Please keep your buns warm in the freezing weather

This is one of the coldest winters in memory, and pet rabbits who live outside in hutches are particularly at risk at this time of year. Rabbits have fur coats but they only offer so much protection, and in the wild they huddle together in their burrows, sharing body warmth with the rest of the warren. When they’re in a hutch at the end of the garden they don’t have this luxury. Tragically, the Rabbit Welfare Association and Fund have had many of calls to the helpline this week from people who have found their rabbits frozen to death.

Please read the following pointers and protect your rabbits from the cold.:

Put a tarpaulin, plastic sheet, or even an old or cheap duvet over the hutch, particularly at night, keep it out of the wind, and preferably bring your rabbit into a shed or indoors while the weather is unbearable. If your bun has health problems then it really won’t stand a chance outside in this weather, so please bring it indoors at least until it warms up.

Line the hutch with plenty of newspapers or old towels, and then fill with lots and lots of hay. Put a cover on the water bottle to stop it freezing, these can be bought in pet shops, along with hutch covers. It's also a good idea to have two water bottles and rotate them, swapping them over in the morning and evening.

When it’s cold and dark, it’s easy to put off feeding and cleaning out the pet rabbit, please take your responsibilities as an owner and do the right thing for the rabbit and make sure it has plenty of food, water and lots and lots of hay - even if it means getting numb fingers in the process. In fact, in weather like this it’s worth getting outside and checking even more than you would normally, so if your rabbit is showing signs of distress due to the cold (eating less, immobile, laboured breathing) then you can get it the medical attention it needs, starting with getting it warm!

Rabbits can’t make a noise like a dog or a cat when they are in distress so they can only suffer in silence. Please do everything you can to keep your rabbit warm in this bitter weather.

For more information on giving your rabbit the life it deserves, see our information leaflets or call our helpline on 0870 046 5249