recently, some farmers have started adding soy to their rabbit food, but no more than 20% of the daily ration.

When organizing feeding and watering pets, consider the following recommendations:

If the hay is not just put into the cage, but previously rolled into a ball, you will provide the animal with both food and a tooth trainer. The rabbit holds a bunch of hay in its front paws and gnaws at it very funny when it eats.
The treat, hidden in different corners of the house, will help the rabbit to be physically active, as it can make him move in search of food.
Remember that under-eaten food quickly begins to rot and attract insects, so that this does not happen, clean the cages daily.
To diversify your diet, you can take silage or premix. The rabbit willingly eats a green salad of herbs such as alfalfa, St. John's wort, clover, plantain, wormwood, tansy, wheatgrass, rapeseed. In small quantities, sprouted wheat, oats, barley and a mash of these and other cereals are useful.
In addition to food, animals need fresh water 24 hours a day. Remember that the rabbit only drinks fresh, clean water.

Health

There are times when yesterday, still healthy rabbits, today lie on their backs and die one after another. There are many reasons for this, but the main reason why the eared ears are dying is insufficient care and non-compliance with sanitary requirements for their maintenance. A variety of symptoms can indicate the disease.

A breeder who keeps animals clean usually does not face such problems. When removing the cages, try to accustom yourself to always look at the pet's excrement, if they look strange and smell unnatural, this is the first signal for the development of diseases.

Try to always listen to the sounds that rabbits make when they open their mouths, they can easily determine the state of health of babies. If the screaming lump is shaking violently, his stomach is unnaturally swollen, he can barely stand on his feet, it means that if urgent rescue measures are not taken, the animal will die very soon.

Miases

A disease leading to the death of pets. It develops mainly in the warm season and often ends in death. Distributors are various insects such as flies, which use the rabbit as an incubator for their eggs. According to statistics, overweight animals have this problem more often.

To avoid death, it is required to maintain hygiene and treat the bite sites with a special disinfectant.

In addition, do not forget to timely change the dirty flooring to a clean one. There are special insecticides and repellents that work well with any miasis.

Too long teeth

In all rabbits, like in real rodents, teeth grow constantly, so that they do not become too long, provide the pets with constant access to things that they will subsequently gnaw. Many veterinary clinics provide rodent circumcision services. Check your pet's mouth once a week, pay attention not only to the length of the teeth, but also to see if the fur is stuck between them. A rabbit, as your favorite pet, should always have fresh hay, sticks and twigs in its cage: firstly, your fluffy will be constantly busy with something, and secondly, the teeth will be normal and will not cause discomfort to the animal.

Papillomas

Domestic rabbits often suffer from benign tumors of viral origin, which are called papillomas in medicine. They arise either in the oral cavity and in the form of small warts, or already in the form of horny formations appear in the region of the neck, shoulders, ears and belly. The virus is carried by ticks and insects. It is useless to fight papillomas, after a couple of months they disappear on their own.

Coccidosis

The second name of the disease is eimeriosis. Caused by parasites.Distributors are sick or previously ill animals. Mostly young livestock, between one and four months of age, are affected. Rabbits begin to lose weight, their temperature rises, mucus appears from the nose and eyes. It seems that they were taken away from them, since sick pets lie on their side almost all the time and breathe heavily. Treatment is carried out with sulfa and nitrofuran drugs.

Digestive problems

Cleanliness is the guarantee of health not only for people, but also for animals, but remember that everything should be in moderation. From too intensive processing of the cells where the fluffs live, just like from a sharp change in diet or from a change in climate, rabbits can develop problems with the gastrointestinal tract. And this is very dangerous, especially if, after their appearance, loss of appetite begins.

If you find that pets make strange sounds, they eat almost nothing, or they have bloating and periodically get loose stools, take it to the clinic immediately. Ignoring the problem, just like any experiments on self-healing rabbits, whose bellies begin to puff and swell, will lead to death after a while.

Myxomatosis and viral hemorrhagic diseases

Infectious and viral diseases are the most dangerous and unpredictable, they are spread by insects and airborne droplets. If symptoms of the disease, such as high fever or nasal discharge, appear in one pet, then, most likely, they will soon be transmitted to the entire rabbit family, without exception.

