we have DD4 and DS2 we already have 2 cats but im thinking about getting another animal for them (for us all), how much trouble are rabbits ? how often do you have to clean out the cage etc ?
and do you think they are good for children the age my children are ?
I'm not sure how good rabbits are as pets for little kids. I remember someone telling me once that little kids tend to try to pick rabbits up by the ears, and end up damaging the ears quite badly. I used to have mice, and cleaning out the cage was a lot of work which had to be done very often, or it got really, really stinky. I'd stick with the cats as a low maintenance kids' pet.
i dont think 4 and 2 are a suitable age for a rabbit. they dont like being picked up and tend to scratch and they can leave some nasty marks.
work wise, they are a suprising amount of work, they need to be let out into a play area everyday (bare in mind female rabbits enjoy digging so if ur in a rental or something it can be troublesome) and theyre hutches need cleaning out very regularly to control flies and odours. i do the whole hutch everyweek and the litter tray every second day.
cost wise, an 8kg bag of bunny mix from petstock is $15 my guys get a bowl a day, hay can range depending on the season, but u can pick up a bale for about $20 usually, that being said a whole bale will go stale for one rabbit so u might be better off buying a bag of eating (not litter tray straw, HUGE difference) hay from ur pet shop.
petstock have big cubes of woodchips for about $14 that should last quite a few months with just one rabbit.
hhhhmmm thanks everyone, honeybee and skybie you make really good points, the kids are probably a bit young (i should probably have said they are nearly 5 and nearly 3, but still too young), i originally liked the idea of a turtle but then i saw a website of a place that takes in unwanted turtles after they grow too big and need more room and that made me realise they probably aren't for us !!
maybe i should get another kitten, is 3 cats too much lol
FWIW my oldest is nearly 5 and has never had a real interest in my rabbits, when we have babies she likes to cuddle them but other than that theyre virtually non existent to her!
what about an axylotyl?? something different and no more work than turtle
Daily cleaning, fresh bedding, food (a good quality pellet suplemented with fruit and veg), water...once a week grooming, the odd bath, flea/mite treatment, vaccinations if you want them, sterilisation/neutering if you want it, claws clipped, training if you want to (they can be litter trained and to walk to lead)...
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how much work/expense are rabbits ?
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