22/08/2025
✨ Did you know? ✨
Some rabbits are bred with shorter faces, similar to pugs and bulldogs 🐰🐶
🔎 Break it down:
🐰 Brachy = short
🐰 Cephalic = head/skull
So, brachycephalic = “short-headed.”
For a long time, people believed that flat-faced (brachycephalic) or lop-eared rabbits were automatically more prone to painful dental disease. It seemed to make sense: if the skull is shortened, teeth could become misaligned and cause problems.
But new large-scale studies from the Royal Veterinary College (RVC) have challenged this assumption. By studying thousands of pet rabbits across many breeds, researchers found that head shape and ear type alone aren’t the biggest drivers of dental disease.
✅ What actually matters most:
🐰 Diet: Rabbits need unlimited access to high-quality hay or fresh grass. This constant chewing wears their teeth naturally and prevents overgrowth.
🐰 Age: Older rabbits are significantly more likely to develop dental issues, regardless of breed.
🐰 Body weight: Very small rabbits (under 1.5 kg) were shown to have higher dental disease risk.
🐰 Regular vet care: Early dental checks and preventive treatment reduce suffering and improve quality of life.
💡 What this means for rabbit welfare:
🐰 Flat-faced rabbits still have some unique challenges, but their health outcomes depend much more on husbandry and veterinary care than on looks alone.
🐰 Instead of assuming appearance dooms a rabbit, we can focus on prevention and management.
🐰 Supporting responsible breeders who prioritise health, or better yet, adopting from rescues, helps break the cycle of suffering linked to extreme breeding.
Every rabbit, no matter their breed, deserves the chance to live a long, healthy, hay-filled life. 🌱💗