The consequences of a fever can be recognized when the eyes of the animal become blind, swelling appears in the groin, characteristic sounds indicate that it is very difficult to swallow, all this as a result leads to death. VGBK proceeds with internal bleeding. From the moment of infection to death, usually no more than three days pass, in young individuals it is faster.

There is no cure for myxomatosis or VGBK, but there is a special prophylactic vaccination that reliably protects against these deadly infections. The first time an intramuscular injection should be given at the age of one and a half months, and then once a year throughout the rabbit's life. There is information that in some cases, in the early stages of myxomatosis, benzylpenicillin and ampicillin help.

Mites

Ear mites are common in rabbits. Infected individuals begin to scratch themselves and scratch their heads and ears until they bleed. When the head itches at the base of the ears without interruption, the animals live in constant discomfort, they eat almost nothing and lose a lot of weight. An infection can enter the rabbit's body through the wounds, damaging the inner ear and the central nervous system. As a result, "torticollis" develops - due to brain damage, the whole head is tilted to one side. The ears and head of sick individuals should be treated with anti-mite preparations for cats. As a preventive measure against fleas and ticks, you can purchase a special collar at the pet store.

Cystitis

A disease in which the bladder is in an inflamed state is very difficult for pets. A pyogenic infection that has entered the urinary system from the kidneys, mammary glands or uterus can provoke a problem. In addition, cystitis can develop due to urinary retention and trauma.

The following behavior of the animal is indicated for the presence of the disease: it sometimes begins to walk in circles in the cage, screams and bends its back. A sick individual has bright red urine, the more cystitis progresses, the more painful urination occurs in rabbits. The processes are often accompanied by intense heat.

Sick individuals should be kept separate from the rest of the livestock. The paddock or quarantine cage should be carefully insulated and a dry warm compress should be applied to the patient's pelvic area. You can only feed a sick rabbit with easily digestible foods. In addition, they need to ensure they have constant access to drink.In order to cope with abscesses, veterinarians usually prescribe bladder lavage with potassium permanganate, rivanol or furacilin. Having previously dissolved these substances in water. In the fight against cystitis, sulfonamides and antibiotics are very helpful.

The above are the main problems that can arise with the health of rabbits and provoke their death, in fact there are a huge number of diseases: cysticercosis, fibromatosis, staphylococcus aureus, mycosis, dermatitis and others, you can list them endlessly.

How to deal with worms

Few people know, but deworming in rabbits can occur without the use of drugs and vaccines. There are more gentle for the rabbit body, but no less effective folk methods. Wormwood or "tree worm", as it was called before, is excellent for worms. You can use wild mountain ash (tansy) instead of wormwood. In winter, the grass can be replaced with needles that grow all year round.

Rabbit behavior

In the wild, rodents are constantly hunted. After domestication, rabbits became less fearful, but their characteristics still contain some habits from wild ancestors. If you want your pets to be happy, be sure to consider the following facts about rabbits.

Fuzzies need stability and constant communication. They can develop fully only in spacious light-colored cages and aviaries.
If the animal is not active enough during the day, it has problems: constant depression, aggression, loss of appetite. The rabbit begins to pluck its own fur and gnaw on the bars of its cage. In some cases, the problems are accompanied by changes in the stool.
You can find out that a rabbit can be bad by his behavior - he usually hides in the depths of his house and curls up into a ball, but sometimes, instead of completely refusing to move, the animal, on the contrary, begins to turn circles around the cage without stopping.
Rabbits love tenderness and affection, and do not tolerate aggression directed at them. Speak calmly and not too loudly, the only way you will be able to tame the animal. Pussies experience particular stress from communicating with young children, try to protect them from this.
Each individual from the livestock has its own character, and you, as a loving owner, should be aware of all their characteristics and habits.

To keep your rabbit happy and healthy, consider the following guidelines:

In the cage, it is imperative to make a small house or mink where the fluffy could hide from prying eyes.
If the rabbit is still asleep, it is impossible not to make a lot of noise in the room where it is kept, otherwise its heart can not withstand and the animal will die.
The pet should be able to sometimes leave the enclosure in order to run around in the wild.
The more time you spend with your pet, the better you will begin to understand the rabbit, and the rabbit - you. Having achieved complete understanding, you will be able to train the animal.
These rodents love to play with balls and bells so that the toys do not get bored, alternate between them. By the way, playful training is more effective.
Make a colored tunnel in the house through which the fluffy can move freely, they are funny animals that run there with pleasure.
The cage should contain as fashionably as more twigs and sticks, which the animal can gnaw at any moment.
Rabbits never mind digging something in their free time, so you can put a box with soft soil in his house, the pet will be grateful to you for this.
Another great fun for your pet is a cardboard box or crate filled with hay.
In extreme heat, the fluffs are combed out using a special device.

