08/27/2026
With everything happening in the rabbit community right now, I think a lot of us need this reminder β myself included.
Clean your cages. Check your rabbits. Every. Single. Day.
Weekly cleaning is ideal; every other week should really be the outer limit. I'm currently hitting that two-week mark myself, and my barn is getting ripe. It happens. The important part is recognizing it and fixing it.
Having a large number of rabbits does not automatically make someone a hoarder. A working breeder may legitimately have dozens or even hundreds of animals. Cages rust. Rabbits destroy cups and feeders. Fur flies everywhere. Wool breeds mat. Kits die despite our best efforts. Dwarfs can be born with deformities that cause them to soil themselves. A barn full of livestock is never going to look or smell like someone's living room.
But there is a difference between normal livestock mess and conditions that have been allowed to deteriorate.
Food and water are the bare minimum. A cage doesn't have to have manure piled through the floor before we should clean it. Dead kits need to be found and removed promptly. Nails need attention. Coats, bottoms, teeth, body condition and overall health need to be checked.
And in our climate, HEAT CAN KILL RABBITS QUICKLY. If temperatures are climbing into the 90s, we need to have a realistic plan for keeping rabbits safe. Shade alone doesn't always make a hot, poorly ventilated building safe.
Invest in a good shop vac. Clean regularly. Check nails at least monthly. Put your hands and eyes on every rabbit, every day β and check litters even more frequently.
Most importantly, keep your rabbitry as though Animal Control or the SPCA could walk onto your property tomorrow and photograph every cage.
That doesn't mean your barn needs to be spotless. It means you should be able to stand behind the condition of your animals and explain your husbandry without making excuses.
None of us are perfect. Sometimes chores get behind. Sometimes a water bowl gets dumped immediately after we fill it. Sometimes a rabbit gets sick between morning and evening chores. Sometimes a kit dies unexpectedly.
The standard isn't perfection. The standard is responsible care β and correcting problems when we find them.
Protect your rabbits. Protect your reputation. And frankly, protect our hobby. π
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1FNwAQ9nxv/