The domestic rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus domesticus) is the domesticated form and subspecies of the European rabbit. There are hundreds of rabbit breeds originating from all over the world. Rabbits were first domesticated and used for food and fur by the Romans. Rabbits may be housed inside, but the idea of the domestic rabbit as a house companion, a so-called house rabbit (similar to a house cat), was only strongly promoted starting with publications in the 1980s. Rabbits can be trained to use a litter box and taught to come when called, but require exercise and can damage a house or injure themselves if it has not been suitably prepared, based on their innate need to chew. Accidental interactions between pet rabbits and wild rabbits, while seemingly harmless, have been strongly discouraged due to the species' different temperaments as well as wild rabbits potentially carrying diseases.
Unwanted pet rabbits sometimes end up in animal shelters, especially after the Easter season. In 2017, they were the United States' third most abandoned pet. Some of them go on to be adopted and become family pets in various forms. Because their wild counterparts have become invasive in Australia, pet rabbits are banned in the state of Queensland and the Northern Territory. Domestic rabbits bred for generations under human supervision to be docile will be less able to care or fend for themselves, if they are abandoned or escape from captivity.
Domestic rabbits are raised as livestock for their meat, wool (in the case of the Angora breeds) and/or fur. They are also kept as pets and used as laboratory animals. Specific breeds are used in different industries; Rex rabbits, for example, are commonly raised for their fur, Californians are commonly raised for meat and New Zealands are commonly used in animal testing for their nearly identical appearance. Aside from the commercial or pet application, rabbits are commonly raised for exhibition at shows.
Rabbits are popular companion animals, but they are sensitive to their living conditions and require dedicated care and attention."PDSA Animal Wellbeing (PAW) Report", PDSA, 2023 In particular, they require an appropriate diet consisting primarily of feeding hay, supplemented with moderate amounts of vegetables and pellets, as well as a large, clean living enclosure equipped with enrichment items and hiding places. Veterinary professionals have raised concerns about whether these requirements are adequately met, as many rabbit owners do not provide an appropriate diet or a sufficiently large and safe living enclosure.
Terminology and etymology
Male rabbits are called bucks; females are called does. An older term for an adult rabbit is coney, while rabbit once referred only to the young animals. Another term for a young rabbit is bunny, though this term is often applied informally (especially by children and rabbit enthusiasts) to rabbits generally, especially domestic ones. More recently, the term kit or kitten has been used to refer to a young rabbit. A young hare is called a leveret; this term is sometimes informally applied to a young rabbit as well. A group of rabbits is known as a "colony" or a "nest".
The word rabbit itself derives from the Middle English , a borrowing from the Walloon , which was a diminutive of the French or Middle Dutch .
History The spread of the European rabbit from its native range of the Iberian Peninsula is linked to the possible deliberate introduction of the species to Africa by the Phoenicians around this time period, followed by later introductions to the regions of Italy, England, and Ireland by various seafaring groups.
The captivity of rabbits as a food source is recorded as early as the 1st century BC, when the Roman writer Pliny the Elder described the use of rabbit hutches, along with enclosures called leporaria. In Rome, rabbits were raised in large walled colonies with walls extended underground. According to Pliny, the consumption of unborn and newborn rabbits, called laurices, was considered a delicacy.
In the Middle Ages, wild rabbits were often kept for the hunt. Monks in southern France were crossbreeding rabbits at least by the 12th century AD. This was thought to have occurred as early as 600 AD in order to provide a 'meat substitute' for the monks during lent, which is a Christian observance in which one must refrain from eating meat. Domestication was probably a slow process that took place from the Roman period (or earlier) until the 1500s, around which point rabbit was a meat served as a luxury.
In the 19th century, as animal fancy in general began to emerge, rabbit fanciers began to sponsor rabbit exhibitions and fairs in Western Europe and the United States. Breeds of various domesticated animals were created and modified for the added purpose of exhibition, a departure from the breeds that had been created solely for food, fur, or wool. The rabbit's emergence as a household pet began during the Victorian era. The keeping of the rabbit as a pet commencing from the 1800s coincides with the first observable skeletal differences between the wild and domestic populations, even though captive rabbits had been exploited for over 2,000 years.
The emerging domestic rabbit subspecies, all breeds of which have been derived from the European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus), has been popular in the United States since the late 19th century. What became known as the "Belgian Hare Boom" began with the importation of the first Belgian Hares from England in 1888 and, soon after, the founding of the American Belgian Hare Association, the first rabbit club in America. From 1898 to 1901, many thousands of Belgian Hares were imported to America. Today, the Belgian Hare is one of the rarest breeds, with only 132 specimens found in the United States in a 2015 census.
Rabbits as house companions began appearing with frequency in the late 19th century. The most notable documentation is from Beatrix Potter's published diaries and letters. Potter allowed both rabbits to live at least part time in the house with her. "Both were fond of the fire, and one used to lie inside the fender", and one rabbit slept, "under the grate on the hot ashes when the fire had gone out." The publication of Marinell Harriman's House Rabbit Handbook: How to Live with an Urban Rabbit in 1985 was another significant push towards the popularisation of rabbits as indoor pets.