If you plan to breed rabbits, remember that the female should be added to the male, on the contrary, the mating will last longer. There should be no noise and drafts in the room where rabbits have sex.Follimag is used to stimulate sexual activity.

How is pregnancy in rabbits

An important period in the life of females is fertility (pregnancy). At this time, rabbits require special attention and a special diet. Only under ideal conditions will she be able to bear healthy offspring:

Observe complete silence in the rabbitry
Do not lead strangers there
Do not move females from one cage to another, especially dangerous for pregnant rabbits a week before giving birth.
Do not change the daily routine for the rabbit, do not experiment with new food.
The food that the female eats must be fresh and not frozen.

The duration of pregnancy in rabbits is 29-35 days, the timing depends on the specific breed. There are cases when childbirth is interrupted for several hours, very rarely, a week after the first birth, repeated ones begin. Females reproduce several times a year.

Main species and breeds

In order to breed a particular breed, it is not enough just to cross two different rabbits at home, it is necessary to conduct a long and careful qualitative selection in order to reveal the homozygous traits of genes. Looking at the photos of different breeds, you can see that they are all very different from each other, for example, an interesting French fold-eared ram rabbit, with an unusual shape of the ears and a characteristic reddish color, absolutely does not look like its fellow Himalayan snow-white rabbit, the description of this fluffy is completely different : black muzzle, protruding ears of the same color, and paws as if in dark socks. In photographs, these rabbits look very beautiful.

Depending on the size, the ears are:

giants (Australian or Viennese blue)
medium (Dutch rabbit)
small, (dwarf lop-eared ram)

In addition, farmers categorize rabbits according to coat length. They are:

normal-haired,
long-haired,
short-haired.

But, the main classification of domestic rabbits is based on the purpose of breeding these animals. There are four main types:

skinny,

downy,
meat,
decorative.

In addition, there are breeds of a combined type, for example, skin-meat, or decorative-down.

Meat breeds

These rabbits are distinguished by:

Active growth rate from the first days of life,
Rapid weight gain (record for the Darius rabbit, almost 23 kg),
Very tasty and dietary meat, the calorie content of which is only 160 kcal per 100 g.

The ration of cross-broilers should consist only of high-quality compound feed, enriched with vitamins and mineral supplements. Rabbits are slaughtered at four months of age. Of course, you can kill them at a later age, but this is not profitable from an economic point of view. Since one-year-old pets eat several times more food, and their growth rate is much lower than in the first months of life.

Famous meat breeds:

New Zealand whites. It is a favorite breed of many farmers. Fuzzies grow quickly, they have a very calm disposition, and most importantly, rabbits are unpretentious to the conditions of detention. The body of the New Zealander is strong, his structure is muscular, almost without fat deposits. The coat is pale white, with a subset of silvery shades. An adult weighs on average 5-6 kg, the slaughter yield of meat is 75-80 percent if they are slaughtered at the correct age. The body length of such a rabbit is 50-60 cm, they have a short thick neck. About ten rabbits are born from one litter.
Vienna blue. This breed of meat and skin direction, in addition, such an eared eared can be started as a pet. The large animal has a soft, thick coat, very pleasant to the touch. The color of adults is gray-blue. At the age of three months, the rabbit weighs on the order of those kilograms. The mass of an adult is 4-5 kg.Females have good fertility indicators - for one round, the offspring can be replenished by 10 cubs. The breed is suitable for breeding, both in open enclosures and in specially equipped rabbitries.
Flanders (Belgian giants). The very first rabbit is a giant pet. This breed is represented by several varieties, among which there is even an albino, but mostly they are gray or black and gray. The smallest adult Belgians weigh an average of six kilograms, while the largest are twelve. Flanders often have colds and are very picky about their food choices, but the profits that can be earned from selling carcasses will fully cover the costs. Females have excellent fertility - one litter gives fifteen fluffy lumps.

