Next week sees the launch of Rabbit Awareness Week (RAW), the UK’s largest campaign dedicated to rabbits’ welfare, which promises to be the biggest one to date!
During a recent UK-wide census, organised by Burgess Pet Care, ‘happy’ was the word most used by rabbit owners to describe their bunny’s personality. But this RAW we are asking, how happy is your bunny?
Following a massively positive response on the Burgess Pet Care Great British Small Animal Census – the first of its kind – the brand was able to identify some interesting learnings to address in the name of rabbit welfare. 35% of rabbit owners described their furry friends as ‘happy’, with playful and cuddly also featuring in the top three throughout the 6,500+ responses.
Other responses included: active, lazy, sassy, adventurous, curious, feisty, friendly and cheeky. A key contributor to having happy and healthy bunnies is knowledge of their welfare needs, helping your bunny besties to thrive and show their little personalities in a safe and healthy environment.
The organisers of RAW, a key campaign for the Rabbit Awareness Action Group (RAAG), confirmed this year’s return theme as ‘Healthy Diet, Happy Bunnies’, as part of the five rabbit welfare needs, as they aim to highlight the impact a healthy diet has on all rabbits, including appropriate food sources, balanced diets and feeding frequency.
The collated Burgess Pet Care Census data showed that 97% of rabbit owner responders prioritised hay feeding, either daily or twice daily, as their pet’s primary food source. Separately the Census highlighted 11% of surveyed rabbit owners still favouring muesli, which has been linked to many health issues within the species.
Dr Suzanne Moyes, Burgess Pet Care’s in-house vet, advises: “Rabbits need a balanced diet with the right mix of fibre, vitamins and minerals to stay happy and healthy. Being herbivores, they need a plant-based diet with lots of fibre – a key part of their diet as it keeps their digestive system healthy and moving, helping to prevent illnesses such as gut stasis.
“85-90% of your rabbits’ diet should be high quality, dust extracted feeding hay or fresh grass. Follow the Excel Feeding Plan to help your rabbits get the correct balance of fibre, vitamins and minerals. You can supplement this with a small portion of nuggets, a handful of rabbit friendly fresh greens and constant access to fresh, clean water.”
For more information on this year’s RAW campaign, RAW supporters, the Rabbit Awareness Action Group (RAAG), or Burgess Pet Care, follow the link to the website here.