Biology
Genetics
The study of rabbit genetics is of interest to fanciers, the fibre and fur industry, medical researchers, and the meat industry. Among rabbit fanciers, the genetics of rabbit health and diversity are paramount. The fibre & fur industry focuses on the genetics of coat colour and hair properties. In the biomedical research community and the pharmaceutical industry, rabbit genetics are important in model organism research, in vitro fertilisation, and toxicity testing. The meat industry mainly relies on genetics for feed conversion ratios and reproduction potential in rabbits.
The rabbit genome has been sequenced and is publicly available. The mitochondrial DNA has also been sequenced. In 2011, parts of the rabbit genome were re-sequenced in greater depth in order to expose variation within the genome.
There are 7 main colour gene groups (or loci) in rabbits, with an additional 4 uncommon loci that are often breed specific; many other genes exist that influence coat colour to a lesser degree. A rabbit's coat has either two pigments (pheomelanin for yellow, and eumelanin for dark brown) or no pigment (for an albino rabbit). Clusters of colour genes plus their modifiers control such aspects as coat patterns (e.g. Dutch or English markings), colour hues and their intensity or dilution, and the location of colour bands on the hair shaft (e.g., silvering).
Diet
As a refinement of the diet of the wild rabbit, the diet of the domestic rabbit is often a function of its purpose. Show rabbits are fed for vibrant health, strong musculoskeletal systems, and—like rabbits intended for the fur trade—optimal coat production and condition. Rabbits intended for the meat trade are fed for swift and efficient production of flesh, while rabbits in research settings have closely controlled diets for specific goals. Nutritional needs of the domestic rabbit may also be focused on developing a physique that allows for the safe delivery of larger litters of healthy kits. Optimizing costs and producing feces that meet local waste regulations may also be factors.
Hay is an essential part of the diet of all rabbits and it is a major component of the commercial food pellets that are formulated for domestic rabbits and available in many areas. Most rabbit pellets are alfalfa-based for protein and fibre, with other grains completing the carbohydrate requirements. Minerals and vitamins are added during production of rabbit pellets to meet the nutritional requirements of the domestic rabbit. Along with pellets, many commercial rabbit raisers also feed one or more types of loose hay; alfalfa in particular is used for the growth needs of young rabbits, though it may be too high in protein and calcium for adult rabbits. Common sources of hay for rabbits include bluegrass, brome, fescue, marsh, orchard, timothy, oat and ryegrass.
Reproduction
Rabbits are prolific breeders, in part because rabbits reach breeding age quickly. To prevent unwanted offspring, rabbits may be spayed or neutered at sexual maturity. Sexual maturity is determined as the point at which the production rate of spermatozoa stops increasing, which ranges based on the size of the breed: 4–5 months for small breeds (e.g., Mini Rex, Netherland Dwarf), 4–6 months for medium-sized breeds (e.g., Rex, New Zealand), and 5–8 months for large breeds (e.g., Flemish Giant). Bucks usually require more time to sexually mature than does.
Dewlaps
A dewlap is a flap of skin or similar flesh that hangs beneath the lower jaw or neck. It is a secondary sex characteristic in rabbits, caused by the presence of female sex hormones. They develop with puberty. A female rabbit which has been neutered before reaching sexual maturity will not develop a dewlap, and even if a doe is neutered after developing a dewlap, the dewlap will gradually disappear over several months. This also aligns with the results of injecting male rabbits with female sex hormones, specifically the ones from pregnant women's urine; the male rabbits developed dewlaps, which then gradually disappeared once administration had ceased. In some breeds of domesticated rabbit, particularly those bred for their meat, the dewlap is formed more readily in males; physically larger breeds generally develop larger dewlaps.
The function of the dewlap is to provide soft material for the pregnant female rabbit to line its nest with. Fur is plucked directly from the rabbit's own dewlap, sides, and abdomen for use as nesting material. The fur of the dewlap becomes particularly loose roughly 5 days before the young are born due to higher levels of the hormones testosterone and prolactin, allowing it to be plucked easier. Wet dermatitis and dermatophytoses, both afflictions of the skin, are common ailments of the dewlap.
Health
Rabbit health is a well-studied area in veterinary medicine, owing to the long history of rabbit domestication and the use of rabbits as laboratory animals. In pet rabbits, disease is rare when raised in sanitary conditions and provided with adequate care. Rabbits have fragile bones, especially in their spines, and need support on the bottom when they are picked up. In domestic rabbits, a significant concern is that they will gnaw on almost anything, including electrical cords (possibly leading to electrocution), potentially poisonous plants, and material like carpet and fabric that may cause life-threatening intestinal blockages. A differently formatted version is also available here .