Skin breeds

Rabbits have thick beautiful fur, which is why the demand for them is very high. From skins imitating expensive fur, outerwear is sewn. Often the presence of a high-quality wool coat in an animal is accompanied by excellent meat performance. Therefore, many hide breeds can also be classified as meat breeds.

When breeding rabbits, you should constantly monitor the cleanliness and dryness of the room, in addition, to maintain the presentation of the fur, it must be carefully looked after not only during the life of the animal, but also after its slaughter. When removing the skin, try to pierce it as little as possible.

Famous furry fur breeds:

Veil silver. They have tasty meat and valuable beautiful skin, and they also feel great in the harsh Russian climate. The animals got this name due to their color: an unusual coat of a silvery-gray shade, on which black guard hairs stand out. At birth, rabbits have black fur and only at the eighth month of life do they acquire a characteristic color for the breed. The mass of a medium-sized individual is 5.5 kg, with a slaughter yield of only 60%. Approximately 8 cubs are born from one okrol. Females are very caring mothers.
Rex. The main feature of rabbits is velvety fur, which for a long time was the standard of rabbit fur in production. The breed does not differ in large dimensions, the average weight of an adult fluffy is only 4 kg, but, despite this, they are considered an excellent source of meat, due to their high slaughter yield. Rexes perfectly tolerate severe frosts, but the heat is destructive for them. Currently, such rabbits are most often found in amateur rabbit breeding. In addition, rex make excellent pets.

Russian ermine. These rabbits look like a Siamese cat. They are not picky about food and are not demanding on the content. The weight of an adult is approximately 4-4.5 kg. Females are excellent mothers and are able to bring up to eight rabbits in one lamb, while not a single calf needs milk.

Downy breeds

Downy breeds of rabbits, as the name implies, are bred to obtain down. It is mined in different ways: the fluff can be cut, combed out when molting, and even plucked. But, according to modern breeders, this business is almost not profitable, and in some cases it is not even able to recoup the costs. Since today there are materials that have become a cheaper, but no less high-quality alternative to rabbit fluff, so it is cut mainly not for sale, but for personal needs. Among the downy breeds in Russia, the most popular are:

Angora downy. There are several subspecies of this breed: from France, from Germany, from China and other countries. All rabbits are medium in size and have a long, thin coat, which is 85% selective down. Ears of all Angora downy with tassels at the ends. The breed is characterized by some problems: due to the peculiarities of the wool, the gastrointestinal tract is often clogged with hair.But, remember that the rabbit is not a cat, so he will not be able to cough up the fur, in order to remove the lumps from the body, let your pets eat dandelions. This should be done every day.
White downy. Despite the name, these pussies are not always white, sometimes there are beautiful smoky individuals. The average size of such a rabbit is not very large, everything is only 4 kg, in terms of productivity it is much more preferable to breed them than Angora.

These colorful fluffy rabbits belong to the category of unusual pets, they get along well with people and can become very loyal and devoted friends for many years. The main thing is to know everything about your little rabbits.

Decorative colic

Most often, dwarf decorative rabbits are chosen as pets. For example, a miniature British furry. It is impossible to look away from his photo, and when you see how cute he yawns, you will definitely want to get a pet. This is a very affectionate animal that gets along well with people, including children. The main thing is that the child communicates with the pet affectionately. A small dwarf rabbit also needs care and a warm cozy cage.

Decorative rabbits must sometimes be taken out for a walk, in pet stores or on the market you can buy a special leash and a suit for a house eared, or you can find a video for the query "we sew clothes for a rabbit by ourselves." Fuzzies respond well to nicknames, you can call them whatever you like, for example - Snowball, Duke, Max or any other name. It doesn't matter what names your rabbit gang has, as long as every rabbit from your pets gets love and proper care.

There are many different rabbits in the world, which differ from each other not only externally, but also in character, exactingness to the conditions of keeping and the diet. Therefore, before starting any breed for further breeding, be sure to study the description and characteristics of the breed, as well as for what purpose it is recommended to breed. Today, all the necessary information is on the Internet, so you have the opportunity to learn everything about rabbits without leaving your home.

Keep in mind that the cost of one individual is usually not indicated for an animal for its age, for example, if you see an ad selling a half-year-old rabbit for 500 rubles / month, then you will have to pay 500 * 6 = 3000 rubles for it. Now you know how much money is needed to purchase this or that breed of rabbits. What should be the places where they live, and how the offspring grows.