Mary Allen
The original home of domestic rabbits is the warm regions of southern Europe. Rabbit breeders can make the cold season more bearable for their animals by taking a few precautions.
Rabbits are tough. Outside temperatures in the double-digit minus range leave the Hoppler cold, in the truest sense of the word. Plenty of undercoats with matching winter fur form the necessary protective layer against the bitter cold.
Domestic rabbits inherited their resilience from their ancestor, the wild rabbit. Although its origin is in southern Europe, over the centuries it has also adapted to the Central European climate. Wild rabbits survive frosty nights in their warming burrows. During the day they like to sunbathe to warm up.
This wild behavior is also observed in domestic rabbits. In the run, for example, they like to lie on a raised, dry surface even when the temperature is below zero and let the sun burn their fur. Healthy and vigorous rabbits can therefore live outside in winter without any problems. On the other hand, weakened or sick animals are less resilient and may not survive a cold snap. However, this corresponds to the natural selection of their ancestors.
Above all, rabbits tolerate the so-called dry cold very well. On the other hand, what can affect them are damp and windy weather conditions. If you are draughty or wet, there is a great risk of hypothermia or even catching a cold. It is therefore important that the domesticated animals, like their wild counterparts, can retreat to a windproof and dry shelter if necessary.
The simplest and most efficient measures to make this possible are dry bedding and plenty of straw so that the animals can burrow like in a cave. Covering with a blanket or tarpaulin can also provide relief or remedy in the event of unfavorable capricious weather.
The sable rabbit breeder Norbert Koller from Bütschwil SG has a few tips up his sleeve to get rabbits safely through the cold. “The barn must be tight and protected from the wind on three sides,” he says. “It must never rain or snow in the boxes.” It would be best if the rabbits had two compartments at their disposal. “Most of the time they have a clean compartment that you can cover-up, and in the other, they have their toilet.” At very low temperatures, the holder can cover half of the little door. But because of the moisture, he must never completely close it with plastic.
Water, Vegetables, and Twigs
The bedding should be dry and rich for the rabbits to nest. Furthermore, you also put very well, coarse hay on the ground, so the animals have a lot to nibble and process. If everything is frozen, don’t clear it out, it’s better to scatter some straw, this gives a similar effect to a warming mattress.
Koller uses aluminum cups as drinking utensils, they can be defrosted quickly. To do this, hot water is emptied into a bucket and the drinking utensils are placed in it. After a minute you can pour out the ice and fill the drinking cups halfway with warm water. Top up a bit the next morning, add a piece of apple or turnip. In this way, says Koller, the animals are best overwintered and in the spring you can look forward to vital and healthy rabbits.
Not only freshwater is of central importance for the well-being of the animals, but also nutrition. Rabbits love native winter vegetables and fruits such as turnips, turnip greens, celery (including the herb), and especially apples. They also like to nibble off fresh branches and twigs. The rabbit breeder Claude Stöpfer from Baltschieder VS, therefore, does not cut his fruit trees all at once. “I’ll take my time all winter. Because I feed the twigs to my rabbits, so they always have something to nibble on.”
The Benefits of Keeping Indoors
Rabbits are not exposed to the cold everywhere in winter. Max Gunter from Susten VS keeps his two dwarf rabbits in a block of flats for the time being. In May, however, his long-awaited wish comes true. He’s moving into an older single-family house with a plot of land. “There I can build a stall with a run for my two animals and finally offer them a place to stay that suits their nature,” he says. In addition, the hoppers get company from chickens or quail. Maybe, says Gunter, he’ll even become a breeder later.
For the time being, his animals are spending the winter in the apartment. He only lets them out on the terrace when there is foehn weather and sunshine. “Since they are always warm, I don’t think their fur has the robustness to withstand the cool temperatures,” says Gunter. “But next winter you can choose when you want to go outside.”
Even among breeders, there are those who keep them indoors. “The biggest advantage in winter is that you have the convenience of a sheltered area in nasty weather conditions,” says Romeo Bregy from Termen-VS, who breeds Red New Zealanders. The disadvantage, according to Bregy, is that the coat quality sometimes leaves a lot to be desired. Exchange of air must take place in the barn, but without a draft. If everything is sealed too tightly, condensation will form – excessive humidity is a great risk of illness.
The indoor stable also offers advantages for the breeder: feeding, mucking out, and viewing the animals are easier – and talking shop among fellow breeders in the protected stable is much more pleasant. “Sometimes it’s almost too much fun,” says Bregy with a smile, “then the breeder exchange takes a really long time.” The nice thing about it is that this in turn strengthened the cohesion among like-minded people.