How long does a rabbit live at home with caring care
The lifespan of rabbits in the wild and at home is different and depends on various factors. How long does a rabbit live if you provide it with quality care and how long will a pet live with improper care? We will consider these questions in the article. The information you receive will help you choose the right breed of animal for breeding or as a favorite pet.
Read also the article: what to feed the rabbits?
What determines the lifespan of domestic rabbits
The lifespan of rabbits depends not only on the health of producers and offspring. Other factors also affect life expectancy:
- Breed. Purebred rabbits live less than mestizo. It should be noted that neutered males and neutered females live longer. Rabbits of large breeds live less than decorative or medium-sized animals.
- Vaccination. To improve the health of rabbits and increase life span, it is necessary to vaccinate in a timely manner. This will help reduce the risk of developing disease and dying animals.
- Food. The digestive system of rabbits has a complex structure, which must be taken into account when drawing up the diet of animals. The main problems arise from the incompatibility of products with a complex structure of the digestive tract. Animals will live a long time if there is constant fresh water, fruits and vegetables, grain, hay or grass in their cages or aviaries.
- Hygiene of animals and premises. Cells must be disinfected regularly to prevent pests, fungi and infections. The cages should always be clean and dry. Comfortable living of rabbits is possible in properly built cages and aviaries. A drainage of urine must be ensured to keep the floors dry. Long-haired animals need special care. To keep the coat healthy, it is brushed regularly.
- Physical health. In the wild, rabbits are constantly running and jumping, gnawing at trees and bushes. It is necessary for animals to equip spacious enclosures or cellsto bring living conditions as close as possible to natural ones.
- Habitat. In warm, safe, comfortable cages, animals have a longer life. Free-roaming rabbits are susceptible to bacterial infections, leading to their premature death.
Causes of premature death of rabbits
Even with good domestic care, rabbits may die suddenly.
The cause of premature death of animals can be:
- the result of an injury from a stronger animal or misbehaving children;
- a sharp change in the temperature of keeping rabbits;
- an interrupted pregnancy in females;
- heart beat after fright;
- sudden deterioration in health;
- miosis.
If the rabbit is purchased from a pet store, it must be kept indoors until it becomes warm. Accustomed to being kept in warm conditions, rabbits are especially sensitive to sudden changes in temperature and may even die.
The animal suffers from miosis from the larvae that eat it, which hatch from the laid eggs. Flies infected with microbes lay eggs in the fur of the animal. The first sign of the disease is an unpleasant odor. If the problem is detected and treated in a timely manner, the life of the animal can be saved, but its life will be significantly reduced.
Only keeping rabbits clean and checking their skin regularly can prevent the development of miosis.
A rabbit can die abruptly from fright, which can be caused by loud, harsh sounds. The animal develops shock and dies suddenly.
The rabbit's okrol is not always successful. If it is time for the offspring, but there are no offspring, it is necessary to carefully examine the female. Perhaps the fetus froze at a later date and there is a risk of mom's death.
You should not buy adults so as not to become the owner of an old rabbit, which will simply get stress from a change in habitat and die prematurely.
How long does a rabbit live for breeding at home
When breeding rabbits in a personal plot, you need to know that the average life span of an animal is about 7 years. However, rabbits are not raised so that they simply die of their natural death. Usually, large breeds of animals are chosen for breeding, if you need meat or breeds with beautiful wool, if you plan to sell skins.
At 3-4 months, the young are separated, selecting the best specimens for the production of healthy offspring. The rest are heavily fattened and allowed to slaughter as soon as the desired weight of the animals is reached.
The lifespan of breeders depends on various factors:
- A female giving regularly healthy offspring can live from 4 to 7 years. If the offspring turns out to be weak, the rabbit is allowed to feed and slaughtered.
- With proper feeding and maintenance, the male can live up to 8 years.
- Poor maintenance of producers reduces their lifespan by almost 2-3 years.
- Poor quality food in just a couple of months will lead the animal to premature death.
The lifespan of rabbits also depends on the breed:
- Rex and Polish rabbits live on average 5-6 years;
- Flemish giant rabbits live from 5 to 7 years;
- the lifespan of the American sable, checkered giant and Britain Petite is from 5 to 8 years;
- Californian rabbits live 5-10 years;
- lion-headed rabbit lives 7-10 years;
- rabbits of the Dutch ram, giant angora and simple angora breed live from 7 to 12 years;
- a minilop rabbit lives from 7 to 14 years;
- from 10 to 12 years old a dwarf Dutch rabbit takes root.
Read also the article:rabbit breeds with photos and names!
How long does a decorative rabbit live?
Decorative breeds of rabbits are bought for keeping at home. Animals become favorites of all family members, but children are especially attached to them. Therefore, it is important to buy a pet from a good breeder to be sure of its health. When buying from the seller, you can ask for documents confirming the health of the mother and the baby himself.
The better the living conditions, the longer the animal will live. It is necessary to provide the rabbit with adequate nutrition, timely vaccination, and safe living at home.
Interesting! With good care, decorative rabbits can live up to 17-24 years. The pet of the decorative breed lived in Scotland for 24 years.
How to recognize the old age of an animal
If you start your livestock business with the purchase of young animals, then there will be no problems with determining the age. Sexual maturation of females occurs at the age of 3-4 months. Males mature at 5-6 months of age.It is from this period that the animals are divided into separate cells so that the males do not fight. The animals selected for fattening are castrated and kept in the same pen or spacious cage. Male producers can already be allowed near females.
The active phase lasts up to 3 years - this is the best period for mating and obtaining healthy offspring.
The older the animal, the less active it is. Rabbits sleep more and become calmer. It is at this age that it is best to buy an adult pet for keeping at home.
At the age of five, animals already begin to develop age-related health problems. They need to change their diet, in addition to give medications.
You can recognize the real age of a rabbit by its appearance:
- a sagging skin appears in the abdomen;
- the shine in the eyes is lost and there is no interest in the environment;
- hair loss begins, and it becomes rare;
- calluses appear on the ropes;
- the animal is especially sensitive to temperature changes;
- individuals begin to lose weight or become too obese.
If there is no experience in accurately determining the age of a rabbit, then you need to contact your veterinarian.
How to extend the life of a rabbit
The lifespan of rabbits depends largely on the care of the owner. If animals are kept in a large aviary or pit, it is very difficult to control their reproduction and life span. In the absence of control from the owner, the number of lambing from one female can be 8 times a year.
Separate keeping of females and males, strict control of mating, ensuring proper nutrition and quality care can extend the life of pets up to almost 9 years.
At 3-4 years of age, it is already necessary to be more attentive to the animal. Provide the rabbit with additional vitamins, regulate the diet so as not to harm health.
Ornamental and dwarf breeds require more careful maintenance.
In this case, animals need to provide spacious rooms so that they can run and jump. With a sedentary lifestyle, rabbits begin to have health problems: obesity begins, the digestive tract does not work well. It is important that animals always have clean water.
Recommendations for prolonging the life of rabbits:
- It is necessary to buy rabbits from reputable nurseries. It is important that the future pet has good heredity.
- Timely carry out the prevention of infection with various parasites. Vaccinate rabbits from the first days of life, following the vaccination schedule.
- Keep animals in warm, dry rooms free of drafts. Cover the cages during summer to avoid overheating the rabbits.
- Animals need to provide space for movement. Pets should be walked under personal supervision in the house or outdoors.
- Protect animals from stress. You can not often pick up babies and carry them to other places. The rabbitry should be located away from noisy objects.
- Change feed and water for rabbits regularly. Periodically wash the dishes, clean the cells, add a dry mat.
- Keep animals in spacious cages.