Exercise is very important for rabbits, helping to keep them healthy and happy. Rabbits love to run and jump and do some amazing midair acrobatics...
Exercise is very important for rabbits, helping to keep them healthy and happy. Rabbits love to run and jump and do some amazing midair acrobatics (sometimes called "binkying"). The more exercise you can give your rabbit the better and the ideal solution is an exercise run permanently attached to the hutch.
If their exercise space is not big enough, there is a risk that the rabbit will injure itself while dashing about. The bigger the better so get the biggest exercise run you can find. The Rabbit Welfare Association & Fund's minimum recommended exercise run size is 8ft x 4ft x 2ft for a pair of rabbits.
Outdoor exercise runs
These are usually made of wooden supports with wire mesh sides and roof. They should be predator proof but it is still a good idea to supervise your rabbit while it's in the exercise run; even if the predator cannot get into the run, the stress of having it so close may give your rabbit a heart attack. Many runs come with a shelter area built in. If not, provide your rabbit with a tunnel or box that it can hide in if it feels threatened.
You will also need to check that your rabbit is not digging a hole which it might escape through - they can do this in a matter of minutes. If your rabbit is prone to digging you could get a run that also has wire mesh on the base, or attach some yourself.
Open top exercise runs, more like a puppy play pen, are also available. These have the advantage of being larger but you must supervise your rabbit at all times while in this type of run.
Indoor exercise runs
You can either let your rabbit out for supervised exercise in one or two rooms, or partition off a corner of one room where you are happy for it to exercise. Rabbits can jump very high (depending on their size, up to 1.5 metres) so make sure the partition is high enough. Fix it securely so that it will not fall on the rabbit and injure it.
